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عرب تركيا | |
|---|---|
| Total population | |
| 1,500,000 –2,000,000(2011)[1][2] (Pre-Syrian Civil War Arab minority) 4,000,000 –5,000,000(2017)[3][4][5][6][7][8](IncludingSyrian refugees) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| MainlySoutheastern Anatolia Region | |
| Languages | |
| Arabic •Turkish[9] | |
| Religion | |
| PredominatelySunni Islam, minorityChristianity, minorityAlawite | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Arab diaspora |
Arabs in Turkey (Turkish:Türkiye Arapları;Arabic:عرب تركيا) are about 1.5 million or 5 million (including theSyrian refugees)[10][11][12][6] citizens or residents ofTurkey who are ethnically ofArab descent. They are the third-largest minority in the country after theKurds[13][14][15] and theCircassians[16][17][18][19][20] and are concentrated in a few provinces inSoutheastern Anatolia. In addition to this native group, millions of ArabSyrian refugees have sought refuge in Turkey since the beginning of theSyrian civil war in 2011.[21]
Besides the large communities of both foreign and Turkish Arabs inIstanbul and other large cities, most live in the south and southeast.[22]
Turkish Arabs are mostlyMuslims living along the southeastern border withSyria andIraq but also in Mediterranean coastal regions in the following provinces:Batman,Bitlis,Gaziantep,Hatay,Mardin,Muş,Siirt,Şırnak,Şanlıurfa,Mersin andAdana. Many tribes, in addition to other Arabs who settled there, arrived before Turkic tribes came toAnatolia fromCentral Asia in the 11th century. Many of these Arabs have ties to Arabs in Syria and Saudi Arabia, especially in the city ofRaqqa. Arab society in Turkey has been subject toTurkification, yet some speak Arabic in addition to Turkish.[citation needed] TheTreaty of Lausanne ceded to Turkey large areas that had been part ofOttoman Syria, especially inAleppo Vilayet.[23]
Besides a significantShafi'iSunni population, about 300,000 to 350,000 areAlawites[24] (distinct fromAlevism). About 18,000Arab Christians[25] belong mostly to theGreek Orthodox Church of Antioch.[26] There are also fewArab Jews inHatay and other Turkish parts of the formerAleppo Vilayet, but this community has shrank considerably since the late 1940s, mostly due to migration toIsrael and other parts of Turkey.
Arabs presence in what used to be called Asia Minor dates back to theHellenistic period. The Arab dynasty of theAbgarids were rulers of theKingdom of Osroene, with its capital in the ancient city ofEdessa (Modern day city ofUrfa). According to Retsö, the Arabs presence in Edessa dates back to AD 49.[27] In addition, the Roman authorPliny the Elder refers to the natives of Osroene as Arabs and the region as Arabia.[28] In the nearbyTektek Mountains, Arabs seem to have made it the seat of the governors of 'Arab.[29] An early Arab figure who flourished in Anatolia is the 2nd century grammarianPhrynichus Arabius, specifically in the Roman province ofBithynia. Another example is the 4th century Roman politicianDomitius Modestus who was appointed by EmperorJulian to the position ofPraefectus urbi ofConstantinople (Modern day Istanbul). And under EmperorValens, he becamePraetorian Prefect of the East whose seat was also in Constantinople. In the 6th century, the famous Arab poetImru' al-Qais journeyed to Constantinople in the time of Byzantine EmperorJustinian I. On his way back, it is said that he died and was buried atAncyra (Modern day Ankara) in theCentral Anatolia Region.[30]
In the early Islamic conquests, theRashidun Caliphate successful campaigns in the Levant lead to the fall of theGhassanids. The last Ghassanid kingJabalah ibn al-Aiham with as many as 30,000 Arab followers managed to avoid the punishment of theCaliph Umar by escaping to the domains of theByzantine Empire.[31] King Jabalah ibn al-Aiham established a government-in-exile in Constantinople[32] and lived in Anatolia until his death in 645. Following the early Muslim conquests, Asia Minor became the main ground for theArab-Byzantine wars. Among those Arabs who were killed in the wars wasAbu Ayyub al-Ansari, a companion of the Islamic prophetMuhammad. Abu Ayyub was buried at the walls of Constantinople. Centuries later, after theOttomans conquest of the city, a tomb above Abu Ayyub's grave was constructed and a mosque built by the name ofEyüp Sultan Mosque. From that point on, the area became known as the locality ofEyup by the Ottoman officials. Another instance of Arab presence in what is nowadays Turkey is the settlement of Arab tribes in the 7th century in the region ofAl-Jazira (Upper Mesopotamia), that partially encompasses Southeastern Turkey. Among those tribes are theBanu Bakr,Mudar,Rabi'ah ibn Nizar andBanu Taghlib.
| Year | Turkey's population | As a first language | % | As a second language | Total Speakers | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1927 census | 13,629,488 | 134,273 | 0.99 | - | 134,273 | 0.99 |
| 1935 census | 16,157,450 | 153,687 | 0.95 | 34,028 | 187,715 | 1.16 |
| 1945 census | 18,790,174 | 247,294 | 1.32 | 60,061 | 307,355 | 1.64 |
| 1950 census | 20,947,188 | 269,038 | 1.28 | - | 269,038 | 1.28 |
| 1955 census | 24,064,763 | 300,583 | 1.25 | 95,612 | 396,195 | 1.65 |
| 1960 census | 27,754,820 | 347,690 | 1.25 | 134,962 | 482,652 | 1.74 |
| 1965 census | 31,391,421 | 365,340 | 1.16 | 169,724 | 533,264 | 1.70 |
According to a Turkish study based on a large survey in 2006, 0.7% of the total population in Turkey were ethnically Arab.[34] The population of Arabs in Turkey varies according to different sources. A 1995 American estimate put the numbers between 800,000 and 1 million.[2] According toEthnologue, in 1992 there were 500,000 people withArabic as their mother tongue in Turkey.[35] Another Turkish study estimated the Arab population to be between 1.1 and 2.4%.[36]
A significant Arab population has long existed inCilicia in southern Turkey. Most of them areAlawites, but Sunnis and Orthodox Christians are also present. The number of Alawites in the provinces ofAdana andMersin, determined through surveys and field work in 2000, was estimated between 247,000 and 329,000, encompassing the area's three large cities (Adana, Mersin and Tarsus) and the country side.[37] The percentages of Alawite Arab are estimated at 5-6% in Mersin, 10-15% in Adana, and 15-20% inTarsus.[37] Thirty-two Alawite Arab villages are scattered in the area south of the Adana-Mersin road.[37]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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