DEMARCATING KILIS AS A BORDER TOWN: COMMUNITY, BELONGING AND SOCIAL MOBILITY AMONG SOCIO-ECONOMIC STRATA ON THE SYRIAN BORDER OF TURKEY A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES OF MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY BY HATİCE PINAR ŞENOĞUZ IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN THE DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY OCTOBER 2014 Approval of the Graduate School of Social Sciences Prof. Dr. Meliha ALTUNIŞIK Director I certify that this thesis satisfies all the requirements as a thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Prof. Dr. Ayşe Nur SAKTANBER 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 Doctor of Philosophy. Prof. Dr. Ayşe Nur SAKTANBER Supervisor Examining Committee Members Prof. Dr. Suavi AYDIN (HACETTEPE UNI, COMM) Prof. Dr. Ayşe Nur SAKTANBER (METU, SOC) Assoc. Prof. Helga RITTERSBERGER TILIÇ (METU, SOC) Assist. Prof. H. Deniz YÜKSEKER (KOÇ UNI, SOC) Assoc. Prof. F. Umut BEŞPINAR (METU, SOC) 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 : HATİCE PINAR ŞENOĞUZ Signature : iii ABSTRACT DEMARCATING KILIS AS A BORDER TOWN: COMMUNITY, BELONGING AND SOCIAL MOBILITY AMONG SOCIO-ECONOMIC STRATA ON THE SYRIAN BORDER OF TURKEY Şenoğuz, Hatice Pınar Ph.D., Department of Sociology Supervisor : Prof. Dr. Ayşe Saktanber November 2004, 285 pages This study focuses on the impact of border on the cultural and economic landscape of Kilis, a town which has been identified as nowhere in Bilad al-Sham but as a border town after the establishment of Republic, inconspicuous for a long time, yet recently gained prominence with the eruption of Syrian crisis in 2011 as opposed to other Eastern and Southeastern border towns. The overriding question of the study concerns the ways in which the border influences the life prospects of dwellers. Through the lens of ethnographic research and oral history, it explores belonging and social mobility among various socio-economic strata within the context of transition from Ottoman rule to the Republican regime in order to reveal culturally informed strategies of border dwellers in coming to grips with new border contexts. It is suggested that the border perspective will move the social analysis beyond “methodological territorialism” that encapsulates it into the idea of nation-state as unit of analysis and provide a theoretical framework that iv explores the social change at the intersection of local, national and transnational processes. From the vantage point of border, this study aims to highlight that the maneuvering capacities of dwellers in navigating territorial, cultural and economic boundaries nevertheless reproduce local power and inequality structures. It also demonstrates that social reproduction and social mobility strategies of families in Kilis are incorporated in broader cultural, social and economic transformation of Turkey long before globalization processes started to put limitations to the state sovereignty and territorial control. Keywords: Social Mobility, Belonging, Border Sociology, Border Town, Kilis v ÖZ KİLİS’İN SINIR KASABASINA DÖNÜŞMESİ: TÜRKİYE’NİN SURİYE SINIRINDA TOPLULUK, AİDİYET VE SOSYO-EKONOMİK TABAKALAR ARASINDA SOSYAL HAREKETLİLİK Şenoğuz, Hatice Pınar Doktora, Sosyoloji Bölümü Tez Yöneticisi: Prof. Dr. Ayşe Saktanber Kasım 2004, 285 sayfa Bu çalışma Bilad-üş Şam’da bir kasabayken Cumhuriyet’in kurulmasıyla birlikte sınır yerleşimine dönüşen, uzun süre göz önünde olmayıp diğer Doğu ve Güneydoğu sınır yerleşimlerinden farklı olarak 2011’de Suriye krizinin patlak vermesiyle önem kazanan Kilis’te sınırın kültürel ve ekonomik etkilerine odaklanmıştır. Çalışmanın ağır basan sorusu sınırın kasaba sakinlerinin hayat beklentilerini nasıl etkilediğidir. Çalışma, etnografik araştırma ve sözlü tarih merceğinden bakarak, yeni sınır durumlarının üstesinden gelmede sınır sakinlerinin başvurduğu, kültürel ilişkilerin şekillendirdiği stratejileri ortaya çıkarmak için Osmanlı yönetiminden Cumhuriyet rejimine geçiş bağlamında sosyo-ekonomik katmanlarda aidiyet ve sosyal hareketliliği incelemektedir. Sınır perspektifi, toplumsal incelemeyi bir analiz birimi olarak ulus-devlete hapseden ‘metodolojik teritoryalizm’den kurtararak toplumsal değişimi yerel, ulusal ve uluşaşırı vi süreçlerin parçası olarak irdelemeyi mümkün kılan bir teorik çerçeve sunar. Çalışmada sınırın bakış açısından hareketle Kilis sakinlerin teritoryal, kültürel ve ekonomik sınırlar arasında manevra yapma kapasitesinin yerel iktidar ve eşitsizlik yapılarını yeniden ürettiğini açığa çıkarmayı amaçlanmıştır. Ayrıca Kilis’teki ailelerin sosyal yeniden