TURKIFICATION OF THE TOPONYMS IN THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE AND THE REPUBLIC OF TURKEY
Lusine Sahakyan, PH.D., Yerevan State University
F eb 15, 2010
Toponyms represent persistent linguistic facts, which have major
historical and political significance. The rulers of the Ottoman Empire
and the Republic of Turkey realized the strategic importance of the
toponyms and carried out consistent policies towards their distortion
and appropriation. With the aim of the assimilation of the toponyms of
the newly conquered territories the Ottoman authorities translated them
into Turkish from their original languages or transformed the local
dialectal place-names by the principle of contamination to make them
sound like Turkish word-forms. Yet another method of appropriation
was that of the etymological misinterpretation of the toponyms in
question. A widespread method was also renaming the places displacing
the former place-names altogether. The focus of the present article
is the place-name transformation policy of the Ottoman and afterwards
Republic of Turkey; the Ottoman (Latin-transcript)-Armenian translation
of the decree dating to January 5, 1916 issued by the Minister of War
Enver Pasha is presented in this article for the first time in English,
Armenian and Russian translations. It concerns the transformation of
"non-Muslim" place-names. The article also deals with the artificial
term of "Eastern Anatolia" as a substitute for Western Armenia,
the political objectives of the pro-Turkish circles as well as the
aftermath of putting the said ersatz term into circulation.
In August 2009, during his visit to Bitlis, a formerly Armenian city in
eastern part of what is now Turkey, Turkish President Abdullah Gul said
publicly that the original name of the present-day Gyouroymak province
was "Norshin", which, he claimed, was in Kurdish.1 This statement
should not be considered as a slip of the tongue; it represents
traditional Turkish policies of Turkification and Kurdification of
original Armenian toponyms. Norshin is purely an Armenian toponym both
by its components "Nor"+"shen", which mean "a new settlement", and as
a pattern to form place-names. All toponyms (villages, settlements,
residential areas, etc.) with the component "shen" are indisputably
Armenian as Martunashen, Vasakashen, Getashen, Vankshen, Hamshen,
Verishen and the like.
It should be noted that, besides being linguistically stable phenomena,
toponyms are valuable also as bearers of historical information. As
such, they can have an effect on current ethnopolitical conflicts,
if applied with the aim of distorting and manipulating the historical
evidence. This truly strategic significance of the toponyms has
not gone unnoticed: the ruling circles of the Ottoman Empire and
those of its successor state, the Republic of Turkey, as once again
confirmed by the recent reports in the BBC and the Turkish media,2 have
devised and implemented consistent policies to falsify the origins and
appropriate, through various ways and methods, the Armenian toponyms
in the territory under their control.
The Turkish tribes who settled in various parts of Armenia in the
11-15th centuries and later the Ottoman authorities were changing
original Armenian place-names in several ways. First, they were
translating their meanings into Turkish such as Tantsout (place
with a lot of pear-trees) into Armoudlou, Aghbyurashen (a village of
springs) into Kyankendi, Karmrik (based on the word karmir, meaning
"red" in Armenian) into Kezelja, Tsaghkadsor (a ravine of flowers)
into Darachichek, etc.
Second, some Armenian toponyms, which had already been transformed
somewhat from their original shape under the influence of local
dialects, were transformed to sound like a word with Turkic roots and
pronunciation, thus utilizing the principle of contamination. Thus
Armtick (meaning roots in Armenian) was turned to Armoudi, Odzounkhach
(a cross+snake) to Ouzounhach, Kyouropaghat (a title which goes back
to Latin "curator palatii," which was given to especially Armenian
governors by the Byzantine Emperors) to Gyurbaghdi, Karhatavan
(settlement where stone in cut) to Karadivan, Jeghopourkents (place
with o lot of walnut-trees) to Chopurgens, etc.
Third widely-spread method of distortion was to give new names to
old settlements in an attempt to bury their ethnic affiliation in
oblivion.3 Even Christian Armenian sanctuaries were given new names.
Thus, the famous Armenian monastery Varagavank was renamed Yedikiliseh
(meaning seven churches in Turkish), while the Holy Echmiadzin,
the center of Armenian Church, where the Supreme Armenian Catholicos
resided, was turned into Ouchkiliseh (three churches). According to
our estimates, several dozens of settlements have been named by the
word "kiliseh" or "Gharakiliseh" in both Western and Eastern Armenia.
