ENCOUNTERING THE ARMENIAN COMMUNITY: EXPERIENCES OF ARMENIAN DOMESTIC WORKERS IN ISTANBUL A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES OF MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY BY MONİKA PAKSOY IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE IN THE PROGRAM OF MEDIA AND CULTURAL STUDIES AUGUST 2017 Approval of the Graduate School of Social Sciences Prof. Dr. Tülin Gençöz Director I certify that this thesis satisfies all the requirements as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Prof. Dr. Necmi Erdoğan Head of Department This is to certify that we have read this thesis and that in our opinion it is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science Prof. Dr. Helga Rittersberger-Tılıç Supervisor Examining Committee Members Prof. Dr. Necmi Erdoğan (METU, MCS) Prof. Dr. Helga Rittersberger-Tılıç (METU, SOC) Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tahire Erman (Bilkent, POLS) 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 material and results that are not original to this work. Name, Last name : Monika Paksoy Signature : iii ABSTRACT ENCOUNTERING THE ARMENIAN COMMUNITY: EXPERIENCES OF ARMENIAN DOMESTIC WORKERS IN ISTANBUL Paksoy, Monika MSc. Department of Media & Cultural Studies Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Helga Rittersberger-Tılıç August 2017, 114 pages This thesis presents the perceptions and dynamics of ethnic, national and religious identity of Armenian immigrant domestic workers in Istanbul by analyzing their narratives about their journey to Turkey, experiences in Istanbul and employer- employee relationships with their Armenian and non-Armenian employers. Qualitative methods of social research have been applied in this study by means of utilizing participant observation, focus group discussions, semi-structured and informal interviews with Armenian immigrants. The primordial, ethno-symbolic and constructed aspects of identity has been addressed to understand the role of myths, symbols, ethnic election and common ancestry in the definition of “Armenian identity”. Findings show that a reformulation of identity has taken place on immigrants’ part with the influence of an active Armenian community life in Istanbul. Therefore, the existence of an Armenian community in Istanbul, the role of Armenian language, engagement in the Armenian Apostolic church and sense of kinship based on ethnic ties greatly contribute to the experiences of Armenian immigrant domestic workers in Istanbul despite the differences in socio-cultural background of the two groups. iv Keywords: Armenian Identity, Immigrant Domestic Workers, Ethnicity, Armenian Apostolic Church, Istanbul-Armenians v ÖZ ERMENİ TOPLUMU İLE BULUŞMA: İSTANBUL’DA EV HİZMETLERİNDE ÇALIŞAN ERMENİSTANLI GÖÇMENLERİN DENEYİMLERİ Paksoy, Monika Yüksek Lisans, Medya ve Kültürel Çalışmalar Bölümü Tez Yöneticisi: Prof. Dr. Helga Rittersberger-Tılıç Ağustos 2017, 114 sayfa Bu tez çalışması, İstanbul’da ev hizmetlerinde çalışan Ermenistanlı göçmenlerin anlatılarını analiz ederek, söz konusu grubun etnik, dini ve milli kimliklerine dair algılarını, Ermeni ve Türk işverenlerle olan ilişkilerini ve İstanbul’daki deneyimlerini inceler. Niteliksel araştırma yöntemlerinin kullanıldığı bu çalışmada katılımcı gözlemi, derinlemesine ve yarı-yapılandırılmış görüşmeler ile odak grup çalışması gibi metotlar uygulanmıştır. Mitlerin, sembollerin, ortak geçmişin ve seçilmiş olma fikrinin “Ermeni kimliğini” nasıl etkilediğini anlamak üzere kimliğin ilksel, etno-sembolik ve yapılanmış yönleri ele alınmıştır. Araştırma bulguları, İstanbul’da aktif bir Ermeni cemaat yaşamı olmasının Ermenistanlı göçmenlerin kimliklerini etkilediğini ve yeniden şekillendirdiğini göstermiştir. Dolayısıyla; söz konusu iki grubun sosyo- kültürel farklılıklarına rağmen, İstanbul’da bir Ermeni komünitesinin bulunması, Ermenice dilinin kullanılması, Ermeni Apostolik Kilisesinin varlığı ve etnik bağlar temelinde bir tür soydaşlık ilişkisinin gelişmesi Ermenistanlı göçmenlerin deneyimlerini önemli ölçüde etkilemektedir. vi Anahtar Kelimeler: Ermeni Kimliği, Göçmen Kadınlar, Ermeni Apostolik Kilisesi, İstanbul Ermenileri vii In memory of Beyhan Paksoy… viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my thesis advisor Prof. Dr. Helga Rittersberger-Tılıç for her support and valuable guidance. Her encouraging comments and insights have been a true blessing. Also, I would like to thank my examining committee members Prof. Dr. Necmi Erdoğan and Assoc. Prof. Tahire Erman for their time and heartening feedback. I am thankful to my family members, especially my father Sevan Manişak for supporting me by all means during my