Hostility to the Turks

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Flag of Turkey shown by opponents of Turkey , crossed out
A Russian propaganda poster of the First World War , which has an oriental drawn Turk run away from a soldier.

As Turkish antagonism , also known as Turks phobia is called the hostility, fear and resentment against Turks , Turkish culture or the Republic of Turkey (previously against the Ottoman Empire ).

Hostility towards the Turks already arose in the Ottoman Empire, so pan-Arabism, striving for independence from the Ottoman Empire, developed out of an anti-Turkish attitude.

In the Balkans, hostility towards the Turks also refers to intolerance against non-Turkish Muslims, especially Albanians , Bosnians and Macedonian Muslims . It can also be transferred to prejudices against ethnic Turks living outside Turkey in the Turkish diaspora .

Early history

The roots of Turkophobia can be traced back to the Hunnic invasions in Europe, when the Huns or Turkic peoples were considered ruthless nomadic hordes and spread fear among local residents. In 1870 the phenomenon of anti- Turkishism was described by the term Turkophobia . Turkophobia dates back to the fall of Constantinople and the Turkish Wars of the late Middle Ages , compounded by efforts by Western Christianity to stem the expansion of the Ottoman Empire. In the middle of the 15th century special masses, called missa contra turcas ("Mass against Turks"), were held in various places in Western Europe. The message of these masses was that victory over the Turks could only be achieved with the help of God and that a Christian community was necessary would be to withstand the cruelty of the Turks.

16th Century

Original print from the 16th century in the Hungarian National Museum showing a Turkish fighter slaughtering children

Bishop Fabri of Vienna (1536–1541) said:

"There are no villains under heaven more cruel and bolder than the Turks, who spare no age or gender and mercilessly knock down young and old at the same time and tear unripe fruits from the womb of their mothers."

In the 16th century around 2,500 publications on the Turkish threat in Western Europe were distributed (more than a thousand in German ), often with a picture of the “bloodthirsty Turk”.

During this time, the Ottoman Empire invaded the Balkans and besieged Vienna . There was a lot of fear of the Ottoman advance in Western Europe , especially in Germany . Martin Luther served these fears by claiming that the Turks were agents of the devil who, together with the Antichrist in the heart of the Catholic Church ( Rome ), would lead to the latter days and the Apocalypse. Luther took the view that the Turkish invasion of Europe was God's punishment for Christianity - because of the alleged corruption in the Holy See and the Church . On December 18, 1519 Luther affirmed his view of Rome and the Turks in a letter to his friend Wenzeslaus Linck: "I think I can show that Rome is worse than the Turks today." 1518, when he defended his 95 theses , declared he that God sent the Turks to punish Christians in the same way as war, plagues and earthquakes. Pope Leo X's answer was the papal bull in which he threatened Luther with excommunication and tried to portray him as a troublemaker who advocated surrender to the Turks. In his writings on the war against the Turks and the military sermon against the Turks , Luther "consistently advocated his theological conception of the Turks as a sign of God's flagellating rod ". Luther and his followers contributed significantly to the view that the war between the Habsburgs and the Ottomans was also a war “between Christ and the Antichrist” or “between God and the devil”.

In striving to conquer other countries in East Africa, the Portuguese Empire used every encounter with the “terrible Turks” as an opportunity to distinguish itself as masters of the faith.

Stories of the Wolf Turk also gave Western Europe a negative image of the Turks. The wolf turk was supposed to represent a man-eating creature, half animal and half human - with a wolf's head and a tail.

17th century

During the 17th century, the Turks and the Turkish lifestyle were portrayed negatively for ideological reasons. The use of accounts of the Turks and their customs written in the 17th and 18th centuries "served as an ideological weapon in discussions of the nature of government during the Enlightenment ." Writers projected an image of the Turks that " imprecise but accepted ”. Often times, in view of the writings on Turks and their lifestyle, “Accuracy was of little concern; what counted was the illusion. "

In Sweden , the Turks were declared the arch enemy of Christianity . This becomes clear in the book Luna Turcica eller Turkeske måne, anwissjandes lika som uti en spegel det mahometiske vanskelige regementet, fördelter uti fyra qvarter eller böcker , which was published in 1694 by the priest Erland Dryselius from Jönköping . The country's clergy preached about the general cruelty and bloodthirstiness of the Turks and how they systematically burned and plundered their conquered territories. In a Swedish textbook published in 1795, Islam was described as "the false religion" , "which was fabricated by the great deceiver Mohammed , to which the Turks everywhere profess to this day."

