Articles and Book Chapters by Jordi Tejel Gorgas
In the introduction to this special issue, we address the concepts of
ordinariness and Ottomannes... more In the introduction to this special issue, we address the concepts of
ordinariness and Ottomanness, and how they intersect within the
general context of the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire.1 Given the
already existing scholarship on ordinary groups or individuals in the
history of the Middle East, we first position ordinariness as context-
specific; that is, we understand it as subjected to various forms of
exclusion from the elite. Second, within the framework of the major
political changes that characterise the end of Empire we explore
ordinariness and how it is embedded in everyday life and practices. We
interrogate the capacities of individuals to maintain regularity through
ordinary practices, after or despite a disruptive episode. We argue that
persisting with everyday life practices despite crisis can serve as a
strategy to reclaim spaces of autonomy from power structures.
However, we also demonstrate that ordinary individuals, being
vulnerable subjects or citizens, are also subject to change. These
questions eventually lead us to rethink the debate on ‘continuities and
ruptures’ within the post-Ottoman context. We suggest that framing
Ottomanness as a time-marker, rather than as an identity-marker
(Ottoman-era), allows us to focus on how groups and individuals coped
with these changes, rather than attempting to define them.
Turkish Translation of "The Last Ottoman Rogues: The Kurdish-Armenian Alliance in Syria and the N... more Turkish Translation of "The Last Ottoman Rogues: The Kurdish-Armenian Alliance in Syria and the New State System in the Interwar Middle East", in Ramazan Hakkı Öztan and Alp Yenen (eds), Age of Rogues: Rebels, Revolutionaries, and Racketeers at the Frontiers of Empires (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2021), pp. 355-382.
Scholars generally argue that during the Second World War the Middle East, and the Kurdish areas ... more Scholars generally argue that during the Second World War the Middle East, and the Kurdish areas in particular, was a peripheral theatre of an otherwise global war. While this is largely true, it seems necessary to introduce some nuances into this analysis. A view from the borderlands, combined with a socio-historical approach to how the war was experienced on a daily basis behind the front line, reveals that military tensions, large-scale arms smuggling, inflation, food shortages and economic migration were common features in the Kurdish borderlands between 1941 and 1945. Furthermore, looking at the uneventful can help us to better understand the context in which the Kurdish nationalist movement developed during the war and in the immediate postwar years.
T he First World War brought an end to what scholars have called the fi rst wave of globalisation... more T he First World War brought an end to what scholars have called the fi rst wave of globalisation. 1 Since the 1850s the world had turned into a more connected place, as breakthroughs in transportation and communication technology compressed time and space in unparalleled ways, enabling faster travel and more condensed experiences of temporality. 2 In this age of steam and print, not only did ideas and diseases spread more easily across the world, 3 but also goods, capital and labour-all in all circuits of capital-penetrated 1 For two prominent surveys on globalisation, see C.
This is an open access chapter distributed under the terms of the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 license.
T he First World War brought an end to what scholars have called the fi rst wave of globalisation... more T he First World War brought an end to what scholars have called the fi rst wave of globalisation. 1 Since the 1850s the world had turned into a more connected place, as breakthroughs in transportation and communication technology compressed time and space in unparalleled ways, enabling faster travel and more condensed experiences of temporality. 2 In this age of steam and print, not only did ideas and diseases spread more easily across the world, 3 but also goods, capital and labour-all in all circuits of capital-penetrated 1 For two prominent surveys on globalisation, see C.
Journal of Borderlands Studies, 2022
In this article, I focus on the production and circulation along the Turkish-Syrian border of rum... more In this article, I focus on the production and circulation along the Turkish-Syrian border of rumors about the imminent annexation of Northern Syria by Turkey in the interwar years. Drawing on Joel S. Migdal and Sabine Dullin’s works on the shared production of states and borders between the “center” and the “periphery”, this article suggests that the study of the webs of rumors and information originating from the Turkish-Syrian border helps provide an alternative narrative about the bordering processes in the Middle East and beyond. To achieve this, I analyze dozens of reports produced by the border authorities and consulates as well as press articles in which such rumors were recorded and conveyed for more than two decades. I argue that rumors played a role not only in determining the way Turkish and French mandatory authorities intervened in borderlands’ everyday life, but also in how the two governments interacted to each other.
