Turkish Canadians (; literally "Turkish-originating Canadians"), also called Canadian Turks (), are

Canadians Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

of Turkish descent. The majority descend from the

Republic of Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

and

minorities The term "minority group" has different meanings, depending on the context. According to common usage, it can be defined simply as a group in society with the least number of individuals, or less than half of a population. Usually a minority g ...

from other post-

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

states, including the

Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

(

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

North Macedonia North Macedonia, officially the Republic of North Macedonia, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe. It shares land borders with Greece to the south, Albania to the west, Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo to the northwest and Serbia to the n ...

and

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

), the island of

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

, the Levant (

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

and

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

) and

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

(especially

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

History

Turkish people Turks (), or Turkish people, are the largest Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group, comprising the majority of the population of Turkey and Northern Cyprus. They generally speak the various Turkish dialects. In addition, centuries-old Turkish co ...

first began to immigrate to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

in small numbers from the

, and significantly in the late 1950s and early 1960s when the Turkish government encouraged student education abroad.. There have also been Turks fleeing from unrest and oppression in

and

who arrived in Canada as

political Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

and

economic An economy is an area of the Production (economics), production, Distribution (economics), distribution and trade, as well as Consumption (economics), consumption of Goods (economics), goods and Service (economics), services. In general, it is ...

refugees A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...

Migration from the Ottoman Empire

In 1901, Canada had between 300–400

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

residents, equally divided between Turks and Syrian Arabs.. By 1911, the size of the Muslim community had increased to about 1,500, of whom 1,000 were of Turkish origin and the remainder were

Arabs Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of yea ...

. During the pre-

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

period, Turks were to be found in

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

and

logging Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidder, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or trunk (botany), logs onto logging truck, trucks Due to poor relations between the Ottomans and Allied Powers of WWI, further migration was made difficult for the Turks and the Canadian government discouraged " Asian" immigration. Thus, by the onset of World War I, Canada witnessed the return of many Turkish immigrants who were then classified as "enemy aliens". Another reason for the return-migration of Ottoman Turks was because for the majority of Turks, the founding of the new republic of Turkey in 1923 was a greater incentive to stay at home.. With the Canadian Immigration Act of 1910, immigrating to the country was banned. This policy wasn't changed until 1978. The reason behind this

xenophobic Xenophobia (from (), 'strange, foreign, or alien', and (), 'fear') is the fear or dislike of anything that is perceived as being foreign or strange. It is an expression that is based on the perception that a conflict exists between an in-gr ...

act was the government’s claim that immigrants were hard to assimilate. The 1919, 14 March Act banned people of German, Hungarian, Bulgarian, Austrian and Turkish backgrounds from immigrating to Canada, except if the Minister of Immigration didn't give special permission. This prohibition was strictly racial and wasn’t related to Enemy Alien prohibition. This nativism lasted four years till the ban was lifted because the Canadian economy needed cheap immigrant labour.

Internment of 1914

The Ottoman Empire declared war on Britain in November 5, 1914. Only five days later, on November 10, 1914, 98 Turks were deported and settled in Kingston and then in

Kapuskasing Kapuskasing ( ) is a town on the Kapuskasing River in the Cochrane District of Northern Ontario, Canada, approximately east of Hearst, Ontario, Hearst and northwest of Timmins, Ontario, Timmins. The town was known as MacPherson until 1917. ...

. Their number increased over time. They weren’t the only “enemy aliens” subjected to internment. More than 8,500 people were placed in 24 camps during the war. Of them 205 were Turks. Most were from the Eastern Anatolia Region's Harput. Many foreigners have been interned for wanting to leave Canada, which in the eyes of the government posed a threat. Others were sent to the camps because they had suspicious activities. The number of these foreigners was not small at all — they numbered 393,320. 3,880 of them were from the Ottoman Empire. According to the newspapers, the reason for the detention of the Turks was the government's desire to protect 400

Armenians Armenians (, ) are an ethnic group indigenous to the Armenian highlands of West Asia.Robert Hewsen, Hewsen, Robert H. "The Geography of Armenia" in ''The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiq ...

living in

Brantford Brantford ( 2021 population: 104,688) is a city in Ontario, Canada, founded on the Grand River in Southwestern Ontario. It is surrounded by Brant County but is politically separate with a municipal government of its own that is fully indep ...