In Orientalism , Edward Said noted :

“Until the end of the seventeenth century, the 'Ottoman threat' lurked next to Europe to pose a constant threat to the entire Christian civilization, and in time European civilization took over this threat and its legend, its major events, figures, virtues and vices as something what is woven into the fabric of life. "

18th century

Voltaire and other European writers criticized the Turks as tyrants who destroyed Europe's heritage.

Inside the Ottoman Empire

Within the Ottoman Empire , the name "Turk" was sometimes used to refer to Turkmen "backwoodsmen, country eggs or the uneducated peasants" in Anatolia . The "Etrak-i bi-idrak", for example, was an Ottoman play on words that meant "the ignorant Turk".

Özay Mehmet says in his book Islamic Identity and Development: Studies of the Islamic Periphery :

“The common Turks (Turkmen) had no sense of belonging to any ruling ethnic group. In particular, they had a confused sense of self. Who were they: Turks, Muslims or Ottomans? Their literature was sometimes Persian , sometimes Arabic , but always courtly and elitist. There was always a great social and cultural distance between the imperial center and the Anatolian periphery. As Bernard Lewis put it: "In the imperial society of the Ottomans the ethnic term Turk was used little, and then above all in a rather derogatory sense to name the Turkoman nomads or later the ignorant and uncouth Turkish-speaking farmers of the Anatolian villages." (Lewis 1968: 1)

In the words of a British observer of Ottoman values ​​and institutions at the beginning of the twentieth century: “The surest way to insult an Ottoman gentleman is to refer to him as a 'Turk'. His face will immediately take on the look a Londoner gets when he hears him being called Cockney . He is not a Turk, not a savage, he will assure you, but an Ottoman subject of the Sultan, but in no way to be confused with certain barbarians called Turkomans, from whom he could possibly descend on the male side. " (Davey 1907: 209) "

Contemporary Turkophobia

In several languages ​​the term “Turk” is often used as an insult or a curse word.

Armenia

For historical reasons such as the Armenian genocide, Armenian-Turkish relations are considered hostile. According to a 2007 survey, 78 percent of Armenians see Turkey as a threat.

Bulgaria

Bulgarian Prime Minister Borisov called the Turks (and the Roma) "bad human material ".

Malta

Since the Maltese fought against the Ottoman Empire during the siege of Malta , the Maltese continue to have a colorful vocabulary for this event. They say, for example, when the sun shines at the same time when it rains: twieled tork (“a Turk was born”). Or if something goes wrong: Haqq ghat-torok (“Curse on the Turks!”).

Quotes and phrases

Quotes

“They [the Turks] were, above all, from the black day on which they first entered Europe, the one great misanthropic species of humanity. Wherever they went, a broad line of blood marked the trail behind them, and, as far as their realm went, civilization vanished from view. They represented government by force everywhere, as opposed to government by law. "

“The barbaric power that has sat in the heart of the Old World for centuries, that has in its power the most famous centuries of classical and religious antiquity and many of the most fertile and beautiful regions on earth ... ignorantly holds half the history of the entire world in Possession."

- Cardinal Newman (1801-1890)

"... tyrants to women and enemies of art ..."

- Voltaire (1694-1778)

"... to chase these barbaric usurpers out of Europe ..."

- Voltaire (1694-1778)

“I sincerely wish that the Turkish barbarians will be chased out of the country [ Greece ] immediately by Xenophon , Socrates , Plato , Sophocles and Euripides . It could be done soon if we wanted to, but seven crusades of superstition have been carried out and one crusade of honor will never take place. We know almost no city that was built by them; they let the most beautiful institutions of antiquity fall apart, they rule over ruins. "

- Voltaire (1694-1778) : The Orient's Christian Realm

"When I look at history, I find that there has not been a nation that has lived out more blasphemy, brutally shameful fornication, as well as every kind of wild and chaotic life than the Turks."