KEYWORDS: Borderlands, rumors, border-making, (b)ordering, intelligence, subaltern
Irak’taki “Kürt isyanı” ve Mustafa Barzani figürü hiçbir zaman Vietnam savaşı, Hô Chi Minh isyanc... more Irak’taki “Kürt isyanı” ve Mustafa Barzani figürü hiçbir zaman Vietnam savaşı, Hô Chi Minh isyancıları veya Che Guevara gibi Avrupalı “devrimciler” arasında 1960-1970 yıllarında yankı uyandıran olaylarla aynı heyecanı yaratmadı. Bu anlamda Kürt gerillaları ile Irak hükümeti arasındaki çatışma 1960’lar döneminin dışında kaldı.
Asya, Afrika ve Latin Amerika’daki azınlık isyanlar ve genel olarak ulusal kurtuluş hareketleri, dünyanın ideolojik bir bölünmesinden faydalanmaya çalıştılar ki bu bölünmeler Washington ve Moskova’dan bakıldığında yerel halktan daha reel görünüyordu. Dahası, “1960’lar boyunca” ulusötesi ilişkileri, yalnızca ulaşımın iyileşmesi ve bilginin, kültürel referansların ve fikirlerin yayılması yoluyla değil, ama aynı zamanda insanlar arasındaki resmi ve gayri resmi ağların geliştirilmesi yoluyla da pekişti. II. Dünya Savaşı’ndan sonra ulusal bağımsızlıklarını kazanmada kendi toplumlarında öncü rol oynayan öğrenciler, kendilerini ayrıcalıklı bir konumda buldular. Bu öğrenciler, yabancı ülkelerde burslu olarak okuma, uluslararası gençlik kongrelerine ve festivallere katılma ve tanımı gereği ulus-ötesi olan organizasyonlarda aktif rol alma gibi bir dizi ayrıcalıklar elde ettiler. Bu bağlamda, KSSE artan “öğrenci küreselleşmesinin” avantajlarından yararlanmıştır. Uluslararası öğrenci ağlarının, “üçüncü dünya”daki ulusal kurtuluş hareketlerini destekleyen ulusal ağların ve ulus-ötesi devrimci ağların (Henri Curiel grubu gibi) bir parçası olmayı başardı. Böylece KSSE niceliksel zayıflığına rağmen, 1961-1975 yılları arasındaki Kürt isyanı açısından maddi ve sembolik zaferler elde etti ve Celal Talabani ile Mustafa Barzani arasındaki mevcut bölünmeye rağmen isyana siyasi bir tutarlılık sağladı.
Diğer yandan da, “Kürt davası” KSSE aracılığıyla, Avrupa solunun belirli kesimlerinin, özellikle de Almanya, Büyük Britanya ve Fransa’daki devrimci tahayyülünü besledi. Avrupa’daki Kürt öğrenciler bunu yaparken, belirli entelektüel ve akademik çevrelerin “enternasyonalist dayanışması”nın pasif alıcıları olmakla sınırlı kalmadılar, aynı zamanda siyasi ve kültürel anlamda kaynayan Avrupa’nın ideolojik tartışmalarında ve “Kürt sorunu”nu gündemleştirmede aktif rol oynadılar.
Ev nivîs pêşî berê xwe dide wê ramana oryantalîzmê ya di navbera her
du şerên cihanê de û bi dû r... more Ev nivîs pêşî berê xwe dide wê ramana oryantalîzmê ya di navbera her
du şerên cihanê de û bi dû ra bala nivîsê dikişîne, tîne ser têgeha nasnameya kurdî û dipirse ka elîtên Kurdan kengî, çira û çawa xebat kirin ku konsepteke maqûl ya nasnameya kurdî ava bibe. Ji ber pêşveçûnên li Rojhilata Navîn, ev xebata ji bo avakirina nasnameyê an jî çêkirina “civakeke yekgirtî ya xeyalî” -mebest ji civakê, civaka kurmanca ye- di bin bandora fransîyan da pêk hat, ji ber ku hingê Sûrîye di bin desthilata fransîyan da bû. Pêwendîya di navbera karmendên fransî û rewşenbîrên kurd da welê kir ku di encama hevkarîya wan da berhemên nivîskî derkevin holê ku him hêz û îlhamê da ji bo avakirina nasnameya kurdî, him jî îmaja kurdan li Ewropayê xweş kir. Lê di çêkirina nasnameyeke kurdî da ku her kesê ku dixwest nikaribû tevî wê proseya çêkirinê bibe, encameke berbiçav derket holê: “Rewşenbîrê Ewropa dîtî” mecbûr man di nav civakeke sembolîk da bijîn, ev civak ji wê civaka berê gellekî cudabû ewa ku yên ne-elît yan jî elîtên ‘adetî wekî şêx û serok’eşîr tê de xwedî-hukm bûn.
in Ramazan Hakkı Öztan and Alp Yenen (eds), Age of Rogues: Rebels, Revolutionaries, and Racketeers at the Frontiers of Empires (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2021), pp. 355-382.