Fourth, the attempts to give Turkish etymological explanations
to the Armenian toponyms represented yet another method of their
appropriation campaign. Such faulty experiments were carried out,
in particular, by Evliya Celebi, the Ottoman court historian of the
17th century, whose interpretations have often served as basis for
modern Turkish scholars. Here is one example. In his Book of Travels
(Seyahatname), the old Armenian place-name Bayberd or Baberd (which
through dialectal and foreign lexical influences has undergone
sound interchange and consequently was pronounced as Baybourd)
is etymologically explained as "bay" (meaning rich in Turkish) +
"yourd" (settlement in Turkish)4. In fact, this name includes two
ancient Armenian components Bay + berd, which respectively mean a
den or an impregnable shelter and a stronghold or a fortress. As
an ancient fortress, Baberd was mentioned by Movses Khorenatsi as
early as in the 5th century.5, Yerevan, 1999, p. 104.] Place-names
with the ending "berd" have been scattered throughout all Armenia,
as Tsamakaberd, Amberd, Vzhnaberd, Kharberd, Baghaberd, etc.6
Evliya Celebi went further to "reveal" that the original Armenian
river name of Jorokh is a distorted form of the Turkish Joui-rouh,
which according to him means "the river of the soul"7. In fact, the
name "Jorokh" originates from the Armenian verb "tsorel"- "tsorogh"
(flowing) in which the initial "ts" has been transformed to "j" through
sound interchange, a phenomenon peculiar to the Armenian language, as
in "tsanatsel > janachel", and "tskhni > jkhni"8. Evliya Chelebi links
to the Persians the name of the town Zarishat,9 which was actually
built by the Armenian royal dynasty of Orontids (570 BC-200 BC). He
derives the town name of "Akn" from the name of a Byzantine princess
"Egin"10; however, "Akn" is a purely Armenian word meaning "eye",
"spring" and "pit".11 In the place name of "Pertek", which is a
dialectal deformation of the original "Berdak" (a small fortress),
Celebi tries to find the Mongolian equivalent for the word "eagle".12
It is irrefutable that all the above-mentioned toponyms and others
in Armenia have been recorded in historical sources far too earlier
than any Turkic or Kurdish elements appeared on the Armenian Highland,
which they gradually did only from the 11th century onwards.
The "corrections" introduced by Celebi were by no means innocent
etymological verbosities, but pursued far-reaching purposes of
establishing the Turkishness of the newly occupied territories. Evliya
Chelebi was a state official, who in addition participated in Ottoman
expansionist invasions. Thus, his etimological explanations had clear
geopolitical motives.
Around the middle of the 19th century Turkish authorities decided
not only to distort or change the names of Armenian provinces,
regions and villages, but to eliminate altogether the name Armenia as
well. This policy was pursued especially after the Russo-Turkish war
of 1877-1878, when the Armenian Question was included into the agenda
of international diplomacy and European powers started exploiting it
to derive various concessions from Turkey.
The government of Sultan Abdul Hamid II substituted the name Armenia
with the fictitious terms of Kurdistan or Anatolia. Starting from 1880
the name Armenia was forbidden to be used in official documents.13 The
Sublime Porte thus wanted to make everyone believe that the Armenian
Question did not exist: if there was no Armenia, then there was no
Armenian Question.
The historians are familiar with the plan of solving the Armenian
Question with the assistance of England put forward by Kiamil Pasha,
the pro-British Ottoman Grand Vizier and Commander-in-chief during
the reign of the Sultan Abdul Hamid II:
"If in Europe we have warmed a serpent (i.e. the Balkan peoples –
L.S.) in our bosom, we should not do the same in Asian Turkey. Common
sense tells us to do away with all these elements that can pose the
same threats to us in the future and become the cause and a tool of
foreign interference. Now, today, at least Britain’s interests demand
that our territories in Asia Minor be safe from foreign meddling and
all sources that may give others a pretext to meddle in our affairs.
We, as well as the British not only do not recognize the word
"Armenia", but we must smash to smithereens all jaws which dare
to pronounce that word. To reach our sacred goal it is therefore
imperative and the state law demands [from us] to make any suspicious
elements unfit, sweep forever from the face of the earth this Armenian
nation, to annihilate them recklessly and for good" (the emphasis is
mine – L.S.).14
By deliberately distorting them, the Ottoman authorities were ascribing
Armenian and Greek place-names to Turkish or Kurdish origin.
At that stage, the Kurdish ethnic factor was used by the Ottoman
rulers, for the Kurds were not yet viewed as a threat to the Ottoman
Empire. Taking advantage of their religious fanaticism, in the 1890s
Sultan Abdul Hamid, who was also known as "the father of the Kurds"
(Bavê Kurda),15 organized the Armenian massacres through the
Hamidiye regiments formed out of Kurdish bandits and the regular
Turkish army soldiers.
During Abdul Hamid’s reign all Turkish and Kurdish resettlements were
given new names, which were the names of nomadic tribes or various
Ottoman sultans such as Hamidiye, Reshidiye, Aziziye, Mahmoudiye, etc.
This policy became especially manifest during the reign of the Ittihad.
The government of Young Turks (1908-1918) also attached great
importance to the changing of "non-Muslim" place-names. They replaced
many toponyms, some with the names of Ottoman Sultans, with their
own names such as Enveriye, Shevketiye, Mahmoutshevket-Pasha and the
like.16 The "Resolution About the Resettlement of Refugees" ("Iskân-I
Muhacirin Nizamnamesi"), a document adopted on May 13, 1913,17 served
the specific Young Turk policy of total Turkification. The next step
was made by Enver Pasha, the Young Turks’ Minister of War, on January
5, 1916.18
Enver Pasha’s decree sent to the Turkish military-political authorities
demanded that all place-names of Armenian, Greek, Bulgarian and other
non-Muslim origins in the Ottoman Empire be transformed into Turkish
ones.19 Below is the translation of Enver Pasha’s Decree (Emirname):
DECREE
1. It is important to change into Turkish all names of provinces,
regions, villages, mountains and rivers belonging to Armenian, Greek,
Bulgarian and other non-Muslim peoples. Making use swiftly of this
favorable moment, we beseech your help in carrying out this order.