“Finally, I was able to show that the struggle for natural selection has done and is doing more for the advancement of civilization than they seem to admit. Think of the risks the nations of Europe went through, not so many centuries ago, of being overwhelmed by the Turks, and how ridiculous such an idea is now! The more civilized so-called Caucasian races defeated the Turkish cave in battle for existence. Looking at the world at no very distant time, what endless numbers of lower races would be eliminated by the higher civilized races around the world. "

"I have never despised the Chinese as much as these backward Turks and Arabs, and if Russia is ready to go to war with them again, I hope England and France will find no reason or consider it chaste to intervene."

- Mark Twain , 1869

"... and lied like a Turk when he said it."

- Mark Twain , 1869

“… Such individuals as the most distant Turks who can be found in the remote north, the negroes in the far south, and those who are similar among them are also in these areas. The status of this is that of unreasonable animals. "

Phrases with negative connotations

The term “Turk” here has a similar meaning to “ barbarian ” or “ heathen ” in various Western European languages, especially in English:

  • Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary : "Someone who is cruel and tyrannical." (Noted as archaic)
  • Concise Oxford Dictionary: "Grim, ferocious, or unmanageable person."
  • Random House Dictionary: "A cruel and brutal master."

Many vices in the world were associated with the Turks as they advanced further west into Europe. The following is a list of the main sayings about Turks in different countries in Europe and the Middle East:

ArmeniaArmenia Armenia

  • “Թուրք” (“Turk”) is commonly used to question one's loyalty or moral abilities: “հո թուրք չես” (“Are you a Turk?”)
  • “Թուրքի տուն” (“ Turk's House”) is a phrase used to describe a messy or very dirty house

GermanyGermany Germany and AustriaAustriaAustria 

(see also: Turks (verb) )

FranceFrance France

  • Turc was once used in proverbial expressions like C'est un vrai Turc ("That's a real Turk") to describe someone as tough and merciless.

GreeceGreece Greece

  • Έγινε Τούρκος ("He became a Turk") referred to an extreme anger or aggression towards someone or something.

IranIran Iran

  • Tork-e char ("Turkish donkey") is a derogatory insult usually directed against Azerbaijanis .

ItalyItaly Italy

  • bestemmia come un Turco ("he swears like a Turk")
  • Mamma li Turchi! (“Oh mother, the Turks are coming!”) Is one of the most widely used Italian phrases to indicate imminent danger, as if the Ottoman Turks were threatening Western Europe
  • Fumare come un Turco (" Smoke like a Turk") is a phrase that describes a person who smokes a lot.

MaltaMalta Malta

  • Iswed tork ("Black as a Turk"), refers to someone with dark skin
  • Twieled tork ("A Turk was born"), refers to rain when the sun is shining at the same time
  • Għadu Tork! (“He's still a Turk”) refers to an unbaptized person
  • Ara ġej it-Tork għalik (“Look, the Turk is coming for you”), mothers frightened their children by saying that a Turk would come if they did wrong.
  • It-Torok ("From the Turks") when something unusual happens, this phrase is used idiomatically as an exclamation.
  • Ħaqq it-Torok ("Curse on the Turks"), literal swearing when something goes wrong
  • Qattus it-Torok ("To hell with the Turks"), very common usage.
  • Xit-Torok trid? (literally "What the Turkish do you want?")
  • La Torka ("the Turkish way"), crouch down.
  • It-torok imorru fej seħet Alla ("the Turks go where God curses"), rarely used, expresses intolerance towards non-believers.

NetherlandsNetherlands Netherlands

  • “Eruit zien als een Turk” (“to look like a Turk”) means to be dirty, repulsive
  • “Rijden als een Turk” (“drive like a Turk”) means that someone is a bad driver

NorwayNorway Norway

  • “Sint som en tyrker” is a saying that means “Angry as a Turk”

RomaniaRomania Romania

  • “Măi, turcule” (you, Turk) or “a fi turc” (“to be Turkish”) is a term that refers to a person who does not understand anything or is ignorant, stubborn or narrow-minded
  • “A fuma ca un turc” (“smoke like a Turk”) is a term used to describe a person who smokes a lot
  • “Doar nu dah / vin turcii” ( meaning “ hold your horses!” Literally “the Turks are not coming [, are they?]”) Is a term used to calm someone's impulsiveness

RussiaRussia Russia

  • “Незваный гость хуже Татарина” (“An unwelcome guest is worse than a Tatar ”).
  • “Турок” (“Turk”) is commonly used to describe someone's stupidity.