T he Paris Peace Conference of 1919 paved the way for the emergence of new modern states in the M... more T he Paris Peace Conference of 1919 paved the way for the emergence of new modern states in the Middle East, whether as fully independent entities or under mandatory oversight, by granting them sovereign powers within new 'national' territories. Paradoxically, however, as Bradley Miller puts it, the 'same sovereignty that empowered states also undermined them by limiting the reach of their authority in a world in which people crossed borders, with much more dexterity than law'. 2 Just as borders emerged as a resource for many to secure new economic avenues, sustain trans-border family connections or simply escape the law-criminals and smugglers 3-the 1 This chapter has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation approval (Grant Agreement No. 725269).
The chapter emphasizes that the consolidation of the PYD as the main broker in the Syrian Kurdish... more The chapter emphasizes that the consolidation of the PYD as the main broker in the Syrian Kurdish arena after 2011 is better explained by historical (the consolidation of three separated Kurdish enclaves since the establishment of the Syrian state), regional (the alliance between Syria’s regime and the PKK), and political factors (traditional weakness of the other Kurdish political parties).
The establishment of the ‘Islamic Caliphate’ in 2014 over a territory that comprised portions of ... more The establishment of the ‘Islamic Caliphate’ in 2014 over a territory that comprised portions of the Iraqi and Syrian state as well as the self-declared Kurdish ‘federal’ scheme in Northern Syria nourished the perception that the so-called Sykes-Picot system had collapsed. However, scholars should be cautious. For one, non-state actors can reshape international borders just as well as states can—i.e., with similar functions, albeit with different political agendas. These agendas include acquiring a means to gain material and symbolic resources; as a process of (b)ordering local societies; as a political asset within the international system; and, finally, as ‘shielding borders’ in the face of external threats. In so doing, non-state actors might replace state authorities as institutions that hold the legitimate use of force in a territory while contributing to the permanence of state borders. The chapter thus argues that since the establishment of the Syrian state, Kurdish populations and local political actors have developed a complex and dynamic relationship with the post-World War I borders. Crucially, the analysis of PYD discourse (pamphlets, online outlets and school textbooks) and practice points out the continuities and changes with regard to the relationship of the main Kurdish political party with state borders as well as with the concept of Greater Kurdistan.
20&21. Revue d'histoire, 2020
Drawing on theoretical debates in the field of both gender and border studies, this paper first l... more Drawing on theoretical debates in the field of both gender and border studies, this paper first looks at women’s living conditions in the easternmost rural areas of the Syria-Turkey border (Upper Jazira), as well as female agency through the observation of short-distance, cross-border mobility. Then, by adopting a decentered approach to history, the article analyzes to what extent border cooperation (used to deal with a wide range of issues affecting women) helps us understand not only how the law is implemented, but also how the complex processes of State formation operate within a context marked by persistent border disputes between Turkey and Syria.
This special issue approaches the study of refugees and forcibly displaced persons in the Middle ... more This special issue approaches the study of refugees and forcibly displaced persons in the Middle East beyond the analytic bounds dictated by states, nations and regions. Each author is interested in showing connections, influences, and far-reaching consequences that cut across analytic boundaries. By challenging state-centred accounts and instead placing refugees, institutions, and states in a mutually interactive framework , each contributor frames refugees as the driving force behind various historical processes. By providing a range of case studies drawn from the Middle East, the volume also marks a step away from the Euro-centrism that so often defines the study of refugees and shows the centrality of the developments in Europe for the Middle East and the developments in the Middle East for Europe. We therefore propose the connected histories of refugeedom as the historiographical way forward in the study of refugees.
