Jump to content

Iraqi Turkmen: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Bunifa88 (talk | contribs)
272 edits
Bunifa88 (talk | contribs)
272 edits
some correction of language, religion, and tab placement.
Line 12: Line 12:


The Turkmen of Iraq are not to be confused with the [[Turkmen people|Turkmen of Central Asia]] who reside primarily in [[Turkmenistan]], [[Afghanistan]] and [[Iran]]. Iraqi Turkmen form a distinct group within the [[Oghuz Turks|Oghuz Turk]] classification, which includes [[Ottoman Turks]], modern [[Turkish people]], [[Azerbaijani people|Azeris]], and the [[Turkmen people|Turkmen of Central Asia]].<ref>http://www.ethnologue.com/show_family.asp?subid=90026</ref><ref name="multiple">[http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/iraq/1999/9-050399.html The Iraqi Turkomans: Who They Are And What They Want], [[Radio Free Europe]]</ref>
The Turkmen of Iraq are not to be confused with the [[Turkmen people|Turkmen of Central Asia]] who reside primarily in [[Turkmenistan]], [[Afghanistan]] and [[Iran]]. Iraqi Turkmen form a distinct group within the [[Oghuz Turks|Oghuz Turk]] classification, which includes [[Ottoman Turks]], modern [[Turkish people]], [[Azerbaijani people|Azeris]], and the [[Turkmen people|Turkmen of Central Asia]].<ref>http://www.ethnologue.com/show_family.asp?subid=90026</ref><ref name="multiple">[http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/iraq/1999/9-050399.html The Iraqi Turkomans: Who They Are And What They Want], [[Radio Free Europe]]</ref>

⚫
==Demography==
⚫
Most of the Western sources indicates that Iraqi Turkmen make up less than 5 % <ref>[1,2% of the population are Turkmen. http://books.google.com/books?id=focLrox-frUC&pg=PA218&dq=Turkmen+population+Iraq+cyril&lr=]</ref> of the Iraqi population while Turkmen scholars generally tend to claim higher <ref>[Iraq: People, History, Politics, By Gareth Stansfield, Edition: illustrated, revised, Published by Polity, 2007 ISBN 0745632262, 9780745632261 (see page 71)]</ref><ref>[http://books.google.com/books?um=1&q=Claims+that+the+Iraqi+Turkmen+population+in+Iraq+numbered+up+to+3+million+were+obvious+exaggerations&btnG=Search+Books]</ref> numbers for their people in Iraq.

⚫
The American administration, and the Western world in general, has underestimated the Turkmen presence in Iraq. [[Orhan Ketene]], the U.S. representative for the [[Iraqi Turkmen Front]], argues that the basis for the erroneous estimates originates from various sources that provide false information regarding the Turkmen population. The United States uses two sources: the CIA’s World Fact Book and the Library of Congress. Both sources miscalculate the population of Turkmen in Iraq. They indicate that the Turkmen are less than 5 percent of the population. Ketene argues that both sources represent the information gathered by the Saddam Hussein government, which sought to eradicate the Turkmen presence in this oil-rich and strategic region. Consequently, the American administration in Iraq does not see Turkmen as a significant group in the reconstruction process. [[Iraqi Turkmen Front]] also argues that the American government should implement a comprehensive study on the demography of Iraq, in order to ensure a better position in the conflict.


==The Term "Turkmen" for Iraqi Turks==
==The Term "Turkmen" for Iraqi Turks==
Line 22: Line 17:
As disturbing the fact is about the term, it has not been completely rejected by the Iraqi Turks, as the "men" in Turkmen means "I" in Turkish, thus making the term mean "I am Turk/Turkish".
As disturbing the fact is about the term, it has not been completely rejected by the Iraqi Turks, as the "men" in Turkmen means "I" in Turkish, thus making the term mean "I am Turk/Turkish".
The term Turkmen may also refer to [[Oghuz Turks]] who migrated to the west, and Muslim Turks which includes Turks of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Balkans, Cypriot and Syria.
The term Turkmen may also refer to [[Oghuz Turks]] who migrated to the west, and Muslim Turks which includes Turks of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Balkans, Cypriot and Syria.

