The Turks in Tunisia, also known as Turco-Tunisians[1] and Tunisian Turks,[2] (
Arabic: أتراك تونس;
French: Turcs de Tunisie;
Turkish: Tunus Türkleri) are ethnic
Turks who constitute one of the minority groups in
Tunisia.[3]
In 1534, with about 10,000 Turkish soldiers, the
Ottoman Empire took control and settled in the region when Tunisia's inhabitants called for help due to fears that the
Spanish would invade the country.[4] Thus, during the Ottoman rule, the Turkish community dominated the political life of the region for centuries; as a result, the ethnic mix of Tunisia changed considerably with the continuous migration of Turks from
Anatolia, as well as other parts of the Ottoman territories, for over 300 years. In addition, some Turks intermarried with the local population and their male offspring were called "
Kouloughlis".[5][6][7] Consequently, the terms "Turks" and "Kouloughlis" were used to distinguish between those of full and partial Turkish ancestry.[8]
Demographics
Families of
Turkish origin live mainly near the coastal cities, such as
Tunis,
Mahdia,
Hammamet and the islands (such as
Djerba), although there are also many living within central Tunisia as well.[9][10]
The
OttomanTurks brought with them the teaching of the
Hanafi School of
Islam during the
Ottoman rule of Tunisia, which still survives among the Turkish-descended families today.[12] Traditionally, Turco-Tunisian mosques have octagonal
minarets.[12] Examples of Ottoman-Turkish mosques include:
The Turks in Tunisia were traditionally a privileged élite in Tunisia who held positions in the military and the bureaucracy.[13] However, by the nineteenth century, marriages with the local population linked the ruling families to indigenous notables. At this time, many Turks also turned to commerce and the crafts, initially in the
Souq el-Trouk (the Bazaar of the Turks), where a considerable number of merchants of Turkish ancestry emerged. The Turks also entered the corps of artisans.[13] The
Ben Romdhan family, of
Turkish origin, claim much of the notable Tunisian families of
Mahdia such as the Hamza, Turki, Gazdagli, Agha, and Snène families.[14] Other prominent Tunisian families of Turkish origin include the
Bayrams [
fr],
Belkhodjas [
fr], El Materis,
Sfars [
fr],
Osmans [
fr], Mamis and the
Slim [
fr]s.
^Miltoun, Francis (1985), The spell of Algeria and Tunisia,
Darf Publishers, p. 129,
ISBN1850770603, Throughout North Africa, from Oran to Tunis, one encounters everywhere, in the town as in the country, the distinct traits which mark the seven races which make up the native population: the Moors, the Berbers, the Arabs, the Negreos, the Jews, the Turks and the Kouloughlis… descendants of Turks and Arab women.
^Mohamed El Aziz Ben Achour, Catégories de la société tunisoise dans la deuxième moitié du XIXe siècle, éd. Institut national d'archéologie et d'art, Tunis, 1989, p. 235
Abun-Nasr, Jamil M. (1982), "The Tunisian state in the eighteenth century", Revue de l'Occident musulman et de la Méditerranée, 33: 33–66,
doi:
10.3406/remmm.1982.1939
Akar, Metin (1993), "Fas Arapçasında Osmanlı Türkçesinden Alınmış Kelimeler", Türklük Araştırmaları Dergisi, 7: 91–110
Brett, Michael; Fentress, Elizabeth (1997), The Berbers, Wiley-Blackwell,
ISBN0631207678.
Brunschvig, Robert (1965), "Justice religieuse et justice laïque dans la Tunisie des Deys et des Beys: jusqu'au milieu du XIXesiècle", Studia Islamica, 23, Maisonneuve & Larose: 27–70,
doi:
10.2307/1595254,
JSTOR1595254
Déjeux, Jean (1984), Dictionnaire des Auteurs Maghrébins de Langue Française, KARTHALA Editions,
ISBN2865370852.
Ferchiou, Sophie (2001), Femme, Culture et Créativité en Tunisie, CREDIF,
ISBN9973931378.
Ferté, Patric; Barrera, Caroline (2010), Etudiants de l'exil : Migrations internationales et universités refuges (XVIe-XXe siècle), Presses Universitaires du Mirail,
ISBN978-2810700103.
Granara, William (2010), "Ali al-Du'aji (1909-1949)", in Allen, Roger (ed.), Essays in Arabic Literary Biography: 1850-1950, Otto Harrassowitz Verlag,
ISBN978-3447061414.
Green, Arnold H. (1978), The Tunisian Ulama 1873-1915: Social Structure and Response to Ideological Currents, BRILL,
ISBN9004056874.