ROUTLEDGE HANDBOOK OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS IN THE MIDDLE EAST, Routledge, London, 2019
This chapter argues that ethnic and religious minorities in the Middle East
are living a crucial ... more This chapter argues that ethnic and religious minorities in the Middle East
are living a crucial juncture in this early twenty-first century that asks for a reassessment of their position. The ever-expanding process of globalization as well as the Arab revolts of 2010–11 have paved the way for an empowerment of certain ethnic and religious minorities, despite the
fact that the latter have witnessed a dramatic decline from a numerical perspective. Today, like yesterday, diverse sectors from Middle Eastern societies, including minorities, are calling for new forms of governance beyond the “primitive” versions of nationalism and communitarianism.
As in other regions across the world,63 minority groups seek to modify the content of their cause in ways that empower ordinary people to gain more control over the resources as well as the decision-making processes at all levels. As in the past, however, this capacity of “agency” provides at once new opportunities – publicity for their concerns and influence (and old challenges) – and a “visibility” that forces minority groups not only to respond to those challenges in order to maintain their place and even new relevance, but also to avoid being associated as allies of “fifth columns”.
Finally, against this backdrop, the (re)examination of how “minorities” have shaped (and continue to shape) international relations in the Middle East asks for a less stato-centered vantage point in the IR field. The growing visibility (religious revivalism both in the Middle East and among the diaspora), social activism seeking to secure the “right to difference”, and the political empowerment (particularly the Amazigh movement in North Africa, as well as the Kurdish movement both in Syria and Iraq) need to be analyzed not as marginal dynamics, but as potential forces of transformation in the Middle East. After all, political claims on behalf of
“minorities” have frequently been claims not for separation but for more liberal politics with implications for the majority as well.
Activists Forever? Long-Term Impacts of Political Activism, in Erik Neveu and Olivier Fillieule (eds), Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 181-201, 2019
This chapter aims to shed light on the impact of state repression on activists engaged in radical... more This chapter aims to shed light on the impact of state repression on activists engaged in radical movements in contemporary Turkey (1984-1991) with a special focus on the actual factors leading to defection. They should be understood as an interactive process requiring a multi-level model of disengagement, in particular at the meso level of organizations and at the micro level of biography. Drawing from the life-history method and in-depth interviews with a married couple of ex-militants, the paper seeks to demonstrate that whilst coercion does have an effect both on social movements and on the militants individually, a closer observation of life stories suggests that other elements should also be taken into consideration to better grasp the phenomenon of ‘exit’ in authoritarian contexts, including life-changing events, interlocked trajectories (such as activism and family), socialization, the impact of generational units and “microcohorts” on social movements, gender relations, and emotions. Importantly, some of these factors also serve to explain certain long-term consequences of commitment which may continue long after the decision of disengagement was made.
Uploads
Articles and Book Chapters by Jordi Tejel Gorgas
ordinariness and Ottomanness, and how they intersect within the
general context of the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire.1 Given the
already existing scholarship on ordinary groups or individuals in the
history of the Middle East, we first position ordinariness as context-
specific; that is, we understand it as subjected to various forms of
exclusion from the elite. Second, within the framework of the major
political changes that characterise the end of Empire we explore
ordinariness and how it is embedded in everyday life and practices. We
interrogate the capacities of individuals to maintain regularity through
ordinary practices, after or despite a disruptive episode. We argue that
persisting with everyday life practices despite crisis can serve as a
strategy to reclaim spaces of autonomy from power structures.
However, we also demonstrate that ordinary individuals, being
vulnerable subjects or citizens, are also subject to change. These
questions eventually lead us to rethink the debate on ‘continuities and
ruptures’ within the post-Ottoman context. We suggest that framing
Ottomanness as a time-marker, rather than as an identity-marker
(Ottoman-era), allows us to focus on how groups and individuals coped
with these changes, rather than attempting to define them.
