Some subjects of the Seljuk
and later the Ottoman
Sultans adopted the language and the religion of
their masters. Others, on the contrairy, hold fast
on their identity and they represent the following
minorities:
The Armenians
mainly settled in Eastern
Anatolia. Centuries later, some came to live
in Istanbul from the
12C. The Ottoman Armenians obtained confidence and
credit with the sultans and were shown as the "loyal
community". They became bankers, traders, manufacturers
and rose to high positions in the imperial administration.
For example, in the 19C. they acceded to the supreme
rank of pashas, of ministers, parliamentarians (1876),
consuls, professors, officers... After the tragic
events (for both sides) of 1894-96 and 1915-17,
following the repressions to the riots of the nationalist
Armenians, today, there are about 30,000 Armenians
still living in Turkey, perpetuating their traditions,
and contributing like in the past to the country's
culture,arts, music and science..
The Greeks of Anatolia
are also called Rums and are of Byzantine
origin. Most of them left the country at the time
of the exchange of the populations following
upon the War
of Independence: 1 million Greeks had
to leave Anatolia in exchange of 200,000 turks living
on the Greek territory. Those who have remained
live essentially in Istanbul, in Bozcaada and Gökçeada
Islands.
The Jews whose
traces can already be found in Anatolia from the
4C., were later welcomed by the Ottomans who had
a great tolerance regarding religions. Sefaraddi
Jews ran away from the Spanish Inquisition in 1492,
finding a home and security in old Istanbul. Other
Ashkenazi Jews came from northern and eastern Europe.
They took part in the development of the country,
bringing their experience and playing a prominent
part in various fields. Today, about 25,000 Jews
live in the main cities of Turkey.
The Kurds are the largest ethnic group after
the Turks. People of Kurdish origin represent less
than 10% of the population. The Kurds do not live
solely in the east and the south-east of the country,
but in all regions of Turkey, and most of all in
Istanbul. A majority of these people speak Turkish
and also Kurdish which is not a prohibited language.
On August 2, 2002, the Turkish
Parliament voted in favour of teaching the Kurdish
language in Turkish schools.
The 10th article of the Turkish Constitution states
that "all citizens are equal before the law
with no discrimination as to language, race, color,
political leanings, philosophy, religion and similar
factors".
