Turks in Denmark, also referred to as Turkish Danes or Danish Turks ( da, Tyrkere i Danmark; tr, ) refers to ethnic

Turkish people The Turkish people, or simply the Turks ( tr, Türkler), are the world's largest Turkic ethnic group; they speak various dialects of the Turkish language and form a majority in Turkey and Northern Cyprus. In addition, centuries-old ethnic Tu ...

living in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establishe ...

. They currently form the largest ethnic minority group in the country; thus, the Turks are the second largest ethnic group in Denmark, after the ethnic

Danish people Danes ( da, danskere, ) are a North Germanic ethnic group and nationality native to Denmark and a modern nation identified with the country of Denmark. This connection may be ancestral, legal, historical, or cultural. Danes generally regar ...

.. The majority of Danish Turks descend from the

Republic of Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula i ...

; however, there has also been significant Turkish migration from other post-

Ottoman Ottoman is the Turkish spelling of the Arabic masculine given name Uthman ( ar, عُثْمان, ‘uthmān). It may refer to: Governments and dynasties * Ottoman Caliphate, an Islamic caliphate from 1517 to 1924 * Ottoman Empire, in existence fro ...

countries including ethnic Turkish communities which have come to Denmark from the

Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as 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 throughout the who ...

(e.g. from

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Mac ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and ...

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Eur ...

North Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Socialist Feder ...

and

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

), the island of

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...

, and more recently

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

and Syria.

History

At the end of the 1950s Denmark required a high labour demand which triggered labour immigration mainly from

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

and

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label= Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavij ...

; consequently, alongside the Turkish migrants from Turkey, there was also a substantial number of Balkan Turks (e.g.

Romanian Turks The Turks of Romania ( tr, Romanya Türkleri, ro, Turcii din România) are ethnic Turks who form an ethnic minority in Romania. According to the 2011 census, there were 27,698 Turks living in the country, forming a minority of some 0.15% of ...

, Bosnian Turks etc) who arrived in Denmark. More recently, Iraqi Turks and

Syrian Turks Syrian Turkmen, also referred to as Syrian Turkomans, Turkish Syrians, or simply Syrian Turks or Turks of Syria, ( ar, تركمان سوريا; tr, Suriye Türkmenleri or ) are Syrian citizens of Turkish origin who mainly trace their roots to ...

have also migrated to Denmark since the

European migrant crisis The 2015 European migrant crisis, also known internationally as the Syrian refugee crisis, was a period of significantly increased movement of refugees and migrants into Europe in 2015, when 1.3 million people came to the continent to request ...

Demographics

In 2008, a report published by the

Danish Broadcasting Corporation DR (), officially the Danish Broadcasting Corporation in English, is a Danish public-service radio and television broadcasting company. Founded in 1925 as a public-service organization, it is Denmark's oldest and largest electronic media enterp ...

stated that there was 70,000 people of Turkish origin who were

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

. Thus, the Turks were the largest Danish Muslim population and accounted for 35% of the 200,000 Muslims. In 2015 the Turkish Danish population was around 75,000. The majority of Turkish Danish people descend from Turkey; however, some have also arrived from other post-Ottoman countries. For example, there was approximately 2,000 Turkish Iraqi immigrants in Denmark in 2010 (excluding descendants).

Culture

Language

Within the home environment the

mother tongue A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tong ...

is most dominant and children are expected to speak

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities ...

. However,

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish ance ...

is spoken outside the home creating a

bilingual Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all Eu ...

identity.

Religion

The majority of Turks regard themselves as

. They worship their religion mainly within their own Turkish community and are subdivided mainly by political or religious differences.. The

Diyanet The Directorate of Religious Affairs in Turkey ( tr, Diyanet İşleri Başkanlığı, normally referred to simply as the Diyanet) is an official state institution established in 1924 by the orders of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk under article 136 of t ...

supports mosque associations in Denmark and controls the majority of the religious organisations used by the community. The "Danish Turkish Islamic Foundation" ( da, Dansk Tyrkisk Islamisk Stiftelse) is part of the Diyanet and is the largest Muslim organisation in Denmark.. The Diyanet's major competing Islamic networks are the

Millî Görüş Millî Görüş (, "National Outlook" or "National Vision") is a religious-political movement and a series of Islamist parties inspired by Necmettin Erbakan. It argues that Turkey can develop with its own human and economic power by protecting ...

as well as the

Alevi Alevism or Anatolian Alevism (; tr, Alevilik, ''Anadolu Aleviliği'' or ''Kızılbaşlık''; ; az, Ələvilik) is a local Islamic tradition, whose adherents follow the mystical Alevi Islamic ( ''bāṭenī'') teachings of Haji Bektash Veli, ...

association. In 2008 a report published by the

estimated that the Danish Turks formed 70,000 out of a total of 200,000 Muslims in the country. Hence, one-third of the country's Muslims were of Turkish origin.

Notable people

Yildiz Akdogan Yildiz Akdogan (born 29 April 1973) is a Turkish-Danish politician, who was a member of the Folketing for the Social Democrats from 2007 to 2011 and again from 2014 to 2019. Along with Özlem Cekic, she was one of the first female immigrant pol ...

, politician *

Hasan Al Hasan Al (born 18 June 1972 in Sivas, Sivas Province) is a Turkish-born boxer from Denmark, best known for winning the European welterweight title in 1996 as an amateur. Career In his adopted country he became European champion in 1996 against ...

