The Turkish Connection

Bosnia has been defined by its perpetual state of transition—politically, culturally, and socially—since it seceded from Yugoslavia in 1992. The country's Balkan geography renders it both East and West, and its cultural affinities straddle the two poles as well. Hence, the country is in perpetual liminality, tugged by the influences of both Western and Eastern nations and organizations. This has particularly been true for the Bosniak population, a group that has received support from various Muslim-majority nations and organizations. Prominent among those influences is Turkey, which resonates with Bosniaks because their history and identity are intertwined with the Turkish Ottoman past. The emergence of Neo-Ottomanism links Bosnia to Turkey's past and future; this phenomenon is paving the way for a Bosnia that is increasingly being defined by its slight Muslim-majority population and culture. In “The Turkish Connection: Neo-Ottoman Influence in Post-Dayton Bosnia,” I situate contemporary Bosnian cultural products, including film and literature, as responses or interactions with Neo-Ottoman modes that seek to (re)imagine the Balkans and specifically Bosnia, through the lens of the “golden age” of sixteenth-century Ottoman Empire. Notes1. Anton Mikov, Conversion to Islam in the Balkans: Kisve Bhası Petitions and Ottoman Social Life, 1670–1730, Leiden: Brill, 2004.2. See Maria Todorova, Imagining the Balkans, New York: Oxford University Press, 1997 and Andrew Wachtel, The Balkans in World History, New York: Oxford University Press, 2008, pp. 1–10.3. Emre Erşen, “The Evolution of ‘Eurasia’ as a Geopolitical Concept in Post-Cold War Turkey”, Geopolitics, Vol. 8, No. 1, pp. 24–44.4. Ibid.5. Ina Merdjanova, Rediscovering the Umma: Muslims in the Balkans between Nationalism and Transnationalism, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013 and Hugh Poulton and Suha Taji-Farouki, eds., Muslim Identity and the Balkan State, New York: New York University Press, 1997.6. Harun Karčić, “Islamic Revival in Post-Socialist Bosnia and Herzegovina: International Actors and Activities”, Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs, Vol. 30, No. 4, 2010, pp. 519–534, p. 520.7. For a complete discussion of the various facets of Turkish, Saudi, and Iranian involvement in the periods of Bosnian war and reconstruction, see: Anne Ross Solberg, “The Role of Turkish Islamic Networks in the Western Balkans”, SUDOSTEUROPA, Vol. 55, No. 4, 2007, pp. 429–462. And Evan Kohlmann, Al-Qaida's Jihad in Europe: The Afghan-Bosnian Network, NewYork: Berg, 1995.8. Merdjanova, Rediscovering the Umma, op. cit., p. 60.9. Fikret Karčić, “Šta je to ‘Islamska Tradicija Bošnjaka?’” (What is the ‘Islamic Tradition of Bosniaks?’), Preporod, br. 23/841, December 1, 2006.10. For a thorough discussion of Muslim traditions in Bosnia Herzegovina, see Tone Bringa, Being Muslim the Bosnian Way, Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1995.11. Vjekoslav Perica, Balkan Idols: Religion and Nationalism in Yugoslav States, New York: Oxford University Press, 2004.12. Joshua Walker, “Turkey's Imperial Legacy: Understanding Contemporary Turkey through its Ottoman Past”, Perspective on Global Development and Technology, Vol. 8, No. 4, 2009, pp. 494–508, p. 504.13. Richard Falk, “Reconsidering Turkey”, Zaman, October 6, 2004.14. Gökhan Saz, “The Political Implications of the European Integration of Turkey: Political Scenarios and Major Stumbling Blocks”, European Journal of Social Sciences, Vol. 20, No. 1, 2011, pp. 47–80, pp. 61–62.15. “South East European Cooperation Process Turkish Chairmanship-in-Office 2009–10”. Available at: http://www.seecp-turkey.org/icerik.php?no=60 (last accessed 9/11/13).16. Uffe Anderson, “Serbia's Bosniaks Rediscover Their Roots”, Transitions Online, June 5, 2013. Available at: http://www.tol.org/client/article/23803-serbias-bosniaks-rediscover-their-roots.html (last accessed 9/7/2013).17. “Relations between Turkey and Bosnia and Herzegovina Republic of Turkey Ministry of Foreign Affairs”. Available at: http://www.mfa.gov.tr/relations-between-turkey-and-bosnia-and-herzegovina.en.mfa (last accessed 10/30/13).18. “Relations between Turkey and Bulgaria”. Available at: http://www.mfa.gov.tr/relations-between-turkey-and-bulgaria.en.mfa (last accessed 9/7/2013).19. The