KEYWORDS: Borderlands, rumors, border-making, (b)ordering, intelligence, subaltern
Asya, Afrika ve Latin Amerika’daki azınlık isyanlar ve genel olarak ulusal kurtuluş hareketleri, dünyanın ideolojik bir bölünmesinden faydalanmaya çalıştılar ki bu bölünmeler Washington ve Moskova’dan bakıldığında yerel halktan daha reel görünüyordu. Dahası, “1960’lar boyunca” ulusötesi ilişkileri, yalnızca ulaşımın iyileşmesi ve bilginin, kültürel referansların ve fikirlerin yayılması yoluyla değil, ama aynı zamanda insanlar arasındaki resmi ve gayri resmi ağların geliştirilmesi yoluyla da pekişti. II. Dünya Savaşı’ndan sonra ulusal bağımsızlıklarını kazanmada kendi toplumlarında öncü rol oynayan öğrenciler, kendilerini ayrıcalıklı bir konumda buldular. Bu öğrenciler, yabancı ülkelerde burslu olarak okuma, uluslararası gençlik kongrelerine ve festivallere katılma ve tanımı gereği ulus-ötesi olan organizasyonlarda aktif rol alma gibi bir dizi ayrıcalıklar elde ettiler. Bu bağlamda, KSSE artan “öğrenci küreselleşmesinin” avantajlarından yararlanmıştır. Uluslararası öğrenci ağlarının, “üçüncü dünya”daki ulusal kurtuluş hareketlerini destekleyen ulusal ağların ve ulus-ötesi devrimci ağların (Henri Curiel grubu gibi) bir parçası olmayı başardı. Böylece KSSE niceliksel zayıflığına rağmen, 1961-1975 yılları arasındaki Kürt isyanı açısından maddi ve sembolik zaferler elde etti ve Celal Talabani ile Mustafa Barzani arasındaki mevcut bölünmeye rağmen isyana siyasi bir tutarlılık sağladı.
Diğer yandan da, “Kürt davası” KSSE aracılığıyla, Avrupa solunun belirli kesimlerinin, özellikle de Almanya, Büyük Britanya ve Fransa’daki devrimci tahayyülünü besledi. Avrupa’daki Kürt öğrenciler bunu yaparken, belirli entelektüel ve akademik çevrelerin “enternasyonalist dayanışması”nın pasif alıcıları olmakla sınırlı kalmadılar, aynı zamanda siyasi ve kültürel anlamda kaynayan Avrupa’nın ideolojik tartışmalarında ve “Kürt sorunu”nu gündemleştirmede aktif rol oynadılar.
du şerên cihanê de û bi dû ra bala nivîsê dikişîne, tîne ser têgeha nasnameya kurdî û dipirse ka elîtên Kurdan kengî, çira û çawa xebat kirin ku konsepteke maqûl ya nasnameya kurdî ava bibe. Ji ber pêşveçûnên li Rojhilata Navîn, ev xebata ji bo avakirina nasnameyê an jî çêkirina “civakeke yekgirtî ya xeyalî” -mebest ji civakê, civaka kurmanca ye- di bin bandora fransîyan da pêk hat, ji ber ku hingê Sûrîye di bin desthilata fransîyan da bû. Pêwendîya di navbera karmendên fransî û rewşenbîrên kurd da welê kir ku di encama hevkarîya wan da berhemên nivîskî derkevin holê ku him hêz û îlhamê da ji bo avakirina nasnameya kurdî, him jî îmaja kurdan li Ewropayê xweş kir. Lê di çêkirina nasnameyeke kurdî da ku her kesê ku dixwest nikaribû tevî wê proseya çêkirinê bibe, encameke berbiçav derket holê: “Rewşenbîrê Ewropa dîtî” mecbûr man di nav civakeke sembolîk da bijîn, ev civak ji wê civaka berê gellekî cudabû ewa ku yên ne-elît yan jî elîtên ‘adetî wekî şêx û serok’eşîr tê de xwedî-hukm bûn.
are living a crucial juncture in this early twenty-first century that asks for a reassessment of their position. The ever-expanding process of globalization as well as the Arab revolts of 2010–11 have paved the way for an empowerment of certain ethnic and religious minorities, despite the
fact that the latter have witnessed a dramatic decline from a numerical perspective. Today, like yesterday, diverse sectors from Middle Eastern societies, including minorities, are calling for new forms of governance beyond the “primitive” versions of nationalism and communitarianism.
As in other regions across the world,63 minority groups seek to modify the content of their cause in ways that empower ordinary people to gain more control over the resources as well as the decision-making processes at all levels. As in the past, however, this capacity of “agency” provides at once new opportunities – publicity for their concerns and influence (and old challenges) – and a “visibility” that forces minority groups not only to respond to those challenges in order to maintain their place and even new relevance, but also to avoid being associated as allies of “fifth columns”.
