Socio-Cultural Adaptation of Somali Immigrants in Ankara and Istanbul”

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Socio-Cultural Adaptation of Somali Immigrants in Ankara and Istanbul” SOCIAL SCIENCES UNIVERSITY OF ANKARA INSTITUTE OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN SOCIAL SCIENCES SEYLAN İMRE “SOCIO-CULTURAL ADAPTATION OF SOMALI IMMIGRANTS IN ANKARA AND ISTANBUL” MASTER THESIS NOVEMBER 2020 SOCIAL SCIENCES UNIVERSITY OF ANKARA INSTITUTE OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN SOCIAL SCIENCES SEYLAN İMRE “SOCIO-CULTURAL ADAPTATION OF SOMALI IMMIGRANTS IN ANKARA AND ISTANBUL” THESIS SUPERVISOR ASST. PROF. DR. K. ONUR UNUTULMAZ MASTER THESIS NOVEMBER 2020 PLAGIARISM I hereby declare that all information in this document has been obtained and presented in accordance with academic rules and ethical conduct. I also declare that, as required by these rules and conduct, I have fully cited and referenced all materials and results that are not original to this work. I declare that this thesis is written according to the writing rules of Social Sciences University of Ankara, Institute of Social Sciences. Name and Surname: Seylan İmre Signature: i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First of all, I would like to express my sincere thanks to my thesis advisor Asst. Prof. Dr. K. Onur Unutulmaz for his valuable academic support and contributions as well as critical and meritorious feedbacks, directions, intellectual mentor, and patience. This dissertation would have not been realized without him. I am also grateful to dear Asst. Prof. Dr. Nurgül Bekar and Ambassador Olgan Bekar for their sincere encouragement and support in this regard. I am very lucky that my path crossed with them in my thesis journey. Secondly, I want to thank my whole family for their courage, support, and endless love. My mother Fatma Altıntaş, my father İlhan Altıntaş, and my sister Özge Altıntaş have always given me their deep belief and support and that has always been the source of my power to overcome all difficulties. Also, I would like to specially thank my husband Aykut İmre who dealt with me every day during this stressful thesis period. Without their valuable moral support, finishing this thesis would not be possible. Thirdly, I sincerely thank TIKA and The Embassy of the Federal Republic of Somalia in Ankara for the opportunities they provided me. I am deeply grateful to my administrators in TIKA for their valuable support to continue my academic life. Last but not least, I would like to extend my thank to each of my precious friends Yasemin Kaymaz, Arzu Taşkıran, Başak Şimşek, Esin Bozdoğan, Ali Osman Demir, Abdu Djamanca, Mutlu Demir, Sevda Dönmez, Gamze Güneş, Gamze Atak Abukan, Gözde Bayar, Burak Özden, Hatice Metin Kuşçu, Nurçin Yıldız Duman and Mesude Uslu for their support and motivation at times of desperation and confusion. I am also thankful to all Somali participants during the period of data collection and constructing questionnaires and interviews. My master thesis journey was very fruitful and pleasing thanks to them. Again, thank you very much to everyone. Seylan IMRE ii TABLE OF CONTENTS PLAGIARISM ......................................................................................................................... i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................... ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ...................................................................................................... iii ABSTRACT ......................................................................................................................... vii ÖZET ..................................................................................................................................... ix LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................... xi LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................... xii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................................. xiii CHAPTER I ............................................................................................................................ 1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................. 1 1.1. Conceptual Framework ........................................................................................ 3 1.2. Purpose of the Study ............................................................................................. 6 1.3. Justification of the Study ...................................................................................... 7 CHAPTER II ........................................................................................................................... 8 ANALYTICAL BACKGROUND AND LITERATURE REVIEW ...................................... 8 2.1. Turkey-Somalia Relations in Historical Perspective and Today .......................... 8 2.2. Foreigners, Africans, and Somalis in Turkey ..................................................... 13 2.2.1. Foreigners in Turkey ................................................................................... 13 2.2.2. Africans in Turkey ...................................................................................... 17 2.2.3. Somalis in Turkey ....................................................................................... 21 2.3. Socio-Cultural Adaptation .................................................................................. 26 iii 2.4. Adaptation of Somalis in Turkey ....................................................................... 29 2.5. The Concept of Diaspora .................................................................................... 32 2.6. Somali Diaspora ................................................................................................. 35 CHAPTER III ....................................................................................................................... 37 METHODOLOGY ............................................................................................................... 37 3.1. The Target Population (Research Universe) .......................................................... 37 3.2. Somali Population in Turkey ................................................................................. 39 3.3. The Fieldwork ........................................................................................................ 41 3.4. Research Questions ................................................................................................ 43 3.5. Study Design .......................................................................................................... 44 3.5.1. Sampling Technique ....................................................................................... 45 3.5.2. Participant Observation ................................................................................... 49 3.5.3. Interviews ........................................................................................................ 50 3.6. Study Challenges ................................................................................................... 53 CHAPTER IV ....................................................................................................................... 55 FINDINGS OF THE STUDY I: PERCEPTIONS AND ATTITUDES OF SOMALI IMMIGRANTS ..................................................................................................................... 55 4.1. SIMILARITIES .................................................................................................. 55 4.2. DIFFERENCES AND DIFFICULTIES ............................................................. 58 4.3. PERCEPTIONS OF PROFILE .......................................................................... 62 4.3.1. The Most Apparent or Specific Feature of the Somali People ....................... 65 4.3.1.1 Honest, Helpful, Hospitable and Kind People .............................................. 65 4.3.1.2. Conservative Society ................................................................................... 67 4.3.1.3 Brave and Resilient People ........................................................................... 68 iv 4.3.1.4. Talkative and Social People ......................................................................... 69 4.3.1.5. Their Physical Appearance .......................................................................... 70 4.4. THE PERCEPTION OF SOMALI DIASPORA BY SOMALI IMMIGRANTS IN TURKEY ................................................................................................................. 72 4.1.1. Perceived Similarities Between Turkey and Somalia ................................. 77 4.1.1.1 Culture and Cultural Background ............................................................ 77 4.1.1.2 Religion ................................................................................................... 80 4.1.1.3 Historical Background ............................................................................. 82 4.1.1.4 Humanity and Charity ............................................................................ 83 4.2.1. Perceived Differences Between Two Countries and Difficulties of Living in Turkey ..................................................................................................................... 85 4.2.1.1. Religious Lifestyle, Rules, and Practices ................................................. 85 4.2.1.2. Food Culture ...........................................................................................
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