⚫
==Demography==
⚫
Most of the Western sources indicates that Iraqi Turkmen make up less than 5 % <ref>[1,2% of the population are Turkmen. http://books.google.com/books?id=focLrox-frUC&pg=PA218&dq=Turkmen+population+Iraq+cyril&lr=]</ref> of the Iraqi population while Turkmen scholars generally tend to claim higher <ref>[Iraq: People, History, Politics, By Gareth Stansfield, Edition: illustrated, revised, Published by Polity, 2007 ISBN 0745632262, 9780745632261 (see page 71)]</ref><ref>[http://books.google.com/books?um=1&q=Claims+that+the+Iraqi+Turkmen+population+in+Iraq+numbered+up+to+3+million+were+obvious+exaggerations&btnG=Search+Books]</ref> numbers for their people in Iraq.

⚫
The American administration, and the Western world in general, has underestimated the Turkmen presence in Iraq. [[Orhan Ketene]], the U.S. representative for the [[Iraqi Turkmen Front]], argues that the basis for the erroneous estimates originates from various sources that provide false information regarding the Turkmen population. The United States uses two sources: the CIA’s World Fact Book and the Library of Congress. Both sources miscalculate the population of Turkmen in Iraq. They indicate that the Turkmen are less than 5 percent of the population. Ketene argues that both sources represent the information gathered by the Saddam Hussein government, which sought to eradicate the Turkmen presence in this oil-rich and strategic region. Consequently, the American administration in Iraq does not see Turkmen as a significant group in the reconstruction process. [[Iraqi Turkmen Front]] also argues that the American government should implement a comprehensive study on the demography of Iraq, in order to ensure a better position in the conflict.


==Language==<!-- This section is linked from [[Ninawa Governorate]] -->
==Language==<!-- This section is linked from [[Ninawa Governorate]] -->
Line 27: Line 27:


==Religion==
==Religion==
The majority of Turkmen are Muslims. Some sources state that they are evenly split between [[Sunni Islam|Sunni]] and [[Shia Islam]] by faith.<ref>http://iussp2005.princeton.edu/download.aspx?submissionId=50067</ref> There is no difference at all between the Sunni and Shiite Turkmen in the dialogue, language or culture. Intermarriage between the Shiite and Sunni Turkmen is very common.
The majority of Turkmen are Muslims, but there are also about 30,000 Christian “catholic” Turks living in Iraq. Turkmen jews supposedly left for Israel when the state was established.
Some sources state that the Muslims are evenly split between [[Sunni Islam|Sunni]] and [[Shia Islam]] by faith.<ref>http://iussp2005.princeton.edu/download.aspx?submissionId=50067</ref> There is no difference at all between the Sunni and Shiite Turkmen in the dialogue, language or culture. Intermarriage between the Shiite and Sunni Turkmen is very common.


According to Talip Büyük, Shiites are 65% of the population and Sunnis make up the rest.<ref>[http://www.milliyet.com.tr/2007/02/20/guncel/agun.html Kerkük, 'Kerbela'mız / Güncel / Milliyet Gazete<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> [[Juan Cole]] says that they practice a [[ghulat]] form of Shiism (cf. Turkey's [[Alevi]]s).<ref> Juan Cole, "Iraq must be Kept together as a single state," from ''Informed Comment,'' 9/20/2003 </ref>
According to Talip Büyük, Shiites are 65% of the population and Sunnis make up the rest.<ref>[http://www.milliyet.com.tr/2007/02/20/guncel/agun.html Kerkük, 'Kerbela'mız / Güncel / Milliyet Gazete<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> [[Juan Cole]] says that they practice a [[ghulat]] form of Shiism (cf. Turkey's [[Alevi]]s).<ref> Juan Cole, "Iraq must be Kept together as a single state," from ''Informed Comment,'' 9/20/2003 </ref>

