De-Tatarization of Crimea

The de-Tatarization of Crimea (Crimean Tatar: Qırımnıñ tatarsızlaştırıluvı, Russian: Детатаризация Крыма) refers to the Soviet and Russian efforts to remove traces of the indigenous Crimean Tatar presence from the peninsula. De-Tatarization has manifested in various ways throughout history, from smaller measures such as the burning of Crimean Tatar books in the 1920s to the full-scale deportation and exile of Crimean Tatars in 1944.

Manifestations

Topography renaming

The vast majority of districts, raions, villages, and geographic features in Crimea bearing Crimean Tatar names were given Slavic names shortly after the deportation of the Tatars per a decree of the Crimean Regional Committee mandating such renaming. Most places in Crimea still bear the post-deportation names, many redundant, that were imposed in the 1940s to remove traces of Qirim Tatarlik. Very few localities – Bakhchysarai, Dzhankoy, İşün, Alushta, Alupka, and Saky – were spared renaming.[1][2][3]

Propaganda

Soviet party officials in Crimea indoctrinated the Slavic population of Crimea with Tatarophobia, depicting Crimean Tatars as "traitors", "bourgeoisie", or "counter-revolutionaries", and falsely implying that they were "Mongols" with no historical connection to the Crimean peninsula (despite their Greek, Italian, Armenian, and Gothic roots.)[4] A 1948 conference in Crimea was dedicated to promoting and sharing anti-Crimean-Tatar sentiments.[5]

Amet-khan Airport

The attempts to paint Amet-khan Sultan as a Dagestani contrary to his Crimean origins has faced backlash from the Crimean Tatar community. Despite the flying ace being born in Crimea to a Tatar mother and always identifying himself as Tatar, the Russian Federation named a Dagestani Airport after him while naming Crimea's main airport after Ivan Aivazovsky instead, ignoring numerous petitions from the Crimean Tatar community requesting that the airport bearing Amet-khan's name be in his homeland.[6][7][8]

See also

References
  1. Polian, Pavel (2004). Against Their Will: The History and Geography of Forced Migrations in the USSR. Central European University Press. p. 152. ISBN 978-963-9241-68-8.
  2. Allworth 1998, p. 14.
  3. Bekirova, Gulnara (2005). Крым и крымские татары в XIX-XX веках: сборник статей (in Russian). Moscow. p. 242. OCLC 605030537.
  4. Williams 2001, p. 29.
  5. Williams 2015, p. 114.
  6. Williams 2015, p. 105-114, 121-123.
  7. Allworth 1998, p. 227.
  8. "Добро пожаловать в аэропорт "Амет-Хан Султан" города Симферополя!". Милли Фирка (in Russian). 2018-11-28. Retrieved 2019-10-16.

Bibliography
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