Perspectives on Greek national identity in the light of an İstanbul Greek newspaper, 1908-1911

Official URL: http://risc01.sabanciuniv.edu/record=b1819762 (Table of Contents)

National identity is a complex concept that among others, is relevant to a historical period, significant events and geographical location. It is particularly difficult to define national identity in the context of such a diverse entity as the Ottoman Empire especially in the 19th century empire, with all the social, economic and political changes that affected it. This thesis assesses the way the Ottoman Greeks residing in Istanbul of the 1908-1911 period perceived themselves in relation to their location and in relation to outside entities such the Hellenic Kingdom, established in 1830. Whatever their significant stances during the historical events such as the Young Turks Revolution of 1908 and the policies that were adopted in the aftermath. The Press is a valuable tool employed here, to discover and illustrate how the Ottoman Greeks evaluated and reacted to the changes affecting it. The primary sources are articles from a Greek newspaper written in the Greek language, Politiki Epitheorisis that provided analysis of domestic and foreign issues of the empire. With analysis of both primary and secondary sources, I illustrate the politicization of the Ottoman Greeks and the realization of their change from a significant minority to a nationalized entity. The diversity of views within the Ottoman Greek community of Istanbul, as well as the continuous changes that are taking place before and during the period studied, make it hard to define a single identity that is close to the identity of the Greeks residing in Hellenic Kingdom at the time.