Revision as of 18:07, 6 March 2009

Turkey Iraqi Turkmen Iraq
Regions with significant populations
Kirkuk, Arbil, Tal Afar, and Mosul
Languages
a form of South Azerbaijani and Urfa dialect (spoken language), standard Turkish (written language), Arabic
Religion
Shia and Sunni Islam
Related ethnic groups
Other Turkic peoples, Oghuz Turks, Syrian Turkmen
Part of a series of articles on
Turkish people
People
Population
Traditional Areas of Turkish Settlement

Turkish majorities:

  • Turkish minorities in the Balkans:
  • Turkish minorities in the Caucasus:
  • Turkish minorities in the Levant:
  • Turkish minorities in North Africa:
  • Other Turkish minorities:


  • Turkish diasporas in the Americas:
  • Turkish diasporas in Central Asia:
  • Turkish diasporas in Oceania:
  • Other Turkish diasporas:
History
Culture
Languages
Religion

The Iraqi Turks or Iraqi Turkmen (also spelled Turkomen, Turcoman, and Turkman) (Turkish: Irak Türkmenleri/Irak Türkleri) are a distinct Turkic ethnic group living in Turkmeneli, Iraq, notably in the cities of Kirkuk, Arbil, Tal Afar, and Mosul. There are also significant numbers of Turkmen in the central provinces of Baghdad, Wasit. They are the third largest ethnic group in Iraq (following the Arabs and the Kurds). However, estimates of their numbers vary dramatically, from 200,000-300,000 by western experts[2][3] [4] to 3,500,000 by Turkish soirces[5].[6][7][8][9] . They have been undergoing decades of assimilation campaigns in Iraq.

The Turkmen of Iraq are not to be confused with the Turkmen of Central Asia who reside primarily in Turkmenistan, Afghanistan and Iran. Iraqi Turkmen form a distinct group within the Oghuz Turk classification, which includes Ottoman Turks, modern Turkish people, Azeris, and the Turkmen of Central Asia.[10][11]

The Term "Turkmen" for Iraqi Turks

The term Turkmen for Iraqi Turks seems to have been created during the course of the discussion on the Mosul issue in the third decade of the last century, in order to isolate the Iraqi Turks from Turkey. This was used as a factor against Turkey during negotiations, in order to join this oil rich Ottoman province to the newly founded Iraq by Britain. As disturbing the fact is about the term, it has not been completely rejected by the Iraqi Turks, as the "men" in Turkmen means "I" in Turkish, thus making the term mean "I am Turk/Turkish". The term Turkmen may also refer to Oghuz Turks who migrated to the west, and Muslim Turks which includes Turks of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Balkans, Cypriot and Syria.

Demography

Most of the Western sources indicates that Iraqi Turkmen make up less than 5 % [12] of the Iraqi population while Turkmen scholars generally tend to claim higher [13][14] numbers for their people in Iraq.

The American administration, and the Western world in general, has underestimated the Turkmen presence in Iraq. Orhan Ketene, the U.S. representative for the Iraqi Turkmen Front, argues that the basis for the erroneous estimates originates from various sources that provide false information regarding the Turkmen population. The United States uses two sources: the CIA’s World Fact Book and the Library of Congress. Both sources miscalculate the population of Turkmen in Iraq. They indicate that the Turkmen are less than 5 percent of the population. Ketene argues that both sources represent the information gathered by the Saddam Hussein government, which sought to eradicate the Turkmen presence in this oil-rich and strategic region. Consequently, the American administration in Iraq does not see Turkmen as a significant group in the reconstruction process. Iraqi Turkmen Front also argues that the American government should implement a comprehensive study on the demography of Iraq, in order to ensure a better position in the conflict.

Language

The Iraqi Turkmen speak a dialect of Turkish that is heavily influenced by Arabic and Ottoman Turkish.[citation needed] Ethnologue and Linguasphere classify their spoken language as a form and a mix of South Azerbaijani and Urfa dialect. For their written language, they use the standard Turkish language and Latin-based Turkish alphabet.[11] Like Turkey, they have been using as a modified version of Arabic alphabet in the past.