2. Cooperating with military commanders and administrative personnel
within the boundaries of your jurisdiction, respective lists of name
changes should be formed of provinces, regions, villages, etc. and be
forwarded to military headquarters as soon as possible. After being
studied and approved, these lists of proposed changes should be sent
to the Ministry of the Interior and the Communications Ministry for
generalization and implementation.
3. It is imperative that the new names reflect the history of our
hard-working, exemplary and praise-worthy military. The glorified
events of our present and past war experiences should, by all means,
be mentioned. In case this is not possible, names of those who had
highly moral principles and who have fallen rendering invaluable
services to their country should be remembered; or names should be
found that are appropriate to the given area’s specific crop, product,
trade or geographical situation.
Last but not least, teachers at schools in different parts of our
Fatherland should find appropriate topics to teach about the given
territory’s glorious history, climate, crop, trade and culture. It
should be borne in mind that any sudden change of a conventional name
into an inconvenient or improper one may bring about the continuation
of using the old name by the population. Therefore, new names should
be chosen taking all this into consideration. In case such principles
cannot be observed, then Ereghli, for example, should be turned into
Erikli or Erakli, Gallipoli into Veliboli in order to maintain the
roots of old names.
Enver, Deputy Commander-in-Chief, 23 Kanun-i Evvel, 1331 /1916/
Inspired by Enver’s decree, the prominent military officer Huseyin Avni
(Alparslan) Bey, the author of several articles about the Turkish
language and culture, wrote: "If we want to be the owner of our
country, then we should turn even the name of the smallest village
into Turkish and not leave its Armenian, Greek or Arabic variants.
Only in this way can we paint our country with its colors" .20
As we see, he even goes a step further than his minister by suggesting
that Arabic place-names also undergo changes. Enver Pasha’s decree
mentioned only "Armenian, Greek, Bulgarian and other non-Muslim
peoples". This testifies to the fact that during the Ottoman period,
when the Sultan was considered the spiritual head (Caliph) of all
Muslims, the Arabic and Kurdish toponyms were not yet regarded as
threatening to the authorities. However, it should be remembered
that the overwhelming majority of the names of places where the Kurds
moved in Western Armenia were Armenian in origin with, at times, some
aspects of local dialectal or foreign linguistic influences. After
the Armenian Genocide, these toponyms have been attributed to Kurds.
During the war, the Armenian, Greek and Bulgarian toponyms were the
first to be turned into Turkish. The Antranos caza in Bursa, for
example, was turned into Orhanelli, Mikhalich was renamed Karajabey,
the village Dimitri into Touran, the Rum village in Chorum into
Yeni (new) Chamlejay. But a few months later, on June 15, 1916 the
Ottoman Military Headquarters disapproved of these changes arguing
that on the new maps these new names were causing a mess in military
correspondence.21
Having been deprived of its original population, Western Armenia
continues to lose, along with many other historical and cultural
values, its centuries’old Armenian place-names. They are being declared
as Kurdish or Turkish. Haroun Tuncel, a Turkish historian, has admitted
that "One cannot find in Turkey a scientific work that would deal with
the origins of ancient toponyms for the simple reason that the person
undertaking such an arduous task should be knowledgeable of the local
dialects of several languages, including Persian, Arabic, Armenian,
Zaza, Kourmanji, Assyrian-Aramaic, Sumerian and Akkadian… for
any name considered Kurdish may well be either Sumerian, Akkadian
or Turkish and any name considered Turkish may be either Arabic,
Armenian or Akkadian in its origin".22
In an article, titled "28 thousand toponyms were changed. Nobody
knows which one comes from which language",23 Å~^. Turker has
included among Kurdish names such indisputably Armenian toponyms
as Van, Antep (Aintap),24 Kharpet (Kharberd), Erzingan (Erzinjan<
Erzen-el-Rum<Artsen-el roum), Kilis (which is a distorted version of
the word "Yekeghetsi", meaning Church), etc25 . It remains a mystery
why and how the Muslim Kurds came to name their settlements Church
(Kilis)?
The process of "nationalization" of toponyms was continued by the
Kemalists. It gained momentum during the Republican period. Starting
from 1923 the entire territory of Western Armenia was officially
renamed "Eastern Anatolia".26 After the Kurdish rebellions in 1925,
1927 and 1936 in eastern part of the Republic of Turkey, the Turkish
authorities started renaming the Kurdish and Zaza settlements as well.
