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below writing is taken from TC's Historian writer Dr.Nazim Beratli.

TURKISH CYPRIOTS
TURKMENS WHO HAVE FORGOTTEN RIDING HORSE!!

with this writing we might have many arguments . Too many claims we heard about Turkish Cypriots.

Turkmen tribes had established Ottoman Empire, as it’s known. But when it raised as a third power between two worlds of eastern and western cultures, to have an establishment was a nessicity for the rulers. Ottoman administrators needed settled people for increasing tax incomes of the state and for having more agricultural production and Turkmen tribes of Anatolia and Syria were against them because they were living in nomad life and didn’t know anything about agriculture. Till 1856, Ottoman history was a history of fightings, conflicts and rebellitions, between the rulers and tribes. All of the great Turkmen poets (such as Karacaoghlan, Dadaloghlou, Pir Shultan Abdal and the others) and almost all of the beliefs which have been saved from Maveraünnehir (such as Dede Korkut Stories, and folkloric beliefs) were based on this conflict. Turkmens, had to live on the mountains as rebels for centuries and this close culture, has saved their own nomadic-life stile, at least in their traditions, folkloric beliefs, poetry and music. We can say that, this conflict was the straggle between two worlds, in fact. First one was the world of nomadic tribes, they wanted to live by the way they used to be! The second world, was Ottoman rulers necessities for increasing agricultural producing and tax incomes which were inevitable conditions for having a civilization. According to a contemporary view, somebody can suggest that the rulers were against to the human rights but at the other hand having a civilization, with nomadic life, were impossible and Ottoman Empire shouldn’t live as a nomadic tribe - confederation.
Struggle between tribes and rulers, had continued, for centuries. At last, in 1856 Ottoman Empire established an army for settle the Turkmens, by force. But even today, there are some nomadic clans whom are living at the Toros Mountains, as they have lived from the beginning of their history.

This problem, forced Ottoman Empire, to have a special “ settlement policy” towards Turkmen tribes. According to this policy, whenever a new area conquered, it had to be settled by Turkmen tribes by force. It was called, “ shenlendirme”!**
After the conquer of Cyprus in 1571, Ottoman administration sent some people to the island as a fact of their settlement policy. There were two waves of people settlement to Cyprus. The first one was, from 1572 to the end of the XVI. century and the second, was from 1699 to 1745. The main paper about this settlement is a ferman of Sultan Selim the Second, which was written 20th September 1572. In this ferman it was ordered to the governors of Anatolia, Karamania, Zulkadiria and Rum provinces to select the people whom didn’t have enough land to make agriculture, wasn’t registered in a village population, who was known as a rebel (Turkmen population of those provinces was described with all of these criterias) and beside them ten percent of the industrial people; for sending Cyprus, by force. First of all, we have to say that all of those provinces were old Turkmen tribe governments (called Beylik), which was recently collaberated with the empire. It is known that, population of those provinces were Turkmens. For example, Zulkadiriya people were a mixture of Yureghir and Kynyk tribes and some independent clans, which was called as Zulkadiria Ulusu. Karamania people were Bozdoğan tribe, which was coming from main Oghouz branch, Üçoklar. The people of Rum province was a mixture of Beghdili, Bayat and other tribes which was coming from main branch Bozoklar and even a part of province was called Bozok, itself. And Anatolia province was another Turkmen area which even İbn-Batuta described as a “ Turkmen Yatagy” (Bed of Turkmens) on the Xll. Century.**
Beside of this main “ferman” there are some separated, fermans, which are ordering to settle people Cyprus by force. For example, we’ve found two fermans, written in 1576 and 1577, to the governor of Bozok District and was ordering send the people to Cyprus by force which was suspected them as supporters of Is mail Saphevi of Iran, the Shah of Kizilbash heterodox Islamic belief of Turkmens. (29 no. Muhimme defteri Ferman no: 490 and 30. No Muhimme Defteri, Ferman No: 488) And another ferman, which was written at the same year and ordering to send Ramazan of the Bozdoğan (a branch of Üçoks) to Cyprus, with his family and all of the supporters of him with their own families because of a rebellition. (That rebels called Koseli and even now there is a family living at the settlement area, which is called Koseli)( Anadolu’da Turkmen Aşiretleri Ahmet Refik) In another sample, there is a ferman, written 1576 and ordered to the Hamiteli district’s governor, to send the famous rebel Karahaci to Cyprus. (64 No.lu Muhimme defteri) Even in those days, at the old settlement area if somebody knocks a door at night time and the owners of the house ask, who is it that knocking the door, it is a folkloric joke to say: “ It’s me: Karahaci!” for freighting the hosts!