Religion

The majority of Turkmen are Muslims, but there are also about 30,000 Christian “catholic” Turks living in Iraq. Turkmen jews supposedly left for Israel when the state was established.

Some sources state that the Muslims are evenly split between Sunni and Shia Islam by faith.[15] There is no difference at all between the Sunni and Shiite Turkmen in the dialogue, language or culture. Intermarriage between the Shiite and Sunni Turkmen is very common.

According to Talip Büyük, Shiites are 65% of the population and Sunnis make up the rest.[16] Juan Cole says that they practice a ghulat form of Shiism (cf. Turkey's Alevis).[17]

History

The origin of the Iraqi Turkmen dates back to the Al-Ma'mun and Al-Mu'tasim rules of Abbasid in 9th century. Most of the Turkmen living in the region settled in northern Iraq during the early Seljuk Empire period, when Turks migrated from Central Asia (Turkestan) to Anatolia, Iran and Iraq. A recent addition to this population was made by the Ottoman Empire who brought Turks from Anatolia to the region to secure and transport mail from Baghdad to Istanbul and vice versa in the 18th century. Others were sent to the region by the Ottomans to repel tribal raids.[18] These groups settled at the entrances of the valleys that gave them access to Kurdish-dominated areas. This historic role of pacification has led to the development of strained relations between the Turkmen and the Kurds.[3] With the rise of Saddam Hussein and Ba'ath domination over Iraq, a policy of Arabization was imposed on the Turkmen and the rest of Iraq's non-Arab minorities. It was declared in the constitution that schools were prohibited from using the Turkish language and banned Turkish-language media in Iraq. In the 1980s, Saddam prohibited the public use of the Turkish language completely.

File:Iraq demography.jpg
Distribution of Religious and Ethnic Groups in Iraq

The Turkmen of Iraq live mainly in the north and middle of the country; according to them, their number is severely underestimated, and approximates at least 2.5 million. The Turkmen of Iraq constitute generations of different Turkish clans who entered the area that is now modern day Iraq over thousands of years, for example, Oghus, Kipchak, Azerbaijanian and Mongols.

Assimilation Campaigns

Iraqi Turkmen suffered from various degrees of suppression and assimilation that ranged from political persecution and exile to terror, massacres and ethnic cleansing. During the British and monarchy era, despite 1925 constitution and 1932 League of Nations declaration, cultural rights were gradually taken away, activists were sent to exile.

Arab tribes were settled west of Kerkuk. During the early republican era, Communist and separatist groups committed the Kerkuk Massacre of July 14.th, 1959 which aimed at terrorizing and ethnically cleansing the Turkmens from the city.

During the Baathist era, the Iraqi administration granted some cultural rights to the Turkmen on January 24.th, 1970, including education in the Turkish language in primary schools, daily radio broadcasting for two hours and TV broadcasting for half an hour in the Turkish language, these rights were gradually taken away by the authorities and by 1972, all Turkish schools were closed.

The assimilation of the Turkmen already became a state policy in 1971 when the General Assembly of the Baath Party decided to complete the Arabization of Kirkuk by 1980. Administrative boundaries were changed in 1974 to divide Turkmen concentrations. Since the mid 70s, Arabs enjoyed special incentives and rights encouraging them to move to historically Turkmen areas including the oil-rich city of Kerkuk. In the latter half of the 1970s, the names of several villages and places. [19]

Present status

Although some have been able to preserve their language, the Iraqi Turkmen today are being rapidly assimilated into the general population and are no longer tribally organized.[3] With the toppling of Saddam Hussein in 2003, tensions between the Kurds and the Turkmen grew substantially. As a result, Kirkuk soon became the only violent non-Arab city in Iraq during the Iraq War.