SerbiaSerbia Serbia (and other ex-Yugoslav countries)

  • “Puši ko Turčin / пуши ко Турчин” is a phrase translated as “he smokes like a Turk”, which describes a person who smokes a lot

literature

  • Svante E. Cornell: Small nations and great powers: a study of ethnopolitical conflict in the Caucasus . Routledge, 2001, ISBN 0-7007-1162-7 .
  • Leokadia Drobizheva, Rose Gottemoeller, Catherine McArdle Kelleher: Ethnic Conflict in the Post-Soviet World: Case Studies and Analysis . ME Sharpe, 1998, ISBN 1-56324-741-0 .
  • Renée Hirschon: Crossing the Aegean: An Appraisal of the 1923 Compulsory Population Exchange Between Greece and Turkey . Berghahn Books, 2003, ISBN 1-57181-562-7 .
  • Martin Lee: The Beast Reawakens . Taylor & Francis, 1999, ISBN 0-415-92546-0 .
  • David Levinson: Ethnic groups worldwide: a ready reference handbook . Greenwood Publishing Group, 1998, ISBN 978-1-57356-019-1 .
  • James Minahan: Encyclopedia of the Stateless Nations: LR . Greenwood Publishing Group, 2002, ISBN 0-313-32111-6 .
  • Yiannis Papadakis: Echoes from the Dead Zone: Across the Cyprus divide . IBTauris, 2005, ISBN 1-85043-428-X .
  • Philippos K Savvides: Civil-military relations, nation building, and national identity: comparative perspectives . Ed .: Constantine Panos Danopoulos, Dhirendra K. Vajpeyi, Amir Bar-Or. Greenwood Publishing Group, 2004, ISBN 0-275-97923-7 , Partition Revisited: The International Dimension and the Case of Cyprus.
  • Philipp Ther, Ana Siljak: Redrawing nations: ethnic cleansing in East-Central Europe, 1944–1948 . Rowman & Littlefield, 2001, ISBN 0-7425-1094-8 .
  • Nathalie Tocci: EU accession dynamics and conflict resolution: catalysing peace or consolidating partition in Cyprus? Ashgate Publishing, 2004, ISBN 0-7546-4310-7 .
  • Nathalie Tocci: The EU and conflict resolution: promoting peace in the backyard . Routledge, 2007, ISBN 0-415-41394-X .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Rashid Khalidi: The origins of Arab nationalism . Columbia University Press, 1991, ISBN 978-0-231-07435-3 , pp. 18 ( limited preview in Google Book Search - In the first place, Arabist ideology, including a bitter anti-Turkism, was fully formulated long before the Young Turk revolution ).
  2. ^ Justin McCarthy, The Turk in America: The Creation of an Enduring Prejudice, University of Utah Press; 1st Edition (August 15, 2010) in Google Book Search
  3. ^ The Muslim World League journal, Volume 23, Press and Publications Dept., Muslim World League, 1995 in the Google Book Search
  4. ^ Graham E. Fuller, From Eastern Europe to Western China: the growing role of Turkey in the world and its implications for western interests, United States. Air Force, United States Army, RAND Corporation, 1993: "views the Bosnians as" Turks. "Indeed, the Muslims of Bosnia themselves early on looked to Turkey for diplomatic" in the Google book search
  5. A. Brah, Cartographies of diaspora: contesting identities, Psychology Press, 1996, p. 165 in the Google book search
  6. Christine L. Ogan, Communication and identity in the Diaspora: Turkish migrants in Amsterdam, Lexington Books, 2001, p. 40 in the Google book search
  7. Riva Kastoryano, “Turkish Transnational Nationalism How the 'Turks Abroad' Redefine Nationalism” in: Ajaya Kumar Sahoo, Brij Maharaj, Sociology of diaspora: a reader: Volume 1, 2007, p. 425: “In November 1992, a week after the racist attacks in Molln, during which five people of Turkish origin had been killed ... “ in the Google book search
  8. ^ Justin McCarthy, The Turk in America: The Creation of an Enduring Prejudice, University of Utah Press; 1st Edition (August 15, 2010) in Google Book Search
  9. The Greatest Story Ever Forged in Google Book Search