As early as 1935, the Interior Minister Shukru Kayan put forward a
draft resolution to rename Dersim into Tunceli. It is worth noticing
that in February 2009 Sharafettin Halis, a deputy in the Turkish
Parliament from the Democratic Society Party (DTP), proposed that
Tunceli be granted its former name of Dersim; he argued that people
cannot forget this name as it has become sacred for them and was used
both in their daily lives and in their songs, tales and novels. The
proposal was, however, labeled a "manifestation of separatism" by
the Turkish Minister of Justice.27
In 1940, the Turkish government issued a circular letter (No. 8589)
which called for changing into Turkish all toponyms in foreign
languages or with foreign roots, but the outbreak of World War II
temporarily impeded its implementation.
A special article devoted to the changes of toponyms was included in
the 1949 Provincial administrative law (II Idaresi Kanunu).
Furthermore, a "Specialized Organization for Renaming of Toponyms"
("Ad DegiÅ~_tirme Ä°htisas Kurulu") was initiated in 1957. This
organization renamed 653 settlements in Erzurum, 169 in Adana, 366 in
Erzinjan (Yerznka), 224 in Adyaman, 70 in Moughla, 88 in Afion, 70 in
Eskishehir, 297 in Moush, 374 in Aghre (Ararat), 279 in Gaziantepe,
24 in Nevshehir, 99 in Amasia, 167 in Giresoun (Kerasoun), 647 in
Nighdeh, 193 in Ankara, 343 in Gyumushkhaneh, 134 in Ordou, 168 in
Antalya, 128 in Hakkari, 105 in Rizeh, 101 in Ardvin, 117 in Hatay
(Alexandretta/Iskenderun), 117 in Sakaria, 69 in Ayden, 185 in Sparta,
110 in Balekesir, 112 in Ichel, 392 in Siirt (Sghert), 32 in Bilejik,
21 in Istanbul, 59 in Sinop, 247 in Bingyol (Byurakn), 68 in Izmir
(Smyrna), 406 in Sivas (Sebastia), 236 in Bitlis, 398 in Kars, 19 in
Tekirdagh, 182 in Bolou, 295 in Kastamonu, 245 in Tokat (Eudokia), 49
in Bourdour, 86 in Kayseri (Cesaria), 390 in Trebizond, 136 in Boursa,
35 in Krklarel, 273 in Dersim, 53 in Chanakkaleh, 39 in Kershehir, 389
in Shanli Ourfa (Ourha), 76 in Chankere, 26 in Kojayeli, 47 in Oushal,
555 in Chorum, 217 in Malatia, 156 in Zongouldak, 20 in Edirne, 647
in Mardin, 555 in Diarbekir, 83 in Manisa, 383 in Elazegh (Kharberd),
and 105 in Kahraman Marash.28
After research work on 75.000 toponyms, the "Specialized Organization"
changed 28.000 names, among which 12.000 were village names. According
to H. Tuncel’s estimates, 12,211 villages were renamed during the
period of 1940-2000, which constitutes approximately 35 per cent of
the villages.29
Turkish historian Ayse Hyur writes that during the reign of the
Democratic Party ugly, humiliating, insulting or derisive names, even
if they were Turkish, were subjected to changes. Village names with
lexical components meaning red (kizil), bell (can), church (kilise)
were all changed. To do away with "separatist notions", the Arabic,
Persian, Armenian, Kurdish, Georgian, Tatar, Circassian, and Laz
village names were also changed.30 From 1981 to 1983, the names of
settlements on the Eastern and Western parts of the Black Sea also
underwent changes.
Bilir, the author of "Let Tunceli Be Named Dersim", in an article
published in the August 19, 2009 issue of "Bir Gun" daily, writes that,
besides giving new names to the settlements, the Turkish authorities
altered also the phonetic pronunciations of those old names to
make them sound like Turkish words, as, for instance, Chinchiva to
Shenyouva. This method of changing a toponym, as has already been
mentioned above, was suggested by Enver Pasha as early as 1916:
"…change Ereghli into Erikli or Erakli, Gallipoli into Velipolou in
order to maintain the old name roots".31 This phenomenon, however,
has deeper roots. Similar cases of Ottomanization-Turkification of
Armenian toponyms were present in the 16th century Ottoman Geographical
Registers.32 It is ironic to note that in the ongoing process of
turning the so called Kurdish toponyms into Turkish ones some toponyms
have been restored to their imaginary old Turkish versions, which
are actually ancient and medieval Armenian place-names. Thus Pertag
(Berd+ak) has been renamed Pertek, allegedly its old Turkish name,
Esper (Sper)>Ispir, Erdekhan>Ardahan, Shakh>Shatakh, Kers>Kars,
Zedkan> Elishkirt, which is the phonetically deformed variant of
AlashkertKeghi, in both of which we have the word Gyugh-Gegh meaning
village, Guimguim>Vardo, etc. 33
Gul’s statement in Bitlis about Norshin had controversial repercussions
among the country’s various political parties. Devlet Bahceli,
the leader of the opposition National Movement Party in particular,
criticized Gul for it. Prime Minister Erdogan responded reminding
Bahceli that Manazkert, for example, was an Armenian toponym. "Are you
more patriotic than Alparslan? Mustafa Kemal didn’t change the name
Ankara when he made it the capital of the country. The name Ankara is
of Latin origin. Are you saying you are more patriotic than Mustafa
Kemal?" asked Erdogan.34 We believe this admission by Turkey’s Prime
Minister should be attributed to the Turkish authorities’ desire to
evade an awkward situation and show the world that they are democratic
and open-minded. Besides, the statement might have been made to deter
the Kurdish territorial claims.
