Turks in Finland, also referred to as Turkish Finns or Finnish Turks, ( tr, Finlandiya Türkleri; or ''Finlandiya'da yaşayan Türkler'' fi, Suomen turkkilaiset or ''Suomessa asuvat turkkilaiset'') are the 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

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bo ...

, including Finnish-born persons who have Turkish parents or a Turkish ancestral background. The majority of Finnish 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 countries including ethnic Turkish communities which have come to Finland 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.

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 ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wit ...

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

Turkish migration to Finland is a relatively new phenomenon in the country; the majority have predominantly arrived since the late 1980s and are made up of largely male immigrants. Thus, many Turkish adolescents have a Finnish mother. Between 1987 and 2012 there have been 8,904 Turkish citizens who have migrated to Finland. In 2019, Turkish asylum seekers are the second largest group after

Iraqis Iraqis ( ar, العراقيون, ku, گه‌لی عیراق, gelê Iraqê) are people who originate from the country of Iraq. Iraq consists largely of most of ancient Mesopotamia, the native land of the indigenous Sumerian, Akkadian, Assyrian, ...

. From January to August, 283 Turkish citizens have sought asylum, while for the whole of 2018 it was 293. Their number by the end of the year is projected to be 45% more than the last year. According to Finnish Immigration Service, many Turks are seeking asylum due to the

Gülen movement The Gülen movement ( tr, Gülen hareketi), referred to by its participants as Hizmet ("service") or Cemaat ("community") and since 2016 by the Government of Turkey as FETÖ ("Fethullahist Terrorist Organisation" or, more commonly, "Fethullah Ter ...

Demographics

According to

Statistics Finland Statistics Finland ( fi, Tilastokeskus, sv, Statistikcentralen) is the national statistical institution in Finland, established in 1865 to serve as an information service and to provide statistics and expertise in the statistical sciences. The i ...

, the majority of Turks live in the

Uusimaa Uusimaa (; sv, Nyland, ; both lit. 'new land') is a region of Finland. It borders the regions of Southwest Finland, Tavastia Proper (Kanta-Häme), Päijänne Tavastia (Päijät-Häme), and Kymenlaakso. Finland's capital and largest city, ...

region with smaller communities in

Pirkanmaa Pirkanmaa (; sv, Birkaland; la, Birkaria, link=no), also known as ''Tampere Region'' in government documents, is a region of Finland. It borders the regions of Satakunta, South Ostrobothnia, Central Finland, Päijät-Häme, Kanta-Häme and ...

, Varsinais-Suomi,

North Ostrobothnia North Ostrobothnia ( fi, Pohjois-Pohjanmaa; sv, Norra Österbotten) is a region of Finland. It borders the Finnish regions of Lapland, Kainuu, North Savo, Central Finland and Central Ostrobothnia, as well as the Russian Republic of Karelia. T ...

, and

Kymenlaakso Kymenlaakso ( sv, Kymmenedalen; " Kymi/Kymmene Valley") is a region in Finland. It borders the regions of Uusimaa, Päijät-Häme, South Savo and South Karelia and Russia (Leningrad Oblast). Its name means literally ''The Valley of River Kymi ...

. 8,127 speak Turkish, making Turkish the 14th most spoken language in Finland. There are 4,794 Turkish citizens, while 7,472 are born in

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 ...

. There are 7,221 first generation Turkish immigrants in Finland and 2,135 second generation immigrants for a total of 9,356.

Society

65.5% of them are male while 34.5% are female. 22.2% are less than 14 years old, 76.7% are between 15 and 64 years old and only 1.1% are over the age 65. The majority of Turkish immigrants are self-employed and are predominantly active in the restaurant and fast food sector.

Organizations

* Suomen turkkilainen seura

Political activism

Turkey demanded that Finland ends its alleged support for the

Notable people

* Mehmet Gürs, chef (Turkish father) *, women's activist and public enlightener (her mother, Adolfina Sofia Soldan, was a descendant of who was the first documented Turk in Germany) *

Ibrahim Köse Ibrahim Köse (born 4 March 1992) is a Finnish former professional footballer of Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic et ...

, football player *

Kaan Kairinen Kasper Kaan Kairinen (born 22 December 1998) is a Finnish footballer currently playing for Czech First League club Sparta Prague. He was born to a Turkish father and a Finnish mother in Turku. Club career FC Inter Turku Kairinen is a youth ...

, football player (Turkish father) *

Melek Mazici Melek Mazici (born November 25, 1956 Istanbul, Turkey) is a Finnish visual artist. She has lived and worked in Finland since 1981. Mazici has also worked in London, Stockholm, Paris, Brussels and New York. Mazici is of Turkish descent. She studie ...

, visual artist * Anton Odabasi, basketball player (Turkish father) * Mert Otsamo, fashion designer (Turkish father) *

Masar Ömer Masar Ömer (born 12 June 1993) is a Finnish professional footballer who plays for FC Honka, as a striker. He is of Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphab ...

, football player *

Hasan Fuat Sari Hassan, Hasan, Hassane, Haasana, Hassaan, Asan, Hassun, Hasun, Hassen, Hasson or Hasani may refer to: People *Hassan (given name), Arabic given name and a list of people with that given name *Hassan (surname), Arabic, Jewish, Irish, and Scottis ...

, sculptor *

Teuvo Tulio Theodor Antonius Tugai (23 August 1912 – 8 June 2000), better known as Teuvo Tulio, was a Finnish film director and actor. Beginning his career as an actor at the end of the silent era, Tulio turned to directing and producing in the 1930s. His ...

, film director *

Ozan Yanar Ozan Göksu Yanar (born 3 May 1987 in Istanbul, Turkey) is a Finnish politician and a former Member of the Finnish Parliament, representing the Green League. He has been the chairman of Federation of Green Youth and Students The Federation of Gr ...

, former member of the Finnish Parliament *, singer (Turkish father)

References

Bibliography

* * * . {{Portal bar, Finland, Turkey Ethnic groups in Finland Finland–Turkey relations Middle Eastern diaspora in Finland Muslim communities in Europe

Islam in Finland