Kouloughlis

Kouloughlis, also spelled Koulouglis,[4] Cologhlis and Qulaughlis (from Turkish Kuloğlu "Children of The Empire Servants" from Kul "servant/slave" + Oğlu "son of") was a term used during the Ottoman period to designate the mixed offspring of Turkish men and local North African women (i.e. Berber), situated in the western and central coastal regions in the Barbary coast (i.e. in Algeria,[5][6][7] Libya,[8][9][10][11] and Tunisia[12]).[13][14][15] Whilst the terminology was commonly used in Ottoman Algeria, Ottoman Libya, and Ottoman Tunisia, it was not used in Ottoman Egypt. These Ottoman Turks were all necessarily of Turkish nationality, but many came from the Balkan countries, Circassia, Bosnia and Greece, along with ethnicities of Eastern Europe, which were the striking force of the Ottoman armies.[16] Today, the descendants of the Kouloughlis have largely integrated into their local societies after independence, however, they still maintain some of their cultural traditions (particularly food); they also continue to practice the Hanafi school of Islam (in contrast to the other North Africans who practice the Maliki school), and uphold their Turkish origin surnames.

Kuloughlis

Total population
Significant communities in Algeria,[1][2] Libya[3] and Tunisia
Regions with significant populations
North Africa
Languages
Arabic Turkish Amazigh (Berber)
Religion
Sunni Islam (Hanafi school)

Migration to North Africa

According to the Turco-Libyan historian Orhan Koloğlu, throughout the 300 years of Ottoman rule in the Maghreb and more generally North Africa, the Ottoman administration ensured that Turkish soldiers from the Ocak, rather than the Janissaries, formed at least 5% of the regions population.[17] Turkish-speaking Anatolians were considered to be the ideal migrants to ensure the Turkification of the region. Furthermore, the authorities placed a ban on Turkish speakers from using the Arabic language[18]; this allowed the Turkish language to remain the prestigious language of the region till the nineteenth century.[17] Koloğlu has estimated that approximately 1 million Ottoman soldiers from Anatolia migrated to the Cezayir Eyalet (Ottoman Algeria), the Tunus Eyalet (Ottoman Tunisia), and the Eyālet-i Trâblus Gârp (Ottoman Tripolitania), usually departing from the port of Izmir.[17]

Turkish women in North Africa

Although the term "köleoğlu" implied the term "son of", the Turkish population in North Africa was not solely made up of men. Indeed, Turkish-speaking Anatolian women also migrated to the region. Moreover, the offspring of Turkish men and North African (e.g. Berber) women would have included females too. Up until the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, upper-class women in Algeria, Egypt, Libya, and Tunisia were mostly of Turkish origin. This Turkish elite held a deep kinship for the Ottoman state, which increased further during the Italo-Turkish War in favour of the Ottoman state.[19]

Legacy

Religion

The majority of Turkish-speaking Ottoman Muslims adhered to the Hanafi school of Islam, in contrast to the majority of the North African subjects, who followed the Maliki school.[20] Today the Hanafi school is still followed by the descendants of Turkish families who remain in the region.[21] Traditionally, their mosques are in the Ottoman architectural style and are particularly identifiable from their Turkish-style octagonal minarets.[21]

Language

Words and expressions from the Turkish language, to varying degrees, are still used in most varieties of the Maghrebi derjas and spoken Arabic in North Africa and the Middle East. For example, in Algeria an estimated 634 Turkish words are still used today in Algerian Arabic.[22] Approximately 800 to 1,500 Turkish loanwords are still used in Egypt, in Egyptian Arabic, and between 200 and 500 in Libya and Tunisia, respectively in Libyan and Tunisian Arabic.[23] Turkish loanwords have also been influential in countries which were never conquered by the Ottomans, such as in Morocco, in Moroccan Arabic. Furthermore, the Turks also introduced words from the Persian language to the region, which were originally borrowed for the Ottoman Turkish language.[24]

The majority of Turkish loanwords in Arabic are used for private life (such as food and tools), law and government, and the military.

Food

Ottoman rule left a profound influence on the cuisine of North Africa, the Middle East, and the Balkans. Hence, even today, many dishes produced in different countries throughout these regions are derived from the same name, usually a variation of a Turkish word (such as baklava and dolma).[25]

Turkish origin word	Maghrebi or Egyptian Arabic	Countries using the word (in North Africa)
baklava	baqlawa, baqlewa	Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia, Libya[26]
boza	büza, buza	Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia[26]
börek	brik (Tunisian variant)	Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Tunisia[26]
bulgur	burgul, borghol	Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Tunisia[26]
çevirme (döner)	sawurma/sawirma/shawarma	Egypt, Libya, Tunisia[26]
dondurma	dandurma, dundurma	Egypt[26]
kavurma	qawurma, qawirma	Algeria, Egypt[26]
köfte	kufta/kofta	Egypt, Tunisia[26]
pastırma	bastirma	Algeria, Egypt, Libya[26]
sucuk	sujuq, sugu'	Egypt[27]
turşu	torshi	Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia[27]