, where the majority of the Turkish population was concentrated. The Armenians were worried that the Turks would attack them. It is possible that a letter from the Armenian missionary of Brantford, Armen Amirkhanian, influenced the city council. He wrote to Brantford City Council, claiming that Armenians were loyal to Britain, and that they were not ethnic Turks. He also mentioned the massacres that took place, and that the Armenians suffered a lot because of the Turks. His letter showed results and news of Armenians loyal to Britain that appearеd in the newspapers. According to other newspapers, Turks in the city had tried to bomb a newly created post office. The truth of this statement is debatable, as many Turks in Canada couldn't even read or write. Apart from ethnic Armenians, other Ottoman citizens, such as the Orthodox Macedonians and

Greeks Greeks or Hellenes (; , ) are an ethnic group and nation native to Greece, Greek Cypriots, Cyprus, Greeks in Albania, southern Albania, Greeks in Turkey#History, Anatolia, parts of Greeks in Italy, Italy and Egyptian Greeks, Egypt, and to a l ...

were also not deported. Also, many of these Turks left Eastern Anatolia to earn enough money to buy land in their homeland and live in their native places. Despite these misunderstandings, the Armenian community, also from Harput, tried to help these Turks. Even the Turks in America,

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

, hired two lawyers to bring the Canadian Turks to America, but their attempts were unsuccessful. Although Turkey, as soon as it learned of what was happening, tried to help its compatriots, its attempts were unsuccessful, especially after the Turks were banned from sending letters to the Ottoman Empire, even to their families, on November 25. At least three of those detained died, two went insane, six returned to Turkey and 43 remained in Canada. Another part immigrated to America,

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, where they worked in the Ford factory. The name of one of the dead is Alex Hassan, whose real name is most likely Ali Hassan, but the Canadians changed his name for easier pronunciation. They served in the construction of the camp in which they remained. But some of them were later released, with the obligation to work, as during the war, the economy of factories increased and the government needed manpower. The names of ''some'' of 16 Muslims in Mount Hope Cemetery are believed to belong to them. Five of them died in 1916 and 1918. In 2014, the Turkish consul of Canada visited the cemetery. Some people, especially the Canadian-Armenian community had claimed that it is a political act and created online petition to “stop the fake monument”. The Muslim plot of the Mount Hope cemetery exists since 1912 and seven names belong to men that died before the 1914 events. Many added that before a century, everyone in the Ottoman empire was known as “Turk”. Seven of the graves belonged to men that died before the 1914 events. These actions tried to prevent a memorial plaque describing the events of 1914 from being erected on the site. According to an Armenian, “''identifying (those buried in the plot) with Turkey and the Turkish government would be an injustice.''” He also claimed that the buried people are actually Alevi Muslims, “''the idea of having a monument endorsed by the Turkish government that incorrectly labels Alevi as though they were Turks is a “real injustice''”, For many this was a Turcophobic act. There were claims that this was similar to the Armenian genocide denial. Barçın Yinanç wrote "''it would have been much wiser to come and attend the ceremony and perhaps give messages or letters to the Turkish ambassador, asking the Turkish state to show the same sensitivity to the thousands of dead Armenians''".

Migration from the Republic of Turkey

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, the government of

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

encouraged and financially supported Turkish students to study in Canada. Thus, the early 1960s consisted primarily of students and professionals, especially doctors and engineers. Significant Turkish immigration began during the 1960s and 1970s; most Turks went to Canada for educational and economic opportunities. According to the 1972 Canada census there were 9,342 Turkish-born persons living in Canada.

Migration from the Balkans

Bulgaria

In the 1980s Turkish Bulgarians were fleeing from the Bulgarisation policies, known as the so-called " Revival Process", which targeted the Turkish minority group; consequently, many arrived in Canada as refugees. In addition, Turkish Bulgarian refugees who had originally settled in

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

and then returned to Bulgaria in the 1990s were forced to flee again and sought life in Western countries such as Canada,

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Greece

There have been several waves of migration from the Turkish minority of Western Thrace to Canada. The first wave of Turkish Western Thracian migration started in the 1960s and intensified between 1970-2010 due to political and economic reasons; this was followed by a significantly larger wave in 2010-18 due to the

Greek government-debt crisis Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family ** Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kn ...