Finally, against this backdrop, the (re)examination of how “minorities” have shaped (and continue to shape) international relations in the Middle East asks for a less stato-centered vantage point in the IR field. The growing visibility (religious revivalism both in the Middle East and among the diaspora), social activism seeking to secure the “right to difference”, and the political empowerment (particularly the Amazigh movement in North Africa, as well as the Kurdish movement both in Syria and Iraq) need to be analyzed not as marginal dynamics, but as potential forces of transformation in the Middle East. After all, political claims on behalf of
“minorities” have frequently been claims not for separation but for more liberal politics with implications for the majority as well.
ordinariness and Ottomanness, and how they intersect within the
general context of the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire.1 Given the
already existing scholarship on ordinary groups or individuals in the
history of the Middle East, we first position ordinariness as context-
specific; that is, we understand it as subjected to various forms of
exclusion from the elite. Second, within the framework of the major
political changes that characterise the end of Empire we explore
ordinariness and how it is embedded in everyday life and practices. We
interrogate the capacities of individuals to maintain regularity through
ordinary practices, after or despite a disruptive episode. We argue that
persisting with everyday life practices despite crisis can serve as a
strategy to reclaim spaces of autonomy from power structures.
However, we also demonstrate that ordinary individuals, being
vulnerable subjects or citizens, are also subject to change. These
questions eventually lead us to rethink the debate on ‘continuities and
ruptures’ within the post-Ottoman context. We suggest that framing
Ottomanness as a time-marker, rather than as an identity-marker
(Ottoman-era), allows us to focus on how groups and individuals coped
with these changes, rather than attempting to define them.
KEYWORDS: Borderlands, rumors, border-making, (b)ordering, intelligence, subaltern
Asya, Afrika ve Latin Amerika’daki azınlık isyanlar ve genel olarak ulusal kurtuluş hareketleri, dünyanın ideolojik bir bölünmesinden faydalanmaya çalıştılar ki bu bölünmeler Washington ve Moskova’dan bakıldığında yerel halktan daha reel görünüyordu. Dahası, “1960’lar boyunca” ulusötesi ilişkileri, yalnızca ulaşımın iyileşmesi ve bilginin, kültürel referansların ve fikirlerin yayılması yoluyla değil, ama aynı zamanda insanlar arasındaki resmi ve gayri resmi ağların geliştirilmesi yoluyla da pekişti. II. Dünya Savaşı’ndan sonra ulusal bağımsızlıklarını kazanmada kendi toplumlarında öncü rol oynayan öğrenciler, kendilerini ayrıcalıklı bir konumda buldular. Bu öğrenciler, yabancı ülkelerde burslu olarak okuma, uluslararası gençlik kongrelerine ve festivallere katılma ve tanımı gereği ulus-ötesi olan organizasyonlarda aktif rol alma gibi bir dizi ayrıcalıklar elde ettiler. Bu bağlamda, KSSE artan “öğrenci küreselleşmesinin” avantajlarından yararlanmıştır. Uluslararası öğrenci ağlarının, “üçüncü dünya”daki ulusal kurtuluş hareketlerini destekleyen ulusal ağların ve ulus-ötesi devrimci ağların (Henri Curiel grubu gibi) bir parçası olmayı başardı. Böylece KSSE niceliksel zayıflığına rağmen, 1961-1975 yılları arasındaki Kürt isyanı açısından maddi ve sembolik zaferler elde etti ve Celal Talabani ile Mustafa Barzani arasındaki mevcut bölünmeye rağmen isyana siyasi bir tutarlılık sağladı.
Diğer yandan da, “Kürt davası” KSSE aracılığıyla, Avrupa solunun belirli kesimlerinin, özellikle de Almanya, Büyük Britanya ve Fransa’daki devrimci tahayyülünü besledi. Avrupa’daki Kürt öğrenciler bunu yaparken, belirli entelektüel ve akademik çevrelerin “enternasyonalist dayanışması”nın pasif alıcıları olmakla sınırlı kalmadılar, aynı zamanda siyasi ve kültürel anlamda kaynayan Avrupa’nın ideolojik tartışmalarında ve “Kürt sorunu”nu gündemleştirmede aktif rol oynadılar.