, boxer *, football player *, imam (

Turkish Cypriot Turkish Cypriots or Cypriot Turks ( tr, Kıbrıs Türkleri or ''Kıbrıslı Türkler''; el, Τουρκοκύπριοι, Tourkokýprioi) are ethnic Turks originating from Cyprus. Following the Ottoman conquest of the island in 1571, about 30,00 ...

origin) * Türker Alici, contestant on ''

Robinson Ekspeditionen 2018 Robinson Ekspeditionen 2018 was the twentieth season of the Denmark, Danish version of Swedish television series ''Expedition Robinson''. The season premiered on August 27, 2018. This season began with three tribes as opposed to two. This year t ...

'' *, politician *

Mehmet Ali Avci Mehmet Ali Avci, is a Danish film maker, known for the 2018 short film Ansvar. Early life Mehmet was born and raised in the suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. His father site of the family originates from Turkey, and he would often visit his T ...

, film maker * Yasin Avcı, football player * Oğuz Han Aynaoğlu, football player *

Büsra Barut Büsra Barut (born 20 May 1997), also known as Büşra Barut in Turkish spelling, is a Danish-born Turkish footballer who plays as a forward for the Turkey women's national team. She has previously been a member of the Denmark women's national ...

, female football player *, politician *Zahide Bayram, crowned

Miss Denmark Miss Denmark () is a national Beauty pageant in Denmark. The pageant was founded in 1926, where the winners were sent to Miss Universe and other titleholders to Miss World, Miss International and Miss Supranational. Organization The Miss Dan ...

(1999) * Baris Balo Bicen, contestant on ''

Robinson Ekspeditionen 2019 ''Robinson Ekspeditionen 2019'' is the twenty-first season of the Danish version of the Swedish reality television series Expedition Robinson. This season, twenty-two contestants are taken to the Philippines where, for the first time since 2015 ...

'' *, football player * Seckin Cem, contestant on ''

Robinson Ekspeditionen 2007 (also known as ''Robinson: Paradise vs Robinson'') was the tenth season of the , the Danish version of the Swedish show ''Expedition Robinson''. This season premiered on September 17, 2007 and aired until December 3, 2007. The main twist this se ...

'' *

Dennis Ceylan Dennis Ceylan (born 3 March 1989, Høje Tåstrup, Denmark) is a Danish professional boxer. He was born in Høje Taastrup, but grew up in Aarhus and is a member of boxing club BK Aarhus. Ceylan is a former EBU European featherweight champion. As ...

, boxer * Ercan, finalist on the ''

X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...

'' 2010 * Buket Genc, contestant on '' Robinson Ekspeditionen 2013'' *, chief physician at Sjællands Universitetshospital, Køge * Gökcan Kaya, football player *, actor and rapper *

Sara Keçeci Sara Keçeci (born 21 October 1994) is a Turkish-Danish female handballer playing in goalkeeper position. She is a member of the Turkish national team. She has dual citizenship. Early years Sara was born in Sønderborg, Denmark to Mehmet Ke� ...

, handball player (Turkish father and Danish mother) * Erkan Kilic, contestant on '' Baren'' 2001 * Hasan Kuruçay, football player *

Emre Mor Emre Mor (born 24 July 1997) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for Turkish Süper Lig club Fenerbahçe and the Turkey national team. Early life Emre Mor was born and raised in Brønshøj, Copenhagen, Denmark, to a Turkish ...

, football player (Turkish father and Turkish Macedonian mother) *

Şaban Özdoğan Şaban Özdoğan (born 14 March 1990) is a Danish footballer who plays for Ishøj IF as a playing assistant manager. He previously played for Danish Superliga club F.C. Copenhagen. Club career Özdoğan started playing youth football at Avarta. H ...

, football player * Yusuf Öztürk, football player *, actress *

Alev Ebüzziya Siesbye Alev Ebüzziya Siesbye (born 30 August 1938) is a Turkish-Danish ceramic artist. Siesbye designed ceramic wares for the ceramic companies Royal Copenhagen and Rosenthal AG. In 2009, Siesbye was awarded the Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des L ...

, ceramic artist *

Aral Simsir Aral may refer to: People * Cahit Aral (1927–2011), Turkish engineer, politician and former government minister * Coşkun Aral (born 1956), Turkish photo journalist and war correspondent * Göran Aral (born 1953), Swedish footballer * Meriç ...

, football player *, businessman and former athlete (Turkish father and a Danish mother) *

Fatih Şahin Fatih Şahin (born 20 April 1979) is a Turkish politician, lawyer, and General Secretary of the Justice and Development Party ( tr, AK Parti), serving since 20 July 2017. Personal life He is fluent in English and Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ...

, contestant on ''

'' * Tülin Şahin, model and actress *, actor, politician and CEO of the Danish-Turkish newspaper ''Haber'' *

Ertuğrul Tekşen Ertuğrul Tekşen (born 25 April 2000) is a Danish-born Turkish professional footballer who plays as a forward for TFF Third League club Belediye Kütahyaspor. Club career Early years Tekşen started playing football at an early age in Ishøj wi ...

, football player *

Mona Tougaard Mona Tougaard (born 3 April 2002) is a Somali-Danish model. Early life Tougaard was born in Aarhus, Denmark, to a half Turkish half Danish father and a Somali mother. She has two older siblings from her mother's previous marriage. Her mother ...

, fashion model (Turkish, Danish, Somali, and Ethiopian descent) *, rapper (Turkish and Italian origin) *, politician

References

Bibliography

* * * *. * {{Portal bar, Denmark, Turkey Muslim communities in Europe Middle Eastern diaspora in Denmark