Romania

According to Dr Eleanor Bujea, the early history of Turkish Romanians in Canada (which began in the 1910s) is similar to that of Jewish Romanians. Many initially homesteaded and raised their families on farms whilst some went into the grocery businesses or opened street carts. After the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, many of these people moved to large cities where some intermarried and assimilated.

Migration from the Levant

Cyprus

During the 1950s,

Turkish Cypriots Turkish Cypriots or Cypriot Turks ( or ; ) are so called ethnic Turks originating from Cyprus. Turkish Cypriots are mainly Sunni Muslims. Following the Ottoman conquest of the island in 1571, about 30,000 Turkish settlers were given land onc ...

started to leave

for political reasons when the

Greek Cypriots Greek Cypriots (, ) are the ethnic Greeks, Greek population of Cyprus, forming the island's largest Ethnolinguistic group, ethnolinguistic community. According to the 2023 census, 719,252 respondents recorded their ethnicity as Greek, forming al ...

held a referendum in which 95.7% of Greek Cypriots supported enosis, the union of Cyprus with

. By 1963, inter-ethnic fighting broke out in

, with

bearing the heavier cost in terms of casualties and some 25,000 Turkish Cypriots became internally displaced accounting to about a fifth of their population. Tension continued to grow by the late 1960s and approximately 60,000 Turkish Cypriots left their homes and moved into enclaves due to intercommunal violence, fearing their safety as the minority on the island.. This resulted in an exodus of more Turkish Cypriots from the island, many migrating to

Iraq

In 2010 there was approximately 1,000 Iraqi Turks living in Canada..

Syria

Since Justin Trudeau was elected as

Prime Minister of Canada The prime minister of Canada () is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority of the elected House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons ...

in 2015, over 25,000 Syrian

have settled in Canada; these have included Arabs, Syrian Kurds and Syrian Turks as well as other minority groups.

Demographics

Official data

The following is the number of people who have voluntarily declared their ethnicity as "Turkish" in official censuses. The actual number of Turkish Canadians is believed to be considerably higher.

Estimated population

In 2018 the Canadian Ambassador, Chris Cooter, said that there was approximately 100,000 Turkish Canadians living in the country, as well as several thousand Turkish students: In 2019 the "Federation of Chinese Canadians in Markham" also reported that there was over 100,000 Turkish Canadians in the country.

Culture

Religion

The majority of Turkish Canadians are Sunnis with minorities being Alevis and people generally do not have any religious affiliation. Prior to 1980, Turkish Canadian immigrants were from

urban area An urban area is a human settlement with a high population density and an infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas originate through urbanization, and researchers categorize them as cities, towns, conurbations or suburbs. In urbani ...

s and

secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin , or or ), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. The origins of secularity can be traced to the Bible itself. The concept was fleshed out through Christian hi ...

backgrounds. Religion remained an affair of the private conscience. In May 1983, the Canadian Turkish Islamic Heritage Association (Kanada Türk İslam Kültür Derneği) was established, followed by the Canadian Turkish Islamic Trust (Kanada Türk İslam Vakfı) in April 1987.

Festivals

* The Toronto Turkish Festival *The Calgary Turkish Festival *The Edmonton Turkish Festival *The Ottawa Turkish Festival

Language

Turkish Canadians are generally fluent in Turkish, but may speak an

Anglicized Anglicisation or anglicization is a form of cultural assimilation whereby something non-English becomes assimilated into or influenced by the culture of England. It can be sociocultural, in which a non-English place adopts the English language ...

dialect A dialect is a Variety (linguistics), variety of language spoken by a particular group of people. This may include dominant and standard language, standardized varieties as well as Vernacular language, vernacular, unwritten, or non-standardize ...

slang A slang is a vocabulary (words, phrases, and linguistic usages) of an informal register, common in everyday conversation but avoided in formal writing and speech. It also often refers to the language exclusively used by the members of pa ...

