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Turkification is a term used to describe a cultural change in which something or someone non-Turkish is made to become Turkish. It can be used in contexts in connection with Kurds, Bulgarians, Bosniaks, Albanians, Arabs, Roma, Georgians, Jews, Africans, Armenians, Greeks and various ethnicities of the Black Sea basin as well as the North Caucasus. The use of the term does not assert a denial of the existence of individuals who may have Turkified stock in their lineage, yet who feel pride or are comfortable in their Turkishness, nor a questioning of their identity.

Kurds

The Turkish government has, since its inception systematically turkified the Kurdish population of Turkey. From the birth of the state until 1991, the existence of a separate Kurdish identity was denied. During the 1930s and 1940s, the government had disguised the presence of the Kurds statistically by categorizing them as "Mountain Turks", denying their ethnic identity. The word "Kurd" was never used by the Turkish government and media until 1989. According to CNN Turk, today there are media events as well as privately-sponsored education in the Kurdish language, although the general interest shown is rather limited.

Muslim Bulgarians

The Muslim Bulgarian community in Turkey is not recognized by the Turkish government as an ethnic minority and has been largely Turkified.

Greeks and Cypriots

Since the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974, the Turkish backed government in control of the north of the island has been accused by both Turkish and Greek Cypriots of having pursued a policy of turkification.

References

1. Turkey - Linguistic and Ethnic Groups - U.S. Library of Congress
2. Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law at Washington College of Law, American University, Turkey's "Human Rights Record Impedes European Integration"
3. http://www.cnnturk.com/TURKIYE/haber_detay.asp?PID=318&HID=2&haberID=114032 Kurdish courses close one after the other, July 2005
4. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/3309899.stm

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