According to these fermans, it is known that, from 1572 to the end of XVI. Century, 8000 families settled to Cyprus, instead of planned 12000 families. (Muhimme defteri no.43 241 sayılı hüküm) We can easily understand that most of the population which was settled to the island was Turkmens of Anatolia because there is a paper in Ottoman Archive which is ordering “only Turks and Muslims must be sent to Cyprus”. (Mevkufat Defteri No.2551) We have to notice that, according to Ottoman official literature, “Turk” means, Turkmen and Yoruk. Dr.Cengiz Orhonlu, an author of Ottoman Settlement Policy, has written that, Turkmen’s of Karaman Province, was sent to Cyprus and settled to the island by force. (Milletlerarası Kıbrıs Meseleleri Kongresi, Ankara 1969) According to another author, Dr. Faruk Sumer, grand parents of Turkish Cypriots were the Turkmens of Cukurova. (Faruk Sumer, Oğuzlar- Turkmenler, s.148) This was the first wave.

After the second withdrawal of the Ottoman army from Vienna, Ottoman rulers realized that their weak point was, the low level of production and tax incomes. Ottoman administration decided to settle all of the tribes for rising agricultural producing and increasing incoming taxes. In 1699 another ferman was published which was ordering all of the Yoruk tribes,*** must be settled to Cyprus by force. This ferman was the beginning the second wave, of the settlement of Cyprus, by Turkmen tribes. Turkmen tribes rebelled again of course and till 1856 these rebellitions continued. But from 1700 to 1745 some other Turkmen tribes had sent to Cyprus and settled there by force. In this period, almost 2500 new families settled to Cyprus from, Beghdili, Bayat, Avshar, Kachar and Bozdoghan tribes. As it is known the first three tribes are the sub-branches of Bozoks and the fourth one, Uchoks. People from the most famous clan of Beghdili tribe, Şamlu or Dımışklı, (which is called Şahseven, Hudabendelü, Aynallu and Karagözlü in Iran), Bentoglu clan and Koroglu clan of Avshar Tribe, Kachar Halil clan of Kachars, Karahacılı clan of Bozdoghans from Yureghir tribe, Gediklü clan of Bayad tribe, Karakeçili clan from Kayı tribe have sent to Cyprus. ***(For details, I can suggest The History of Turkish Cypriots, v.ll)

In two waves, more than 50000 Turkmens was settled to Cyprus. The main settlement area, was Mesaria and Mesoto provinces, which is a step and alike with central Asia. Previous Latin farms were given to them as villages, but till the beginning of XX.Century they were busy with their sheep and camel flocks and didn’t interest with agricultural life. During all over those ages, under Ottoman rule in Cyprus, several rebellitions had taken place towards the rulers by the Turkmens of Cyprus, as their relatives had done in Anatolia and Syria. Although, at the end when the age of nationalism came, they felt themselves as Modern Turks but even today, Turkish Cypriots, are still insisting that they have a special identity and some differences between with the dominant Turkish identity, in modern Turkey.

To say the truth, somebody cannot say easily that they are not right. The nomad life style in the Anatolia and Syria at the far past; and living in close villages in an island, for centuries, gave them a chance (?) for saving some features of their old life. As a result of these conditions, Turkish Cypriots have saved their older features then Ottoman times, because they had never integrated with Ottoman culture at the past. It means that they had stayed as nomads from the beginning of their history to the beginning to the time of nationalism. And when somebody talks about their pre-modern features, he/she cannot find anything else from their culture, which they have carried, from Horasan or Maveraünnehir. The time, which is lying between nomadic life and nationalism in ordinary communities, is a lost time for Turkish Cypriots. They jumped from nomadic culture to nationalism.

And for our day, when we talked about Turkish Cypriot Identity, first of all we can find a special Turkish dialect that we can say that it is carried from the days of Dede Korkut Stories of XII. Century. Turkish Cypriots, have too many words from the Turkmen dialect which most of them have been forgotten in Istanbul dialect. Not only forgotten words, the structure of sentences of Turkish Cypriot dialect does not belong to the dialect of Istanbul but also it is from their old Turkmen dialect. Because of it, a Turkish Cypriot, can easily understand an Azerbaijani or a Turkmen from Kerkhuk and with a little care even a Turkmen from Merv, Askabat or somewhere else.

All of the old Turkmen folkloric beliefs are still alive among the Turkish Cypriots. The cult of parents, the cult of holy trees, the cult of smoking, the cult of water and fire. A researcher can easily find several folkloric habitualness, based from Shamanism. For example do not cut nails at nighttime, do not have hair cut at night e.g. the belief of “Albasması”, is steel very popular in Turkish Cypriots. Or, Nevruz is steel alive in some villages and called “ Mart Dokuzu”... Beside them, most of the folkloric traditions are same with Turkmenistan. For example, wedding traditions which I have read at the ******* were same with the old Turkish Cypriot traditions. The music instrument named “Dilli Dudhuk” carries the same name in Cyprus, instead of its Anatolian names, “kaval” or “ney”...


By Dr.Nazim Beratli