studies and fieldwork in Istanbul. Most importantly, I am indebted to my dear husband Taylan Paksoy who has greatly contributed to my intellectual and spiritual growth, as always. I owe this achievement to his supportive comments and criticisms and I sincerely appreciate his love, patience and trust in me. I cannot thank Karyn and Johnny Servin enough for their financial and moral support during my graduate studies. I feel blessed to have them in my life. And my special thanks to Johnny for putting his time in proofreading the final draft of my work. His insightful remarks have been very helpful. The support and encouragement I got from the Servin family is priceless. I should extend my gratitude to Kenneth Weisbrode for his feedback especially during the early stages of my research. His recommendations and guidance are very appreciated. Finally, I would like to thank all those wonderful women who have shared their stories with me and welcomed me in their lives. Meeting them, spending time with them and talking to them has been a rewarding and a precious experience. I also want to thank my friends and acquaintances in Istanbul who guided me in reaching the participants. ix TABLE OF CONTENTS PLAGIARISM...........................................................................................................iii ABSTRACT .............................................................................................................. iv ÖZ .............................................................................................................................. vi DEDICATION ........................................................................................................ viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ........................................................................................ ix TABLE OF CONTENTS ........................................................................................... x LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................. xiii CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Research Question ........................................................................................ 1 1.2 Background Information ............................................................................... 2 1.3 Research Design & Methodology ................................................................ 6 1.4 Strengths & Limitations of This Study ....................................................... 8 2. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ....................................................................... 11 2.1 Literature Review ...................................................................................... 11 2.1.1 Literature Review on Armenian Identity ......................................... 12 2.1.2 Paid In-Hose Services ..................................................................... 13 2.1.3 Emotional Labor ............................................................................. 15 2.1.4 Motherhood ad an (Armenian) Identity .......................................... 16 2.2 Introducing the Key Concepts .................................................................... 17 2.2.1 The Primordialism-Constructivism Debate ...................................... 18 2.2.2 Ethnosymbolism ............................................................................... 19 2.2.3 Ethnic Identity of Armenians: Primordial Sentiments ..................... 20 2.2.4 National & Diasporic Identity .......................................................... 23 2.2.4.1 Narratives of Homeland.............................................. 26 x 2.2.4.2 The Role of Language ................................................ 28 2.2.5 Religious Identity ............................................................................... 30 2.2.5.1 Muslim-Armenians: An Oxymoron or a “New” Identity?....................................................................................33 2.3 Concluding Remarks ................................................................................... 35 3. DATA ANALYSIS & RESEARCH FINDINGS ................................................ 37 3.1 Introducing the Research Group ................................................................. 37 3.2 Reflections on Being an Armenian in Istanbul ........................................... 40 3.2.1 Being a Christian in Turkey: Istanbul as a Site for Religious Revival ......................................................................................................... 43 3.2.2 Reception of Islamized Armenians .................................................