Tools

Turkish origin word	Maghrebi or Egyptian Arabic	Countries using the word	English translation
balta	balta	Egypt, Libya[27]	ax
cezve	cezve	Tunisia[27]	pot
çengel	sankal/shengal	Egypt, Tunisia[27]	hook
kazan	qazan	Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia[27]	cauldron
kılavuz	qalawuz	Egypt[27]	guide, leader
tava	tawwaya	Egypt, Tunisia[27]	pan
tel	tayyala	Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia[27]	wire, fiber, string
tokmak	duqmaq	Egypt[27]	mallet, door-knocker, wooden pestle
yay	yay	Egypt[27]	straight or curved spring

Military

Turkish origin word	Maghrebi or Egyptian Arabic	Countries using the word	English translation
miralay	mīralāy	Libya	colonel[28]
vapur	bābūr	Libya, Algeria, Tunisia	boat[28]

Other words

Turkish origin word	Maghrebi or Egyptian Arabic	Countries using the word (in North Africa)	English translation
cüzdan	dizdān	Libya	wallet[28]
çanta	šǝnṭa	Libya, Egypt	bag[28]
çekiç	šākūš	Libya, Algeria	hammer[28]
çeşme	šīšma	Libya, Tunisia	tap, fountain[28]
kâǧıt	kāġǝṭ	Libya, Algeria	paper[28]
kaşık	kāšīk	Libya	spoon[28]
kundura	kindara	Libya	shoe[28]
şişe	šīša	Libya	bottle[28]

Arts and literature

The capital of the Ottoman Empire, Constantinople (Istanbul), was the central location where specialists in art, literature, and the scientists from all over the provinces would gather to present their work. Hence, many people were influenced here and would borrow from the masterpieces they came into contact with. Consequently, the Arabic language adopted several technical terms of Turkish origin as well as artistic influences.[29]

Music

The cultural interaction between the Arabs and Turks influenced the music of the Arab provinces significantly. New maqamat in Arabic music emerged (i.e. Makam, a Turkish system of melody types), such as al-Hijazkar, Shahnaz and Naw’athar, as well as technical music terminologies.[29]

Theatre

The Turks introduced the Karagöz puppet show, which concerns the adventures of two stock characters: Karagöz (meaning "black-eyed" in Turkish) and Hacivat (meaning "İvaz the Pilgrim"). Evening performances of the show are particularly popular during Ramadan in North Africa.[30]

See also

• Turkish minorities in the former Ottoman Empire
  • Turks in Algeria
  • Turks in Egypt
  • Turks in Libya
  • Turks in Tunisia
• Maghrebis
• Tunisian people
• Pied-Noir
• Arab-Berber