Modern Turkish historiography has greatly contributed and supported
this systematic program of changing, distorting and appropriating
"non-Muslim" toponyms in Turkey. Upon the publication of the works
of chroniclers and archival materials of the earlier period of the
Ottoman Era, Turkish historians have made use of their rich stock of
falsifications and have distorted Armenian toponyms en masse.35
Armenia or Ermenistan have been coarsely and retroactively replaced
with "Eastern Anatolia". Here is just one example. In his "Jihan Numa"
Kyatib Celebi, a famous Ottoman chronicler of the 17th century, had
a special chapter, titled "About the Country Called Armenia". When,
however, this book was republished in 1957 its modern Turkish editor
H. Selen changed this title into "Eastern Anatolia".36 The fact,
however, is that Armenia together with its boundaries was unequivocally
mentioned in the works of Ottoman historians and chroniclers. An
excerpt from the said chapter of Kyatib Celebi’s Jihan Numa illustrates
clearly the falsifications of modern Turkish historians.
"Hamdullah says. The Armenia vilayet consists of two parts – Greater
and Lesser. …Greater Armenia extends well into Iran and is known
by the name of Touman Akhlat. It borders the Lesser Armenia, Rum,
Diarbekir, Kurdistan, Azarbaijan37 and Aran. Its length covers
the area from Erzen-el-Rum (Erzurum) to Salmas, while its width –
from Aran to the end of Akhlat vilayet. Its capital is Akhlat. In my
opinion Greater Armenia at present consists of the Van and Erzurum
vilayets, while Lesser Armenia – of Adana and Marash eyalets. In the
Takvim-el-Bouldan,38 the following cities are mentioned in Armenia:
Elbistan,39 Adana, Arjesh, Azarbaijan, Bitlis, Barda, Bilekan, Tiflis,
Akhlat, Debil, Sultaniye, Sis, Tarsus, Malatia, Van, Vostan, Moush,
Erzen-el-Rum and Malazkert".40
While Celebi mentioned only part of the territory of Armenia,41 the
fact that the Ottoman historian admitted the existence of Armenia as
a country speaks for itself.
Armenia is referred to by other Ottoman authors of the 17th century
as well. The official court historian Evliya Celebi mentions it as
Armenistan.42 Munejjim Basi,43 another Turkish historian of the same
century, also wrote about the vast country of Armenia, including
into it the cities of Kherd Bert (i.e. Kharberd – L.S.), Erzinkan,
Moush, Egin (Akn), Melazjerd (i.e. Manazkert), Bitlis, Akhlat,
Arjesh, Vostan, Shirvan and the capital Debil (i.e. Dvin).44 From the
descriptions of these historians, it becomes evident that in the 17th
century official Ottoman historiography recognized the existence of
the occupied Greater Armenia, and called it by its internationally
accepted name of Armenia (Ermenistan). While Cilicia with its Adana
and Marash eyalets was recognized by them as Lesser Armenia. Thus, in
the 17th century when the Armenian Question was not as yet included
into the agenda of international diplomacy, the terms Anatolia or
Eastern Anatolia were never used to indicate Armenia. Furthermore,
the "Islamic World Map" of the 16th century45 and other Ottoman
maps of the 18th and 19th centuries have clearly indicated Armenia
(Ermenistan) on a specific territory as well as its cities.46
Armenia (ارمÙ~FØ&# xB3;تاÙ~F) and Anatolia (اÙ~Fاط٠;~HÙ~DÛ~L) are
clearly differentiated in the map published in Istanbul in 1803-1804
(see Map 2).47 The Ottoman authors were using the term Armenia till the
end of the 19th century. One example is Osman Nuri, the historian of
the second half of the 19th century, who mentions Armenia repeatedly
in his three-volume "Abdul Hamid and the Period of His Reign."48
It is more than obvious that the Ottoman historians and chroniclers
in contrast to the modern Turkish ones, knew pretty well Armenia’s
location and did not "confuse" it with Anatolia.
The word Anatolia means "sunrise" or "east" in Greek. This name was
given to the Asia Minor peninsula approximately in the 5th or 4th
centuries B.C. During the Ottoman era the term Anadolou included the
north-eastern vilayets of Asia Minor with Kyotahia as its center.49
The numerous European, Ottoman, Armenian, Russian, Persian, Arabic,
Georgian and other primary sources did not confuse the term Armenia
with Anatolia. This testifies, inter alia, to the fact that even after
the loss of its statehood the Armenian nation still constituted a
majority in its homeland, which was recognized by Ottoman occupiers
as well.