  10. ^ Ethnological Society (London), Journal of the Ethnological Society of London: Volume 2, 1870, p. 188: "Even Dr. Latham, whose Turcophobia is so pronounced, allows that the Khirgises are, in name and in many respects, other than Turks, though their language is unquestionably Turkish. I believe with him that Khirgis, a mere form of the ... “ in the Google book search
  11. a b c d e f g h i j "Turkey, Sweden and the EU Experiences and Expectations", Report by the Swedish Institute for European Policy Studies, April 2006, p. 6 ( Memento of March 6, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) (dead)
  12. ^ Janus Møller Jensen, Denmark and the Crusades, 1400-1650, BRILL, 2007, p. 117: "The earliest recorded mass against the Turks was composed by Bishop Bernhard of Kotor in 1453/54, immediately after the fall of Constantinople. It was officially confirmed and endowed with an indulgence of 300 days by Pope Paul II in 1470. “ in the Google book search
  13. ^ Andrew Kirkman, The cultural life of the early polyphonic Mass: medieval context to modern revival, Cambridge University Press, 2010, p. 121 in the Google book search
  14. Danielle Buschinger, La croisade: réalités et fictions, Kümmerle, 1989, p. 51: “... pour faire progresser la piété des chrétiens; la liturgie a mis en évidence les défauts des turcs et depuis le milieu du 15ème siècle une missa contra Turcas (messe contre les Turcs) a été célébrée, où l'impie est désormais le Turc. ” in the Google book search
  15. ^ Miller, GJ (2003). Luther on the Turks and Islam. In T. Wengert (Ed.), Harvesting Martin Luther's reflections on theology, ethics, and the church. (P. 185). Grand Rapids MI: WB Eerdmans Pub. Co. limited preview in Google Book search
  16. Sean Foley. (2009). Muslims and Social Change in the Atlantic Basin. Journal of World History, 20 (3), 377-398. [1]
  17. ^ Smith, RO (2007). Luther, the Turks, and Islam. Currents in Theology and Mission, 34 (5), 351–365 ( Memento from July 10, 2012 in the web archive archive.today ): “Luther's statement of explanation created yet more contention. Indeed, it was singled out for condemnation in Exsurge Domine, the papal bull of excommunication directed at Luther by Pope Leo X on June 15, 1520. Among the 'destructive, pernicious, scandalous, and seductive' errors enumerated in the bull is an essentialized version of Luther's position: 'To go to war against the Turks is to resist God who punishes our iniquities through them.' ”(11)
  18. ^ Smith, RO (2007). Luther, the Turks, and Islam. Currents in Theology and Mission, 34 (5), 351-365. Smith, RO (2007). Luther, the Turks, and Islam. Currents in Theology and Mission, 34 (5), 351–365 ( Memento from July 10, 2012 in the web archive archive.today )
  19. ^ Miller, GJ (2003). Luther on the Turks and Islam. In T. Wengert (Ed.), Harvesting Martin Luther's reflections on theology, ethics, and the church. (P. 186). Grand Rapids MI: WB Eerdmans Pub. Co. limited preview in Google Book search
  20. Casale, G. (2007). Global Politics in the 1580s: One Canal, Twenty Thousand Cannibals, and an Ottoman Plot to Rule the World. Journal of World History, 18 (3), 267-296. [2]
  21. Grosrichard, A. (1998). The sultan's court: European fantasies of the East. (P. 125). London: Verso.
  22. Isom-Verhaaren, C. (2006). Royal French Women in the Ottoman Sultans' Harem: The Political Uses of Fabricated Accounts from the Sixteenth to the Twenty-first Century. Journal of World History, 17 (2), 159-196. [3]
  23. Grosrichard, A. (1998). The sultan's court: European fantasies of the East. (pp. xiii, xiv, 125, 169, 185). London: Verso.
  24. Edward Said. Orientalism , (1978), pp. 59-60
