Geç Osmanlı ve Erken Cumhuriyet Dönemlerinde Ulus İnşası ve Aleviler: “Milli”nin İçinde ve Ötesinde

Abstract

Alevism emerged as a political problem during the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century and was handled within the scope of modernisation, nationalism, and nation-building in the 19th and 20th centuries. Land losses of the Ottoman Empire and the loss of superiority against Europe pushed the state elites to make reforms and build a homogeneous structure from the population in the remaining lands. This situation gained different aspects and continued in the period of reforms and under the rule of the Committee of Union and Progress. During these periods, Alevis were seen as an internal threat while trying to be kept as a part of the whole. The new republican regime, which were built after the collapse of Ottoman Empire continued these policies that aimed at the Islamization and nationalisation of Alevis and their inclusion into the national community. Alevism became the target of different political movements, from Islamism to Turkism, of several governments during this period. This study identifies the approaches to Alevism during this period within the context of John Breuilly’s understanding of nationalism. In this regard, the late Ottoman and early Republican period nationalism policies and their attitudes toward Alevis will be the focal point of this study. The study will claim that different power centers during the late Ottoman and early Republican periods defined Alevis as within the national body but perceived them as a domestic threat. The study contributes to the literature as it applies Breuilly’s views on nationalism to the late Ottoman and early Republican periods. The study also claims to contribute to the literature on Alevism, as it discusses Alevism within the context that Breuilly draws.