Therefore, it is very sad to witness today certain Armenian historians
of the Diaspora and even diplomats and analysts in Armenia, who
have started to substitute the term "Western Armenia" with that
of the ersatz "Eastern Anatolia". These people have willingly and
submissively undertaken the task of enacting Abdul Hamid’s decree of
1880. Furthermore, some Diasporan historians are even using the term
"Anatolia" to indicate the entire Armenian Highland.50
Even if this ersatz term of Eastern Anatolia has somehow been put
into circulation in Western scientific circles under the influence
of systematic Turkish lobbying and falsifications and at times also
due to the lack of knowledge, it is unacceptable for us, because
the substitution of Western Armenia with the term "Eastern Anatolia"
would mean voluntary renunciation of our homeland, rejection of our
centuries-old historical and cultural heritage, denial of the Armenian
Genocide, burial into oblivion of its consequences and, last but not
least, rendering support to the Turkish negationist position towards
the rights of the Armenian nation to Western Armenia.51
Conclusion
The Turkish authorities realize that Armenian toponyms are the product
of a civilization spanning several millenia civilization and vivid
witnesses of the indigenous presence of Armenians in Western Armenia.
The extermination of the native population, however, did not stop with
the Armenian Genocide; it was followed by the destruction of Armenian
historical and cultural heritage, including the Armenian toponyms.
The policy of Turkification of toponyms in the Ottoman Empire and
the Republic of Turkey has gone through several stages:
Up to the end of the 19th century, Turkish officials and historians
still continued to use the names "Armenia" or "Ermenistan". At the
same time, they were appropriating and changing the place names of
occupied territories.
After the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1888, when the Armenian Question
became an international issue, the Turkification process of Armenian
as well as other Christian toponyms has been carried out more
consistently.
This process intensified during the Young Turks and the Kemalist
regimes, when a full-scale Turkification policy of toponyms targeted
all non-Turkic nations.
Finally, during the present fourth stage, decades after cleansing
Western Armenia of its native Armenian population, the Turkish
authorities, fearing the potential threat posed by the Kurdish factor,
have started to reshape their policy by partially restoring the
original Armenian names of certain settlements in order to counter
their Kurdish variants. However, they try to ascribe Turkish roots
to these Armenian toponyms.
All this demonstrates that falsification of toponyms has been and still
remains an important constituent part of Turkish demographic policies.
Toponyms are not only linguistic facts, but also accurate and objective
historical evidence. The ancient Armenian place-names are strong and
firm linguistic evidence, which reveal the entire truth about the true
native owners of the Armenian Highland. This is why the protection,
maintenance and restoration of Armenian toponyms have invaluable
strategic significance today.
—————————————— ———–
[*] This is an updated version of L. Sahakyan’s article, which
was first published by the ARARAT Center for Strategic Research
in Armenian and Russian, respectively on September 18, 2009
() and November 19, 2009
().
Kadi r Konuksever, "Kurt acılımı ve Kurt
isimleri", BBC Turkce, 12 Agustos, 2009.
/090812_kurdish_names.shtml.
â~F© A, Muradoglu, Ahi Mesut ve NorÅ~_in.., Yeni Å~_afak,
11.08.2009O~IEnver Alper Guvelin, NorÅ~_in: Psikolojik eÅ~_igin
aÅ~_ılması ;, Ð"азе&# xD1;~Bа Yeni Å~_afak, 16.08.2009O~I â~F© For
more details refer to L. Sahakyan’s The Toponyms and Demography of
Bardzr Haik Provinces of Baberd, Sper and Derzhan in the 16th century
Ottoman Register Books {Barts Hayki Baberd. Sper Derzhan gavarneri
tekhanunnern u zhokhvrdagrutyuni XVI dari osmanyan ashkharagir
matyannerum} published by "Lousakn" Publishers, Yerevan, 2007, pp.
83-84. â~F© Celebi, Evliya: Turkish Sources about Armenia, Armenians
and Other Trans-Caucasian Peoples {Turkakan akhbyurneri Hayastani,
hayeri yev Andrkovkasi myus zhokhvurdneri masin, Evliya Chelebi}
translated into Armenian from the original with a foreword and
commentaries by A.Kh.
Safrastyan, vol. 3, published by the Arm SSR Academy of Sciences, 1967,
p.127. â~F© Movses Khorenatsi, The History of Armenia [Hayots patmutyun
â~F© For a detailed etimological analysis of Baberd, see L. Sahakyan’
s above mentioned monograph, pp.130-131. â~F© Celebi, Evliya:
Turkish Sources… {Turkakan akhbyurneri…}, p.127. â~F© Ajaryan,
H.: Armenian Etymological Dictionary {Hayeren atmatakan bararan},
vol. 2, p.469. See also New Wordbook of the Haykazyan Language {Nor
bargirk haykazyan lezvi}, vol. 1, Yerevan, State Univ.y Publ. House,
p.1026. â~F© Celebi, Evliya: Turkish Sources… {Turkakan akhbyurneri},
vol.3, p. 120. â~F© Ibid, p.155. â~F© Ajaryan, H. Armenian Etymological
Dictionary {Hayeren atmatakan bararan}, Yerevan, 1971, State Univ.y
Publ. House, vol. 1, p. 106-108.
