Pomaks in Turkey

The Pomaks in Turkey refers to an ethnic group, who are predominantly Muslim and speak their own dialect of Bulgarian. They mostly live in Eastern Thrace, though some are also present in Anatolia.[1]

Pomaks in Turkey
Türkiye'deki Pomaklar
Total population
750,000
Regions with significant populations
Eastern Thrace
Languages
Pomak, Turkish
Religion
Sunni Islam
Related ethnic groups
South Slavs (mainly Bulgarians and Macedonians)

Numbers
Pomak-speaking population in Turkey[2]
Year As first language As second language Total Turkey's population % of Total speakers
1935 32,661 8,380 41,041 16,157,450 0.25
1945 10,287 5,594 15,881 18,790,174 0.08
1950 36,612 0 36,612 20,947,188 0.17
1955 16,163 22,816 38,979 24,064,763 0.16
1960 24,098 28,602 52,700 27,754,820 0.19
1965 23,138 34,234 57,372 31,391,421 0.18

In the census of 1965, those who spoke Pomak as first language were proportionally numerous in Edirne (3.4%), Kırklareli (1.3%) and Çanakkale (1.0%).

Language

The Pomaks of Turkey speak a Bulgarian dialect.[3][4][5][6][7] According to Ethnologue at present 300,000 Pomaks in European Turkey speak Bulgarian as mother tongue.[8] It is very hard to estimate the number of Pomaks along with the Turkified Pomaks who live in Turkey, as they have blended into the Turkish society and have been often linguistically and culturally assimilated.[9] According to Milliyet and Turkish Daily News reports, the number of the Pomaks along with the Turkified Pomaks in the country is about 600,000.[9][10]

References
  1. https://www.pomak.eu/board/index.php?topic=1150.90;imode
  2. Fuat Dündar, Türkiye Nüfus Sayımlarında Azınlıklar, 2000
  3. The Balkans, Minorities and States in Conflict (1993), Minority Rights Publication, by Hugh Poulton, p. 111.
  4. Richard V. Weekes; Muslim peoples: a world ethnographic survey, Volume 1; 1984; p.612
  5. Raju G. C. Thomas; Yugoslavia unraveled: sovereignty, self-determination, intervention; 2003, p.105
  6. R. J. Crampton, Bulgaria, 2007, p.8
  7. Janusz Bugajski, Ethnic politics in Eastern Europe: a guide to nationality policies, organizations, and parties; 1995, p.237
  8. Gordon, Raymond G. Jr., ed. (2005). "Languages of Turkey (Europe)". Ethnologue: Languages of the World (Fifteenth ed.). Dallas, Texas: SIL International. ISBN 978-1-55671-159-6.
  9. "Trial sheds light on shades of Turkey". Hurriyet Daily News and Economic Review. 2008-06-10. Archived from the original on 2011-03-23. Retrieved 2011-03-23.
  10. "Milliyet - Turkified Pomaks in Turkey" (in Turkish). www.milliyet.com.tr. Retrieved 2011-02-08.
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