du şerên cihanê de û bi dû ra bala nivîsê dikişîne, tîne ser têgeha nasnameya kurdî û dipirse ka elîtên Kurdan kengî, çira û çawa xebat kirin ku konsepteke maqûl ya nasnameya kurdî ava bibe. Ji ber pêşveçûnên li Rojhilata Navîn, ev xebata ji bo avakirina nasnameyê an jî çêkirina “civakeke yekgirtî ya xeyalî” -mebest ji civakê, civaka kurmanca ye- di bin bandora fransîyan da pêk hat, ji ber ku hingê Sûrîye di bin desthilata fransîyan da bû. Pêwendîya di navbera karmendên fransî û rewşenbîrên kurd da welê kir ku di encama hevkarîya wan da berhemên nivîskî derkevin holê ku him hêz û îlhamê da ji bo avakirina nasnameya kurdî, him jî îmaja kurdan li Ewropayê xweş kir. Lê di çêkirina nasnameyeke kurdî da ku her kesê ku dixwest nikaribû tevî wê proseya çêkirinê bibe, encameke berbiçav derket holê: “Rewşenbîrê Ewropa dîtî” mecbûr man di nav civakeke sembolîk da bijîn, ev civak ji wê civaka berê gellekî cudabû ewa ku yên ne-elît yan jî elîtên ‘adetî wekî şêx û serok’eşîr tê de xwedî-hukm bûn.
are living a crucial juncture in this early twenty-first century that asks for a reassessment of their position. The ever-expanding process of globalization as well as the Arab revolts of 2010–11 have paved the way for an empowerment of certain ethnic and religious minorities, despite the
fact that the latter have witnessed a dramatic decline from a numerical perspective. Today, like yesterday, diverse sectors from Middle Eastern societies, including minorities, are calling for new forms of governance beyond the “primitive” versions of nationalism and communitarianism.
As in other regions across the world,63 minority groups seek to modify the content of their cause in ways that empower ordinary people to gain more control over the resources as well as the decision-making processes at all levels. As in the past, however, this capacity of “agency” provides at once new opportunities – publicity for their concerns and influence (and old challenges) – and a “visibility” that forces minority groups not only to respond to those challenges in order to maintain their place and even new relevance, but also to avoid being associated as allies of “fifth columns”.
Finally, against this backdrop, the (re)examination of how “minorities” have shaped (and continue to shape) international relations in the Middle East asks for a less stato-centered vantage point in the IR field. The growing visibility (religious revivalism both in the Middle East and among the diaspora), social activism seeking to secure the “right to difference”, and the political empowerment (particularly the Amazigh movement in North Africa, as well as the Kurdish movement both in Syria and Iraq) need to be analyzed not as marginal dynamics, but as potential forces of transformation in the Middle East. After all, political claims on behalf of
“minorities” have frequently been claims not for separation but for more liberal politics with implications for the majority as well.
The emergence of the modern Middle East is the result of three complementary historical developments: the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire, the institution of British and French control in its stead and the nationalist challenges to this colonial scramble. The introduction of international borders that accompanied this process is commonly portrayed as the drawing of lines in the sand, an artificial partitioning that brought diplomatic closure to an otherwise contested historical space.
وترجمة محمد شمدين
هذا الكتاب هو مساهمة غنية في دراسة التاريخ الكردي في سوريا منذ فترة الانتداب (1920- 1946) إلى الوقت الحاضر. ولتوخّي النهج الجوهري، يقدِّم جوردي تيجيل من ناحية تحليلاً دقيقاً ومعقداً وأحياناً متناقضاً للتعبير بين الهويات القَبليّة والمحلية والإقليمية والوطنية، وتشكل وعي الأقلية الكردية مقابل توطّد القومية العربية في سوريا، من ناحية أخرى، وبالاستعانة بمواد غير منشورة كالسجلات الفرنسية والصحف الكردية لا سيما في فترة الانتداب، واستناداً إلى نظرية الحركة الاجتماعية يحلّل تيجيل الأسباب وراء «الاستثناء» السوري حول المسألة السياسية الكردية. فعلى الرغم من استبعاد القومية الكردية (كردايتي) من الشأن العام، خاصةً منذ عام 1963، إلا أن الكرد تجنبوا المواجهة المباشرة مع السلطة المركزية، واختار معظم الكرد إستراتيجية «التقيّة» وزرعوا داخلياً أشكال الهوية التي تحدد الأيديولوجية الرسمية. يستكشف الكاتب الديناميات التي أدت إلى توحيد وعي الأقلية الكردية في سوريا المعاصرة، على شكل عملية مستمرة يمكن أن تأخذ منحى متطرفاً أو حتى عنيفا.
Xoybûn Cemiyeti’nin modernliği, aynı zamanda yöneticilerinin siyasi propagandaya verdikleri önemde de yatar.
Bu propaganda, devletlerle (İran, Fransa, Büyük Britanya, İtalya, Sovyetler Birliği) olduğu kadar, bölgenin devlet olmayan aktörleriyle de (Ermeniler ve Türk muhalefeti), genellikle yarı resmi nitelikteki diplomatik temaslara yapılan önemli yatırımlarla da berkitilmiştir.