  25. a b c Archived copy ( Memento from October 1, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) "The Turk as a Threat And Europe's" Other ", Chapter 1, Ingmar Karlsson"
  26. ^ Alfred J. Rieber, Alexei Miller. Imperial Rule, Central European University Press, 2005. page 33
  27. ^ Özay Mehmet, Islamic Identity and Development: Studies of the Islamic Periphery , Routledge, 1990. p. 115
  28. a b Archived copy ( Memento from August 18, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
  29. ^ Maciej Falkowski: A symbolic breakthrough in Armenian-Turkish relations. Center for Eastern Studies , October 13, 2009, accessed on July 2, 2013 : "The signature of the documents marks a symbolic breakthrough in the hostile relations between Turkey and Armenia."
  30. Armenia National Voter Study October 27, 2007 (PDF; 2.0 MB) IRI, USAID, Baltic Surveys Ltd./The Gallup Organization, ASA, November 3, 2007, p. 34 , accessed on May 4, 2013 .
  31. Изказване на Бойко Борисов в Чикаго - емигрантска версия ( Memento of July 14, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Chicago press conference transcription in Bulgarian
  32. Chicago audio record ( Memento January 18, 2010 on WebCite ) ( Dead Link )
  33. Mayor of Sofia brands Roma, Turks and retirees 'bad human material' , Telegraph.co.uk, February 6, 2009
  34. Sofia Mayor to Bulgarian Expats: We Are Left with Bad Human Material Back Home Sofia Mayor to Bulgarian Expats: We Are Left with Bad Human Material Back Home
  35. a b [Thinksite.eu] [4] (PDF; 212 kB)
  36. ^ Bulgarian Horrors and the Question of the East - William Gladstone, 1876
  37. Luther, M., & Melanchthon, P. (1532). In the meantime I wrote consolation to the lucid and high-born prince and sent Mr. Joachim Churfürste and Marckgraven zu Brandenburger from the Turks. (P. 4b.). Nürmberg: Mountain.
  38. Life and Letters of Charles Darwin - Volume 1 by Charles Darwin http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?fk_files=1447890&pageno=171
  39. ^ A b The Innocents Abroad - Mark Twain, 1869
  40. ^ Moses Maimonides, "The Parable of the Palace" in The Guide for the Perplexed, Book III (chapt. 51).
  41. Webster ( Memento of November 6, 2005 in the Internet Archive )
  42. AENJ 1.1: Stigma, racism and power
  43. Armenian "Հո թուրք չես" կամ "Հայ ես 'պետք է մեռնես"
  44. ^ Search and questioning in series of the opposition. In: A1 + News Agency. Meltex LTD, May 7, 2007, accessed January 13, 2009 (Armenian).
  45. French LE DICTIONNAIRE DE L'ACADÉMIE FRANÇOISE 1ère Edition, 1694 - TURC ( Memento of 3 March 2016 Internet Archive )
  46. Kazazis, IN The Hlektronika Dictionaries. Greek Language Center
  47. Fereydoun Safizadeh. "Is There Anyone in Iranian Azerbaijan Who Wants to Get a Passport to Go to Mashad, Qum, Isfahan or Shiraz? - The Dynamics of Ethnicity in Iran “, Payvand's Iran News , February 2007
  48. Brenda Shaffer . "The Formation of Azerbaijani collective identity in Iran", Nationalities Papers , 28: 3 (2000), p. 463
  49. ^ Google Books Search
  50. Umberto Eco, Alastair McEwen, Turning back the clock: hot wars and media populism , 2006, p. 3 in the Google book search
  51. Philip Jenkins. God's continent: Christianity, Islam, and Europe's religious crisis , New York, 2007, p. 104 in the Google book search
  52. ^ Dutch [5] Van Dale vrijuit (De Telegraaf, November 15, 2001)
  53. Norwegian Just W. Flood, Fra hav og strand: en tylt fortællinger , 1884, p. 24 in the Google book search
  54. a b c romanian Romanian Explanatory Dictionary , Entry for "turc" , accessed on March 26, 2012
  55. Romanian A nu fuma ca un turc Financiarul.co
  56. Offord, D. (1996). Using Russian . Cambridge University Press.
  57. Serbian Пуши као Турчин Радио-телевизија Војводине