â~F© Celebi, Evliya: Turkish Sources…{Turkakan akhbyurneri…},
vol. 3, p. 157. â~F© Modern History of Armenia in the Works of Foreign
Authors {Novaya istoriya Armenii b trudax sovremennix zarubezhnix
avtorov}, edited by R. Sahakyan, Yerevan, 1993, p.15 (in Russian). â~F©
Tserents, National Theory: "The Ottoman Monarchy, Turkish Armenians
and Russian Armenians" {"Azgayin tesutyun, Osmanyan Inknakalutyun,
tachkahayk yev rusahayk"}, Pords, Tpkhis, 1897, N VII-VIII, pp.
204-205. Modern History of Armenia in the Works of Foreign Authors,
p.17 (in Russian). ) â~F© Frat N., "Vulpes Vulpes Kurdistanica,"
Gunluk, 17.8.2009, (). â~F© Frat N.,
Ibid. â~F© AyÅ~_e Hur, "Tez zamanda yer isimleri degiÅ~_tirile,"
Taraf , 01.03.2009. â~F© Modern Turkish historian Aishe Hyur,
by the way, writes that the measures taken to systematically
change non-Turkish names were sped up during World War I
("Bin Yerin Ä°smi DegiÅ~_ti, Hangi Ä°sim Hangi Dile ait?"
dem/28-bin-yerin-ismi-degiÅ~_ti).
â~F&# xA9; BaÅ~_bakanlık Osmanlı ArÅ~_ivi, Dâhiliye Nezâreti, Ä°UM,
nr. 48/17, lef: 2.
M. Å~^ukru Hanioglu, Enver PaÅ~_a, DIA, XI, Ä°stanbul, 1995,
ss. 261-264.
A. Yuksel, Dogu Karadeniz AraÅ~_tırmaları, Ä°stanbul,
2005, ss. 21-22. â~F© H. Tirebolulu {Huseyin Avni} Alparslan,
Trabzon Ä°li Lâz mı? Turk mu?, Giresun, 1339. s. 17. â~F©
Aktar A, "Yer isimlerini TurkleÅ~_tirmek…", Taraf , 23 Ekim,
2009. â~F© Turker Å~^., "28 bin yerin ismi degiÅ~_ti, Hangi
ismin hangi dile ait oldugu bilinmiyor!", Vatan, 16.08.2009,
-ismi-degiÅ~_ti. â~F©
Turker Å~^., op. cit. â~F© The original toponyms are given in
parentheses. â~F© Refer to the same source. â~F© Soviet Armenian
Encyclopedia {Sovetakan haykakan hanragitaran}, Yerevan, 1974,
p.327. Also A Concise Armenian Encyclopedia {Haykakay hamarot
hanragitaran}, Yerevan, 1990, pp. 192-193. â~F© Bilir O.,
"Tunceli, Dersim Olsun" Tekilfini Ekimde yeniden," Bir Gun,
2009, 19 Agustos. Refer also to â~F© Bilir O.,
Ibid â~F© Tuncel H., "Turkiye’de Ä°smi DeÄ~]iÅ~_tirilen Köyler,"
Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, Firat Universitesi, 2000, cilt 10, sayı
2. â~F© Turker S., "28 bin yerin ismi degiÅ~_ti…,", Vatan, 16
Agustos, 2009. â~F© See Yuksel A., Dogu Karadeniz Arastirmalari,
Istanbul, 2005, s. 21-22. â~F© For the details, see Lusine Sahakyan,
Toponyms and Demography of Bardzer Hayk Provinces of Baberd, Sper
and Derjan in the 16th century Ottoman Register Books {Barts Hayki
Baberd. Sper Derzhan gavarneri tekhanunnern u zhokhvrdagrutyuni XVI
dari osmanyan ashkharagir matyannerum}, pp. 77-108. â~F© O. Bilir,
"Tunceli, Dersim Olsun" Tekilfini Ekimde yeniden," Bir Gun, 19 Agustos
2009. Refer also to â~F© "Erdogan Bahceli’ye yeni sert
sözlerle yuklendi," Hurriyet, 10 Kasım, 2009. â~F© See L. Sahakyan,
Toponyms and Demography, op. cit., pp. 71-108, 130-135. â~F© For
details refer to A. Papazian’s Turkish Documents about Armenia and
Armenians (XVI-XIX cc) {Turkakan vaveragreri Hayastani yev hayeri masin
(16-19-rd darer)}, Yerevan, 1999, p. 125. â~F© Azerbaijan – Atrpatakan,
a province of Iran. â~F© Takvim-al-Buldan" is the Statistical Data-
book of Abul Fida, an Arab historiographer and geographer. It served
as a source book for Kyatib Calabi (Turkish Sources about Armenia,
Armenians and Other Trans-Caucasian Peoples {Turkakan akhbyurneri
Hayastani, hayeri yev Andrkovkasi myus zhokhvurdneri masin,, vol. 2,
Yerevan, p. 258). â~F© Elbistan-Albistan, a town in Cilicia in the
Zeytun caza of the Marash province. â~F© Turkish Sources…{Turkakan
akhbyurneri…}, vol.2; Kyatib Celebi, Jihan Numa, pp. 29-30. â~F©
Refer also to A. Papazian’s Turkish Documents about Armenia and
Armenians (XVI-XIX cc) {Turkakan vaveragreri Hayastani yev hayeri masin
(16-19-rd darer)}, pp.112-114, 121-122. â~F© ÐвÐ"и&# xD1;~O ЧеÐ"е&# xD0;±Ð¸,
Ð~ZнР¸Ð³Ð° пÑ~CÑ~BеÑ~H&# xD0;µÑ~AÑ~Bви Ñ~O. Ð~_Ñ~@едР8;Ñ~AÐ"ов
 0;¸Ðµ
Ð~P. Ð~_. Ð"Ñ~@игР¾Ñ~@Ñ~Lев
 0;°.
