Images of “the Republican Citizen” Designed in the Context of National Identity Construction in Türkiye during the Early Republican Period

In the 19th century, as a result of certain economic, political, and social changes, the model of the nation-state came to replace that of the multinational empire. Through this process, “nationality” became the new framework that moved hundreds of millions of people away from their traditional iden...

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Main Authors: Hadiye Yılmaz Odabaşı, Deniz Ülke Arıboğan
Format: Article
Language:deu
Published: Istanbul University Press 2024-07-01
Series:Yakın Dönem Türkiye Araştırmaları
Subjects:
Online Access:https://cdn.istanbul.edu.tr/file/JTA6CLJ8T5/899BBCB94A504EA08AD5B0ADCB0C64A5
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author Hadiye Yılmaz Odabaşı
Deniz Ülke Arıboğan
author_facet Hadiye Yılmaz Odabaşı
Deniz Ülke Arıboğan
author_sort Hadiye Yılmaz Odabaşı
collection DOAJ
description In the 19th century, as a result of certain economic, political, and social changes, the model of the nation-state came to replace that of the multinational empire. Through this process, “nationality” became the new framework that moved hundreds of millions of people away from their traditional identities, gathered them into new and modern large collectivities and determined whom they resembled and from whom they differed. The process of constructing national identities is psychological, economic, political, and sociological, but it also involves emotional ties. From the early 20th century onwards, modern Turkish identity emerged as a composite of these processes. In the early phases of national identity construction in the Republic of Türkiye (1923-1938), certain foundational elements were shaped that would serve as the backbone of the polity. These elements revolved around particular discourses and images, such as the ideal of “contemporary civilization” [muasır medeniyet], the representation of the “backward” Ottoman past as “the other”, the conception of the exalted founder-leader, narratives of “a triumphant army” and “a triumphant history”, new symbols of “the great nation”, and the image of “the desirable Republican citizen.” “The Republican citizen” was designed by the ideological apparatuses of the state, who also equipped “the citizen” with new values. These values were determined according to how the large group that the citizen belonged to defined itself and how it wished to be defined by others. This article investigates the images of “the desirable Republican citizen” that were tied up with discourses around these new values. It pays particular attention to the social representations of the women, youth and teachers of the Republic, groups who were supposed to play a key role in transmitting these images.
format Article
id doaj-art-cfc3b30deb1c45a790e982485157f2af
institution OA Journals
issn 2547-9679
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publishDate 2024-07-01
publisher Istanbul University Press
record_format Article
series Yakın Dönem Türkiye Araştırmaları
spelling doaj-art-cfc3b30deb1c45a790e982485157f2af2025-08-20T01:50:27ZdeuIstanbul University PressYakın Dönem Türkiye Araştırmaları2547-96792024-07-014525127810.26650/YTA2024-1435308123456Images of “the Republican Citizen” Designed in the Context of National Identity Construction in Türkiye during the Early Republican PeriodHadiye Yılmaz Odabaşı0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4287-5326Deniz Ülke Arıboğan1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9397-1241İstanbul 29 Mayıs Üniversitesi, İstanbul, TürkiyeÜsküdar Üniversitesi, İstanbul, TürkiyeIn the 19th century, as a result of certain economic, political, and social changes, the model of the nation-state came to replace that of the multinational empire. Through this process, “nationality” became the new framework that moved hundreds of millions of people away from their traditional identities, gathered them into new and modern large collectivities and determined whom they resembled and from whom they differed. The process of constructing national identities is psychological, economic, political, and sociological, but it also involves emotional ties. From the early 20th century onwards, modern Turkish identity emerged as a composite of these processes. In the early phases of national identity construction in the Republic of Türkiye (1923-1938), certain foundational elements were shaped that would serve as the backbone of the polity. These elements revolved around particular discourses and images, such as the ideal of “contemporary civilization” [muasır medeniyet], the representation of the “backward” Ottoman past as “the other”, the conception of the exalted founder-leader, narratives of “a triumphant army” and “a triumphant history”, new symbols of “the great nation”, and the image of “the desirable Republican citizen.” “The Republican citizen” was designed by the ideological apparatuses of the state, who also equipped “the citizen” with new values. These values were determined according to how the large group that the citizen belonged to defined itself and how it wished to be defined by others. This article investigates the images of “the desirable Republican citizen” that were tied up with discourses around these new values. It pays particular attention to the social representations of the women, youth and teachers of the Republic, groups who were supposed to play a key role in transmitting these images.https://cdn.istanbul.edu.tr/file/JTA6CLJ8T5/899BBCB94A504EA08AD5B0ADCB0C64A5citizenshipnational identitylarge group identityturkish national identitydesirable citizen(s)
spellingShingle Hadiye Yılmaz Odabaşı
Deniz Ülke Arıboğan
Images of “the Republican Citizen” Designed in the Context of National Identity Construction in Türkiye during the Early Republican Period
Yakın Dönem Türkiye Araştırmaları
citizenship
national identity
large group identity
turkish national identity
desirable citizen(s)
title Images of “the Republican Citizen” Designed in the Context of National Identity Construction in Türkiye during the Early Republican Period
title_full Images of “the Republican Citizen” Designed in the Context of National Identity Construction in Türkiye during the Early Republican Period
title_fullStr Images of “the Republican Citizen” Designed in the Context of National Identity Construction in Türkiye during the Early Republican Period
title_full_unstemmed Images of “the Republican Citizen” Designed in the Context of National Identity Construction in Türkiye during the Early Republican Period
title_short Images of “the Republican Citizen” Designed in the Context of National Identity Construction in Türkiye during the Early Republican Period
title_sort images of the republican citizen designed in the context of national identity construction in turkiye during the early republican period
topic citizenship
national identity
large group identity
turkish national identity
desirable citizen(s)
url https://cdn.istanbul.edu.tr/file/JTA6CLJ8T5/899BBCB94A504EA08AD5B0ADCB0C64A5
work_keys_str_mv AT hadiyeyılmazodabası imagesoftherepublicancitizendesignedinthecontextofnationalidentityconstructioninturkiyeduringtheearlyrepublicanperiod
AT denizulkearıbogan imagesoftherepublicancitizendesignedinthecontextofnationalidentityconstructioninturkiyeduringtheearlyrepublicanperiod