Gülen Movement is a neo-Sufi movement in Turkey. The neo-Sufi movements arose after Ataturk disallowed Islamic institutions. For an in-depth discussion on the significance of the Gülen movement in contemporary Turkey, see Marie-Elisabeth Maigre's, “The Influence of the Gülen Movement in the Emergence of a Turkish Cultural Third Way”. Available at: http://gulenconference.net/files/London/Prcd%20%20Maigre%20ME.pdf> (last accessed 7/9/2013).20. “Palestinians and Bosniaks see Erdoğan as their Leader”. Available at: http://www.b92.net/eng/news/region.php?yyyy=2012&mm=11&dd=06&nav_id=8302 (last accessed 9/7/2013).21. Ayten Çıftıçı, “Izetbegović praises Turkish schools and universities abroad”, Todays Zaman, September 25, 2012 and “Izetbegović asks Turkey to Continue its Role in Balkans”, Sundays Zaman, October 6, 2010. Available at: http://www.todayszaman.com/newsDetail_getNewsById.action?load=detay&link=223564&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter (last accessed 10/30/13).22. Hajrudin Somun, “Sarajevo as seen by Erdoğan and Milorad Dodik”, Todays Zaman, October 7, 2012. Available at: http://www.todayszaman.com/news-294484-sarajevo-as-seen-by-erdogan-and-milorad-dodik-by-hajrudin-somun*.html (last accessed 10/30/13).23. There are a number of Yunus Emre Cultural Centers around the world. Information about the Sarajevo location can be found at: http://yee.org.tr/turkiye/tr/anasayfa (last accessed 9/10/13).24. Solberg, “The Role of Turkish Islamic Networks in the Western Balkans”, op. cit., p. 6.25. Darko Tanasković, Neoosmanizam – Povratak Turske na Balkan, Belgrade: Službeni Glasnik, 2011.26. Mustafa Cerić ended his tenure as grand mufti in 2012, after serving in that post for 13 years. Discussion of the historical and current relationship of Turkey to Balkan Muslims was discussed during a 2008 Symposium of Balkan Muslims, a report of this event can be found at: http://www.rijaset.ba/english/index.php/template/latest-news/77-balkan-symposium-problems-and-future-of-balkan-muslims (last accessed 8/9/13).27. “Bosnian Grand Mufti Mustafa Cerić Praises Turkey's Regional Power”. BH-News, May 10, 2011. Available at: http://www.bhnews.com/en/vijest/4480/bosnian_grand_mufti_mustafa_Cerić_praises_turkey_s_regional_power.html (last accessed 10/30/13).28. Mustafa Cerić, Islam i Državljanstvo u Europi (Islam in Europe), Sarajevo: Vijeće Kongresa bošnjačkih intelektualaca, 2000, p. 25. For a discussion on the affairs of the Turkish Global Diyanet outside of Turkey, and particularly in Eurasia, see Şenol Korkut, “The Diyanet of Turkey and Its Activities in Eurasia after the Cold War”, Acta Slavica Iaponica, Vol. 28, pp. 117‒139.29. “Interview: Bosnia's Grand Mufti Defends Religious Freedom”, July 16, 2009. Available at: http://www.rferl.org/content/Interview_Grand_Mufti_of_Bosnia_Herzegovina_Mustafa_Efendi_Cerić/1778439.html (last accessed 8/9/13).30. Karčić, “Islamic Revival in Post-Socialist Bosnia and Herzegovina”, op. cit., p. 525.31. Ibid., p. 520.32. Ibid.33. Perica, Balkan Idols, op. cit., p. 100.34. “Turkish TV Inspires Croats to Rebuild Old Bridge”, Croatian Times, September 18, 2012. Available at: http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/turkish-tv-inspires-rebuilding-of-sultan-bridge-in-croatia (last accessed 9/8/13), also see Hajrudin Somun, “Neo-Ottomanism: The Return of Turkey to the Balkans”. Available at: http://www.todayszaman.com/newsDetail_getNewsById.action;jsessionid=28EFB47A6E5B9FD92E582FEE8B5D92F5?newsId=223604 (last accessed 10/6/10).35. Muharem Bazdulj, Djaur i Zulejha: A Turkish Tale (The Infadel and Zulejha: A Turish Tale), Sarajevo: Naklada Zoro, 2005, p. 25.36. Ibid., p. 27.37. Ibid., p. 29.38. Ibid. Dert is suffering and sevdah is longing. Sevdalinka, a word with the root of sevdah, is also a type of Bosnian lyrical poetry and music. The tradition is considered a cultural remnant of Ottoman times.39. Bazdulj, Djaur i Zulejha, op. cit., p. 58.40. Ibid., p. 77.41. Ibid

Ancient history · Bosnia herzegovina · Connection (principal bundle · Economic history · Geometry · Linguistics · Ottoman empire · Political science · Politics · Turkish · Balkans: History, Politics, Society · European Politics and Security · History · Law · Mathematics · Philosophy · Post-Soviet Geopolitical Dynamics

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