Ð~_Ñ~@им ;еÑ~GанР;¸Ñ~O и комм&# xD0;µÐ½Ñ~BаÑ~@ ии
Ð~P. Ð~_. Ð"Ñ~@игР¾Ñ~@Ñ~Lев
 0;°,
Ð~P. Ð". Ð-еÐ"Ñ~BÑ~O&#x D0;ºÐ¾Ð²Ð°. Ð’Ñ~KпÑ~CÑ~AÐ& #xBA; 2,
Ð~Xзд. ""Ð~]аÑ~CÐ A;а", Ð~оÑ~AкР2;а, 1979, Ñ~A. 102. â~F© Refer
to Munejjim Basi: Turkish Sources…}, vol.2, p.183. â~F© Ibid.,
pp.199-200. In Arabic and Turkish sources the toponym Dvin has been
distorted and written in various ways like Debil (refer to vol. 2 of
Dictionary of Toponyms of Armenia and the Adjacent Regions, Yerevan,
1988, p. 68 ) Douin, Dabil, Adabin and Douviy (refer to S.
Vartanyan’s The Capitals of Armenia {Hayastani mayrakakhaknere},
Yerevan, 1995, p. 109.) â~F© "The Islamic World Map" was drawn in the
1570s. Its diameter is 28.5 cm, and it is kept in the Bodlian Library,
Oxford, manusc. Var.317 f9v-10r (Refer to R. Galchian’s "Armenia in
World Cartography", Yerevan, 2005, p.148. â~F© The Second Map of the
"Mediterranean Region" (reprinted in R.
Galchian, ibid., p. 228). â~F© "Asian Turkey" was printed in
1803/1804. Size: 72O54 cm, British Library, London-OIOC 14999,
vol. 2 (2), f.18. The second map in "The Mediterranean Region", size:
80O58 cm, British Library, London-OIOC 14999, vol. 2 (2), f.5.,"The
Ottoman Country", published in1867, size:42O29 cm, The British
Library, London-Maps 42.d.1, f.2 (Refer to R. Galchian’s monograph,
ibid. pp. 226, 240 and 246). â~F© The Turkish Sources {Turkakan
aghbyurner}. Vol. 4. Transl. from the original by A. Kh. Safrastyan
and G. H. Santurjyan. Yerevan, 1972, pp.
126, 131, 133, 136, 165, 167, 172, 175, 180, 184, 188, 190£ â~F©
Soviet Armenian Encyclopedia {Sovetakan haykakan hanragitaran}, vol.1,
Yerevan, 1974, p. 373. For details about Turkish attempts to change
the place name of "Western Armenia" with that of "Eastern Anatolia"
see Zograbyan L. N., {Orfografia Armyanskogo Nagoriya}, Yerevan,
1979, p. 14-15. See also E. Danielyan’s article titled "Issues of
Ancient Armenian History in Historiology" {"Hin Hayastani patmutyan
hayetsakargayin himnahartseri patmagrutyan mej"}, published in
Patma-banasirakan Handes (Historico-Philological Magazine), 2003,
N3, pp. 30-37, as well as his article titled "Armenia and Armenian
Geographical Names: A Scientific Assignment to Protect the Armenian
Natural and Historical Environment" {Hayasann u haykakan tekhanunneri,
hayots bnapatmakan mijavayri pashtpanutyan gitakan aradzadrank"},
published in VEM, an all-Armenian magazine, 2009, N1 (26), pp. 13-15.
â~F© Ronald Grigor Suny, Looking Toward Ararat: Armenia in Modern
History, Bloomington, Indiana University Press, 1993. The Armenian
People from Ancient to Modern Times, vol. 1, New York, St. Martin’s
Press, 1997, pp. 22, 26, 37. Ayvazyan A.: The History of Armenia as
Presented in American Historiography, a critical survey, Yerevan,
1998, pp. 37-40.
â~F© Refer to Armen Ayvazyan’s "Western Armenia vs. Eastern Anatolia",
Europe and Orient (Journal of the Institute Tchobanian, Paris), No. 4,
2007.