Iraqi Turkmen have also emerged as a key political force in the controversy over the future status of northern Iraq and the Kurdish Autonomous Region. The government of Turkey has helped fund such political organizations as the Iraqi Turkmen Front, which opposes Iraqi federalism and in particular the proposed annexation of Kirkuk to the Kurdistan Regional Government.[20]

Tensions between the two groups over Kirkuk, however, have slowly died out and on January 30, 2006, the President of Iraq, Jalal Talabani, said that the "Kurds are working on a plan to give Iraqi Turkmen autonomy in areas where they are a majority in the new constitution they're drafting for the Kurdistan Region of Iraq."[21] However, it never happened and the policies of Kurdification by KDP and PUK after 2003 (with non-Kurds being pressures to move) have prompted serious inter-ethnic problems.[22]

Between ten and twelve Turkmen individuals were elected to the transitional National Assembly of Iraq in January 2005, including five on the United Iraqi Alliance list, three from the Iraqi Turkmen Front (ITF), and either two or four from the Democratic Patriotic Alliance of Kurdistan.[23] [24]

In the December 2005 elections, between five and seven Turkmen candidates were elected to the Council of Representatives. This included one candidate from the ITF (its leader Sadettin Ergec), two or four from the United Iraqi Alliance, one from the Iraqi Accord Front and one from the Kurdistani Alliance. [25][24]

Notable Iraqi Turks

See also

References

  1. ^ The new encyclopedia of Islam, By Cyril Glassé, Huston Smith, Published by Rowman Altamira, 2003, ISBN 0759101906, 9780759101906, 534 pages, see p. 218 [1,2% of the population are Turkmen]
  2. ^ [1]
  3. ^ a b c Helen Chapin Metz and the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress. Iraq: A Country Study, p. 86.
  4. ^ Turkey: Facing a New Millennium : Coping with Intertwined Conflicts, By Amikam Nachmani, page 11, Published 2003, Manchester University Press, 264 pages, ISBN 0719063701
  5. ^ [2]
  6. ^ http://arabicpress.wordpress.com/2008/01/31/iraqi-turkmen-seek-protection-from-possible-collective-genocide/
  7. ^ http://www.unpo.org/content/view/7878/117/
  8. ^ Roraback, Amanda (2004). Iraq in a Nutshell. Enisen Publishing. p. 36. ISBN 978-0970290861. Retrieved 2008-05-05. Most of the nearly 2000000 Turkomans in Iraq live in the Kirkuk and Mosul... web link {{cite book}}: External link in |quote= (help)
  9. ^ Adherents.com - Iraq
  10. ^ http://www.ethnologue.com/show_family.asp?subid=90026
  11. ^ a b The Iraqi Turkomans: Who They Are And What They Want, Radio Free Europe
  12. ^ [1,2% of the population are Turkmen. http://books.google.com/books?id=focLrox-frUC&pg=PA218&dq=Turkmen+population+Iraq+cyril&lr=]
  13. ^ [Iraq: People, History, Politics, By Gareth Stansfield, Edition: illustrated, revised, Published by Polity, 2007 ISBN 0745632262, 9780745632261 (see page 71)]
  14. ^ [3]
  15. ^ http://iussp2005.princeton.edu/download.aspx?submissionId=50067
  16. ^ Kerkük, 'Kerbela'mız / Güncel / Milliyet Gazete
  17. ^ Juan Cole, "Iraq must be Kept together as a single state," from Informed Comment, 9/20/2003
  18. ^ Helen Chapin Metz and the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress. Iraq: A Country Study, p. 85.
  19. ^ http://www.unpo.org/content/view/7878/117/
  20. ^ Kurds Accused Of Rigging Kirkuk Vote, Al Jazeera
  21. ^ Cevik, Ilnur (2006-01-30). "Talabani: Autonomy for Turkmen in Kurdistan". Kurdistan Weekly. Retrieved 2006-05-20.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
  22. ^ Stansfield, Gareth. (2007). Iraq: People, History, Politics. p71
  23. ^ Interesting Outcomes in Iraqi Election, Zaman Daily Newspaper
  24. ^ a b The New Iraq, The Middle East and Turkey: A Turkish View, Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research, 2006-04-01, accessed on 2007-09-06
  25. ^ Turkmens Win Only One Seat in Kerkuk, Iraqi Turkmen Front
Retrieved from "https://wiki.riteme.site/w/index.php?title=Iraqi_Turkmen&oldid=275437343"