Beyond the spoken: ethnic marital endogamy in Northern Cyprus

Date

2018

Author

Çağansoy, Hale

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This thesis presents the ways marital endogamy contributes to the maintenance and persistence of Turkish Cypriot identity and the integrity of the community. Although the Western ideology of romantic love seems to be welcomed in North Cyprus, Turkish Cypriot people tend to select their marital partners from their own community. In this context, it is important to comprehend how Turkish Cypriots perceive and define marriage on the basis of ethnic identity. By understanding how endogamy is perceived and how the boundaries between themselves and the outsiders are drawn, this study aims to investigate the motivations behind endogamous marriages in Northern Cyprus in accordance with their traditional cultural and linguistic affiliations. Patterns of endogamy among the Northern Cyprus population are studied through thirty semi-structured interviews which were conducted with Turkish Cypriot women in the summer of 2017. Although the nature of endogamy has changed in North Cyprus, it is still important in the sustenance of the group continuity, cultural continuity and distinctive language.

Subject Keywords

Marriage., Social groups., Group identity., Endogamy and exogamy.

URI

http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/12622837/index.pdf
https://hdl.handle.net/11511/27835

Collections

Graduate School of Social Sciences, Thesis