Öte yandan, Xoybûn bir siyasi-askeri ittifaklar sistemine de dahil olmayı başarmış ve böylelikle, örneğin Ağrı isyanında olduğu gibi, yadsınamaz bir bölgesel aktöre dönüşmeyi başarmıştır.
Kılı kırk yaran bir kavramsal yaklaşımla çok boyutlu bir etnografik malzemeyi birleştiren yazar, Kürtlüğün özellikle 1963’ten beri kamusal alanın dışına itilmesi karşısında Suriye Kürtlerinin resmi ideolojiye bir “takiye” stratejisiyle içten içe meydan okuyuşundan açık alandaki sivil direnişlere ve ayaklanmalara uzanan kolektif tavırlarını incelerken bugüne uzanan gelişmeleri anlamlandırmaya yardımcı olacak eğilimleri saptıyor.
Avoiding an essentialist approach, Jordi Tejel provides fine, complex and sometimes paradoxical analysis about the articulation between tribal, local, regional, and national identities, on one hand, and the formation of a Kurdish minority awareness vis-à-vis the consolidation of Arab nationalism in Syria, on the other hand.
Using unpublished material, in particular concerning the Mandatory period (French records and Kurdish newspapers) and social movement theory, Tejel analyses the reasons of this "exception" within the Kurdish political sphere. In spite of the exclusion of Kurdishness from the public sphere, especially since 1963, Kurds of Syria have avoided a direct confrontation with the central power, most Kurds opting for a strategy of "dissimulation", cultivating internally the forms of identity that challenge the official ideology. The book explores the dynamics leading to the consolidation of Kurdish minority awareness in contemporary Syria; an ongoing process that could take the form of radicalization or even violence.
account with the modernist approach on the study of nationalism as first proposed by Ernest Gellner, and developed differently, later on, by Benedict Anderson. In so doing, Eppel concludes that the Kurds’ historical vision of themselves and the historical Kurdish discourse was
impeded by the slow pace of modernization in Kurdish society, as well as by the hostile and oppressive attitude of the states that controlled Kurdistan. Thus, although the historical continuity of the people now known as Kurds can be traced back at least as far as the beginnings of
Islam, tribal and pastoral-agrarian Kurdish society did not give rise to a supra-tribal political entity within which a collective Kurdish identity was able to develop. In other words, political, social and economic factors combined to hinder the development of a modern national community
alongside the Arabs and the Turks, to mention a few ‘Muslim’ neighbours.
- On what scholarly discourses do recent historical studies of the rural Middle East draw, e.g., histories of marginality, territoriality, political economy, human capital formation, social network theory, or actor network theory?
- How might the reinvigorated study of rural pasts change our view of Ottoman and Middle Eastern history as a whole?
- What are the most promising perspectives, sources, and methodologies for the study of rural communities, rural areas, and imaginaries of the rural?
Keynote
10h 15: "Les terroirs syriens en révolution, regard historique sur le temps long", Matthieu Rey (IFPO, Beyrouth)
13h45-15h45 Panel : L'armée et le régime syrien, passé et présent
-Loubna Kheir (Unine) : « Quelle armée pour l'indépendance ? Enjeux et problématiques d'une armée nationale syrienne ».
-Souhail Belhadj-Klaz (IHEID, Genève): « Les origines et la dynamique du secteur de la sécurité syrien: une approche d'économie politique »
Taking its cue from scholarship that suggests to interpret the “centre” through the lens of the “periphery”, this conference seeks to explore to what extent historians can also account for the first wave of globalization in the Middle East through a careful observation of how border areas and its populations found themselves at the centre of influence, movements and tensions on regional and global levels. While we do not dismiss the centrality of diplomacy and high-level geostrategic dynamics in the resolution of international conflicts and the shaping of economic policies, we argue for the necessity of linking different scales of analysis as well as the roles played by non-state actors in those processes in order to better understand the emergence
of the modern Middle East in the interwar years.
“Kürt-Sovyet İlişkileri” Özel Sayısı
Sayı Editörleri: Adnan Çelik & Etienne Forestier-Peyrat
Dosya Yazarları:
Jordi Tejel,
Barbara Henning,
Nicholas Glastonbury,
Omar Sheikhmous,
Adnan Çelik,
Etienne Forestier-Peyrat,
Joanna Bocheńska & Karwan Fatah-Black.