ZEHRA ŞAMLIOĞLU THE LANGUAGE OF EXILE: LANGUAGE AND MEMORY IN THE LANGUAGE OF EXILE: LANGUAGE AND MEMORY IN ISTANBUL JEWRY ISTANBUL JEWRY ZEHRA ŞAMLIOĞLU İSTANBUL ŞEHİR UNIVERSITY JANUARY 2013 2013 THE LANGUAGE OF EXILE: LANGUAGE AND MEMORY IN ISTANBUL JEWRY A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES OF İSTANBUL ŞEHİR UNIVERSITY BY ZEHRA ŞAMLIOĞLU IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN CULTURAL STUDIES JANUARY 2013 This is to certify that we have read this thesis and in our opinion it is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Arts in Cultural Studies. Examining Committee Members: Assist. Prof. İrvin Cemil Schick Prof. Dr. Mahmut Mutman Prof. Dr. Ferhat Kentel This is to confirm that this thesis complies with all the standards set by the Graduate School of Social Sciences of İstanbul Şehir University: Date: Seal/Signature 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. Zehra Şamlıoğlu ABSTRACT THE LANGUAGE OF EXILE: LANGUAGE AND MEMORY IN ISTANBUL JEWRY Şamlıoğlu, Zehra MA, Department of Cultural Studies Supervisor: Assist. Prof. İrvin Cemil Schick January 2013, 137 pages This study explores the current situation of Istanbul Jewry—a small Jewish community within Turkey’s large Muslim majority. In particular, it focuses on the changes that have taken place in the languages spoken by the community over the last century, in order to explore the experiences of transformation and integration within a religious minority in Turkey. The political, cultural, and social causes of language change among Istanbul Jews raise questions related to identity, culture, belonging, assimilation, resistance, and equality. The study thus relates the history of Istanbul Jewry to theories of language change, diaspora, and collective memory, reflecting on data gathered through personal observation, in-depth interviews, and analysis of primary and secondary sources. The qualitative findings suggest that the use of a particular language (Ladino, French or Turkish) has meant different things to different generations: The older generations see themselves as distinct because of their Ladino heritage, accepting their marginal position in wider society and making no effort to change it. In contrast, the younger generation is better integrated, speaking no Ladino and seeing little difference between themselves and the rest of Turkish society. Nevertheless, the state, politicians and the majority of the Muslim population continue to reproduce a discourse of Jews’ outsider status, with which the younger generation must contend. Keywords: Istanbul Jewry, language, memory, identity. v ÖZ SÜRGÜN DİLİ: İSTANBUL YAHUDİLERİNDE DİL VE HAFIZA Şamlıoğlu, Zehra MA, Kültürel Çalışmalar Bölümü Tez Danışmanı: Yrd. Doç. Dr. İrvin Cemil Schick Ocak 2013, 137 sayfa Bu çalışma, geniş Müslüman toplumda yaşayan İstanbul Yahudi Cemaati’nin güncel durumunu ele almakta ve cemaatin geçirdiği dil değişimlerine ve bu değişimlerin sonuçlarından yola çıkarak İstanbul Yahudilerinin geçirdiği dönüşüm ve Türkiye’de geniş Müslüman topluma entegre olma süreçlerine odaklanmaktadır. Dil değişimlerinin politik, kültürel ve sosyal etkileri kimlik, kültür, aidiyet, asimilasyon ve eşitlik gibi kavramlara dair sorular sormayı gerektirmektedir. Bu sebeple, bu çalışma kişisel gözlem, mülakatlar, birincil ve ikincil kaynakların analizine dayanarak İstanbul Yahudi Cemaati’nin tarihini dil, diaspora ve toplumsal hafıza teorileriyle ilişkilendirmektedir. Nitel veriler, kullanılan belli bir dilin (Ladino, Fransızca ya da Türkçe) farklı jenerasyonlar için farklı anlamlara geldiğini göstermektedir. Buna göre, yaşlı ve orta yaşlı nesil sahip oldukları Ladino mirasının bilinciyle kendilerinin geniş toplum nazarındaki konumlarının farkında ve bunu değiştirmek için herhangi bir çaba içerisinde değildirler. Fakat, Ladino konuşmayan genç nesil geniş topluma entegre olmuş, kendileri ve toplumun geri kalanı arasında herhangi bir fark görmemektedirler. Bununla birlikte devlet, politikacılar ve Müslüman topluluğun büyük bir kısmı genç neslin başa çıkması gereken ve İstanbul Yahudilerinin geniş toplum nazarında yabancı olarak algılanmasına sebep olan bir söylem üretmektedirler. Anahtar Kelimeler: İstanbul Yahudileri, dil, hafıza, kimlik vi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS It is a great relief to see the end of a long and hard journey of researching, thinking and writing. I owe sincere and earnest thanks to many people, but due to space limitations I can mention the names of only a few. First of all, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor Assist. Prof. İrvin Cemil Schick for his continuous support, encouragement, patience, knowledge and guidance at every step of this study. I would also like to thank my thesis committee, Prof. Dr. Mahmut Mutman and Prof. Dr. Ferhat Kentel for their insightful comments and questions, and the other professors at the faculty who have let me into their office whenever I knocked, listened to my concerns and offered help. I owe sincere thanks to Prof. Dr. Michael Dillon for his guidance, never-ending support and willingness to share his wisdom with me whenever I needed it. I will never forget his love of teaching, sharing knowledge and encouraging his students on the way to wisdom. I would like to also thank my friend Sultan Işık for her support and showing me the way when I lost my belief in myself. The interviewees of this study deserve very special thanks for sparing time to my questions and providing me with information and sources. I am also truly thankful to the classmates for their comments and suggestions, and to the friends who did not end their relationships with me despite the fact that I preferred to study at the library so many times instead of seeing or calling them. Finally I would like to thank my family, and especially my mother and my sister, for their patience, for letting me use their home like hotel and for taking care of me whenever I needed, even if I pushed the limits of our family ties while studying. I am also very grateful to my father, as I always felt his support and prayers with myself. I hope this study will be of help to anyone interested in the subject and can contribute to the field. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract .............................................................................................................................................. v Öz ......................................................................................................................................................... vi Acknowledgments ......................................................................................................................... vi Table of contents ......................................................................................................................... viii Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 1 1. Historical Background ......................................................................................................... 1 2. Literature Survey .................................................................................................................. 6 3. This Study .............................................................................................................................. 15 CHAPTER I: What is in a Language? ..................................................................................... 19 1.1. Language as a Form of Being ..................................................................................... 20 1.2. Language as a Form of Discourse ............................................................................. 24 1.3. Language as a Form of Communication ................................................................. 28 1.4. Conclusion: Language and Diaspora ....................................................................... 32 CHAPTER II: Languages of Communication in Istanbul Jewry .................................. 34 1. Languages of Communication: Ladino, French, Turkish, English, and Hebrew ........................................................................................................................................ 35 1.1 Towards the Death of Ladino ................................................................................. 36 2. Multilingualism and Language Shifts ......................................................................... 53 2.1 Language Shift and Code Switching ..................................................................... 55 3. After the Death of Ladino ................................................................................................ 57 CHAPTER III: Languages of Modernization ....................................................................... 60 1. Becoming Modern .............................................................................................................. 62 1.1 Modernizing Istanbul Jewry in the Modernizing Turkey ............................ 65 1.2. A Way Out: The Discourse of Tolerance............................................................ 68 viii 2. Failed Promises ..................................................................................................................