Aydin Hasan writes in Milliyet: The El Turco expansion
The Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB) has launched a large-scale study to identify the countries and regions where the descendants of immigrants called "El Turco" live in Latin America, where they migrated from Ottoman lands and are considered a related community.
YTB President Abdullah Eren said, "Los Turcos are the ones called El Turco. They are Ottoman subjects, mostly non-Muslims, who left the Ottoman geography, but they are known as El Turco there, so whether they are Christians, Yazidis, or, let me tell you, Muslims, they are our brotherly community.
Therefore, within this broad definition, we carry out activities in line with Türkiye's priorities." Shakira and Hayek... There were a series of waves of migration from the Ottoman geography to Latin America between 1860 and 1920. The immigrants who settled in Latin America were called Los Turcos and El Turco by the locals because they came from Ottoman lands.
Among the descendants of El Turco immigrants who have risen to the presidency today are Nayib Bukele (El Salvador), Mario Abdo Benitez (Paraguay), Luis Abinader (Dominican), Michel Temer (Brazil), Jamil Mahuad (Ecuador), Carlos Menem (Argentina); artists include Grammy Award-winning Colombian singer Shakira, Mexican actress-director Salma Hayek, actor Ricardo Darin; businessman Carlos Slim and Brazilian writers Raduan Nassar and Milton Hatoum; and Argentine actor Ricardo Darin.
Türkiye defines Turks in the Balkans, the Middle East and Central Asia as kinsmen and groups such as Bosnians and Albanians as related communities, except for citizens and blue card holders. The Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities has launched a large-scale study on the presence in Latin America of groups called El Turco, which it includes within the scope of related communities.
Among the descendants of El Turco immigrants are Nayib Bukele (El Salvador), Mario Abdo Benitez (Paraguay), Colombian singer Shakira, Mexican actress-director Salma Hayek and actor Ricardo Darin.
The aim is to preserve values
YTB President Abdullah Eren gave the following information about their work: "Now Bosnians, Albanians, these are our sister communities, we can also include the Muslims in Moro in the Philippines, who went to South America at the end of the 19th century, now we are doing a very large study on them, Los Turcos, the so-called El Turco. At the end of the 19th century, at the beginning of the 20th century, Ottoman subjects, mostly non-Muslims, left the Ottoman geography, but they are known as El Turco there. Whether they are Christians, Yazidis or Muslims, they are known there as El Turco, our brotherly community. Within this broad definition, we carry out activities in line with Türkiye's priorities. Our first aim is to protect common historical and cultural values, and secondly, we are trying to develop academic and scientific cooperation and civil society organizations there."
'I am a Western Thrace Turk'
In his presentation to the Sub-Commission on Turks Abroad and Related Communities established within the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Turkish Grand National Assembly, Abdullah Eren said the following: "Now, for example, I am originally from Western Thrace, I am a Western Thrace Turk. I was born and raised in Istanbul, but my father was born in Komotini, my mother's side is Kastamonu, but from my father's side I am from Western Thrace. Now, of course, Western Thrace has a separate status arising from Lausanne, Türkiye is the guarantor country there, but we also have compatriots in Kosovo, compatriots in Macedonia, kinsmen in Bulgaria, there are Turks outside the Ottoman balance lands; now Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, there is a very wide geography of compatriots from Terekems to Karakalpaks, Crimean Tatars to Meskhetian Turks, Lebanese Turks to Iraqi Turks."