References

1. Oxford Business Group (2008), The Report: Algeria 2008, Oxford Business Group, p. 10, ISBN 1-902339-09-6, ...the Algerian population reached 34.8 million in January 2006...Algerians of Turkish descent still represent 5% of the population and live mainly in the big cities [accounting to 1.74 million]
2. Britannica (2012), The Report: Algeria 2008, Oxford Business Group, p. 10, Algerians of Turkish descent make up 5% of the population and live mainly in the big cities.
3. Pan 1949, 103.
4. Britannica (2012), Koulougli, Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online
5. Stone, Martin (1997), The Agony of Algeria, C. Hurst & Co. Publishers, p. 29, ISBN 1-85065-177-9, During the Ottoman era urban society in the coastal cities evolved into a fascinating ethnic mix of Turks, Arabs, Berbers, Kouloughlis (people of mixed Turkish and central Maghrebi blood)...
6. Ruedy, John Douglas (2005), Modern Algeria: The Origins and Development of a Nation, Indiana University Press, p. 35, ISBN 0253217822, As sons of Turkish fathers, Kouloughlis naturally shared the paternal sense of superiority and desired to continue in the privilege to which they had been born.
7. Martinez, Luis (2000), The Algerian Civil War, 1990-1998, C. Hurst & Co., p. 12, ISBN 1850655170, The Kouloughlis were children of Turks and native women, whom the Janissaries according to R. Mantran "strove with perseverance to exclude from power".
8. Ahmida, Ali Abdullatif (1994), The Making of Modern Libya: State Formation, Colonization, and Resistance (Print), Albany, N.Y: SUNY Press, p. 189, ISBN 0791417611, Cologhli or Kolughli. from Turkish Kolughlu, descendants of intermarriage between Turkish troops and local North African women
9. Malcolm, Peter; Losleben, Elizabeth (2004), Libya, Marshall Cavendish, p. 62, There are some Libyans who think of themselves as Turkish, or descendants of Turkish soldiers who settled in the area in the days of the Ottoman Empire.
10. Ahmida, Ali Abdullatif (2011), Making of Modern Libya, The: State Formation, Colonization, and Resistance, Second Edition, 10, SUNY Press, p. 44, ISBN 1438428936, The majority of the population came from Turkish, Arab, Berber, or black backgrounds,...Some inhabitants, like the Cologhli, were descendants of the old Turkish ruling class
11. "Libya", The New Encyclopaedia Britannica, 10, Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1983, pp. 878, ISBN 085229400X, The population of the west is far more cosmopolitan than that of the east and includes a higher proportion of people with Berber, Negro, and Turkish origins.
12. Perkins, Kenneth J. (2016), Historical Dictionary of Tunisia, Rowman & Littlefield, p. 141, ISBN 1442273186, KOULOUGHLIS. Offspring of mixed marriages between Tunisian women and Turkish soldiers..
13. Miltoun, Francis (1985), The spell of Algeria and Tunisia, Darf Publishers, p. 129, ISBN 1850770603, Throughout North Africa, from Oran to Tunis, one encounters everywhere, in the town as in the country, the distinct traits which mark the seven races which make up the native population: the Moors, the Berbers, the Arabs, the Negreos, the Jews, the Turks and the Kouloughlis… descendants of Turks and Arab women.
14. Daumas 1943, 54.
15. Lorcin 1999, 2.
16. https://www.thereference-paris.com/9365
17. Orhan, Koloğlu (2016). "Osmanlı'nın Türklüğünün örneği: Kuzey Afrika'daki Ocaklılar". Turk Solu. Retrieved 2016-05-15.
18. https://books.google.ca/books?id=OX8KzQEACAAJ&dq=kouloughi+alger&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi1_Nq5zJTqAhXOmeAKHcdWCbYQ6AEIJjAA
19. Khalidi 1991, xvii.
20. Kia 2011, 153.
21. Jacobs & Morris 2002, 460.
22. Benrabah 2007, 49.
23. Prochazka 2004, 191.
24. Abu-Haidar 1996, 119.
25. Kia 2011, 225.
26. Prochazka 2004, 194.
27. Prochazka 2004, 195.
28. Benkato 2014, 90.
29. İhsanoğlu 2003, 111.
30. Box 2005, 27.

Bibliography

• Abu-Haidar, Farida (1996), "Turkish as a Marker of Ethnic Identity and Religious Affiliation", Language and Identity in the Middle East and North Africa, Routledge, ISBN 1136787771.
• Benkato, Adam (2014), "The Arabic Dialect of Benghazi, Libya: Historical and Comparative Notes", Zeitschrift für Arabische Linguistik, Harrassowitz Verlag, 59: 57–102
• Benrabah, Mohamed (2007), "The Language Planning Situation in Algeria", Language Planning and Policy in Africa, Vol 2, Multilingual Matters, ISBN 1847690114.
• Box, Laura Chakravarty (2005), Strategies of Resistance in the Dramatic Texts of North African Women: A Body of Words, Routledge, ISBN 1135932077.
• Boyer, Pierre (1970), "Le problème Kouloughli dans la régence d'Alger", Revue de l'Occident musulman et de la Méditerranée, 8: 77–94
• Daumas, Eugène (1943), Women of North Africa: or "The Arab Woman", Indiana University Press, ASIN B0007ETDSY.
• Hizmetli, Sabri (1953), "Osmanlı Yönetimi Döneminde Tunus ve Cezayir'in Eğitim ve Kültür Tarihine Genel Bir Bakış" (PDF), Ankara Üniversitesi İlahiyat Fakültesi Dergisi, 32 (0): 1–12
• İhsanoğlu, Ekmeleddin (2003), "Cross fertilization between Arabic and other languages of Islam", Culture and Learning in Islam, UNESCO, ISBN 9231039091.
• Jacobs, Daniel; Morris, Peter (2002), The Rough Guide to Tunisia, Rough Guides, ISBN 1858287480.
• Khalidi, Rashid (1991), The Origins of Arab Nationalism, Columbia University Press, ISBN 0231074352.
• Kia, Mehrdad (2011), Daily Life in the Ottoman Empire, ABC-CLIO, ISBN 0313064024.
• Lorcin, Patricia M. E. (1999), Imperial Identities: Stereotyping, Prejudice and Race in Colonial Algeria, Indiana University Press, ISBN 0253217822.
• Oxford Business Group (2008), The Report: Algeria 2008, Oxford Business Group, ISBN 1-902339-09-6.
• Pan, Chia-Lin (1949), "The Population of Libya", Population Studies, 3 (1): 100–125, doi:10.1080/00324728.1949.10416359
• Prochazka, Stephen (2004), "The Turkish Contribution to the Arabic Lexicon", Linguistic Convergence and Areal Diffusion: Case Studies from Iranian, Semitic and Turkic, Routledge, ISBN 1134396309.
• Ruedy, John Douglas (2005), Modern Algeria: The Origins and Development of a Nation, Indiana University Press, ISBN 0253217822.