, or version, informally called "Türkilizce". This unofficial, informal dialect is common among younger Canadian Turks, and is characterized by the addition of English loanwords to otherwise completely Turkish conversations (for example, the Turkish translation of "to schedule" would be "tarih belirlemek", but a Türkilizce speaker would say "schedule etmek").

Media

Social media

* Turkish Association of Canada * Anatolian Heritage Foundation * Intercultural Dialogue Institute * Toronto Bilgi

Newspapers

* ''Canadaturk'' * ''Referans'' * ''Idinews'' * ''Bizim Anadolu'' * ''Canatolian''

Television

* ''Turkuaz TV''

Radio

* ''Radio Perfect''

Sports

* Atak Sports - Zafer Biryol Soccer Academy

Education

Since 2005, Nile Academy, a private, secular school run by Turkish administration linked to a nonprofit organization called Canadian Turkish Friendship Community, has grown exponentially over the years. Within eleven years, they managed to open their 3rd school within Ontario. They have also opened a dormitory located near Jane Street and Eglinton Avenue West, Toronto. Throughout the years, Nile Academy has competed in Turkish Language Olympiads and many wrestling tournaments in Ontario. In the mid 2010s, Nile Academy closed its main dormitory, and merged its three campuses into a single one, located in the Humber Summit neighbourhood of Toronto. Nile Academy is also linked with the Islamic cleric, author, and scholar,

Fethullah Gülen Muhammed Fethullah Gülen (27 April 1941 – 20 October 2024) was a Turkish Ulama, Muslim scholar, preacher, and leader of the Gülen movement who as of 2016 had millions of followers. Gülen was an influential Neo-Ottomanism, neo-Ottomanist, A ...

as well as the

Gülen Movement The Gülen movement () or Hizmet movement () is an Islamist fraternal movement. It is a sub-sect of Sunni Islam based on a Nursian theological perspective as reflected in Fethullah Gülen's religious teachings. It is referred to by its membe ...

. They have had many notable alumni since they opened in 2005.

Associations

Since the 1960s, many community organizations have appeared representing various groups of Turkish immigrants. The various associations across

are currently represented by the "Federation of Canadian Turkish Associations", an umbrella organization founded in the mid-1980s. The federation serves as a referral and communications centre for news of

, local events, business and governmental inquiries, and intergroup relations. More recently, a similar Turkish Cypriot umbrella group, the "Federation of Turkish Cypriot Associations of Canada", was established; the "Canadian Association for Solidarity of Turks from Bulgaria" also forms part of the federation. The Federation of Canadian Turkish Associations is an umbrella organization representing 17 member associations from Victoria to Quebec, which include approximately 50,000 Canadians of Turkish origin. The federation was established in 1985 and is a non-profit organization with no political affiliations. It supports and encourages activities that deal with important cultural, economic, educational, historical, social and religious issues that relate to the Turkish community in Canada. * Anatolian Heritage Federation * Ankara Library * Association of Balkan Canadians * Association of Canadian Turkish Cypriots * Canadian Alevi Culture Centre * Canadian Association for Solidarity of Turks from Bulgaria * Canadian Iraqi Turkmen Culture Association of London * Canadian Turkish Cultural Association of Hamilton * Canadian Turkish Film Society * Canadian Turkish Islamic Heritage Association INC. * Council of Turkish Canadians * The Federation of Canadian Turkish Associations * Intercultural Dialogue Institute * K-W Turkish cultural association * Turkish Association of Canada (TAC) * The Turkish Canadian Association of London * Turkish Canadian Cultural Association * Turkish Canadian Cultural Association of Calgary * Turkish Canadian Society * Turkish Canadian Society of Edmonton * Turkish Canadian Society of Vancouver * The Turkish Community Heritage Centre of Canada * Turkish Federation Community Foundation * Turkish Culture and Folklore Society * The Turkish Quebec Cultural and Friendship Association * Turkish Society of Canada * Turkish Society of Nova Scotia * The United Canadian Muslim Association * United Canadian Turkish Cultural Association