üretim ve sosyal hareketlilik stratejilerinin küreselleşme süreçlerinin Türkiye’de devlet egemenliği ve teritoryal kontrolüne kısıtlamalar getirmesinden çok önce ülkenin kültürel, sosyal ve ekonomik dönüşümünün parçası olduğu gösterilmiştir. Anahtar Kelimeler: Sosyal Hareketlilik, Aidiyet, Sınır Sosyolojisi, Sınır Kasabası, Kilis vii To Nejat (Paramaz Kızılbaş) and all the beautiful people who fought beyond borders whose imagination knew no bounds viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The completion of this dissertational project was an extended journey, involving several setbacks and opportunities that shaped it. I would not be able to finish it without the support of many people with whom I found strength and determination. As a precursor to develop my ambition for sociological research, I should mention Boğaziçi University and faculty members that greatly shaped my perspective as a sociology student, as well as the questions that I am still striving to find answers. There have been times that I have stumbled. I am greatly indebted to my advisor Prof. Ayşe Saktanber for her sustained understanding and support, and her guidance about the thesis work. Her insightful guidance encouraged me to face up to the challenges of the fieldwork in a border town, while allowing me to take my chance in letting the ‘field’ shape my research agenda. From her, I have also learned to do justice to one’s own intellectual endeavours and not to let oneself yield to the discouragements. I am also thankful to her for opening up new questions and arousing my interests for further research with her valuable comments about the thesis study. I would also like to thank to the committee member for their questions and comments. Assoc. Prof. F. Umut Beşpınar, Assist. Prof. H. Deniz Yükseker, Assoc. Prof. Helga Rittersberger-Tılıç and Prof. Suavi Aydın contributed to the thesis by raising several points that would help me to crystallize my aim and arguments. I should mention Helga Rittersberger-Tılıç in particular for her criticisms and meticulous reading of the text, helping me a lot in completing the revisions. The time I had to spend for field research is facilitated by many people to whom I owe gratitude. Hülya did not only provide me the most comfortable conditions for a longer stay, but she became a friend and companion with whom I could share a lot of memories about life in Kilis town. Sıdıka was a sister and companion who generously shared her knowledge, supported and motivated my research in any way she could. Friends, which I cannot enumerate their names here, showed hospitality, offered solutions when I tackled with problems of daily life during my stay and gave support to my research by sharing ix their networks. Kırkayak collective in Gaziantep offered me the opportunity to take a breath when I was so engulfed by the challenges of my fieldwork as well as hearty and enjoyable conversations. They also motivated me for finishing the thesis with the promise of new social and research projects to be engaged collectively. I am thankful to all. I have always received the support of my friends Başak and Pınar. They were ready to help when I grappled with emotional setbacks. Many others were considerate and patient, tolerating me as I secluded myself and declined all temptations to go out in order to finish my dissertation project. Ezogelin and İlker were lifesavers when I needed their support. Friends from the sociology department and from Ankara were like a gift as I came to this city unknown to me until I had applied to the doctoral program. They have made my frequent travels from Istanbul to Ankara to attend the program more tolerable and enjoyable. Among them, I owe to Selda particular gratitude, whose support and friendship kept my doctoral commitment alive. Without her, I would not be able to come through the rigours of the doctoral study. She is also a companion to exchange ideas, develop joint projects and undertake new tasks to become more than what we are as women. Figen’s hospitality and support in the last weeks of the thesis submission was crucial. I thank her for letting me occupying her living room as well as her desk and keeping me company during sleepless nights. Finally, I should acknowledge that I could not complete the doctoral program without the unconditional support of my family. They always encouraged my doctoral studies. I know that their support is invaluable and cannot be repaid. I am also thankful to my parents for their contribution to the thesis. My mother Zehra paid a visit to Kilis while I was conducting the field study and helped me to keep