The Turks in Libya, also commonly referred to as Kouloughlis () are Libyans who claim partial descent from Ottoman

Janissaries A janissary (, , ) was a member of the elite infantry units that formed the Ottoman sultan's household troops. They were the first modern standing army, and perhaps the first infantry force in the world to be equipped with firearms, adopted du ...

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

. Quantifiying their presence/population in

in the modern day is near impossible, due to them assimilating near entirely in the Libyan population over time. They mainly make up a small fraction of the populations of the cities,

Misrata Misrata ( ; , Libyan Arabic: ; also spelled Misratah and known by the Italian spelling Misurata) is a city in northwestern Libya located in the Misrata District, situated to the east of Tripoli on the Mediterranean coast near Cape Misrata. ...

and Tripoli.. During Ottoman Alleigance/Alliance in

(1551–1912), Turkish Janissaries began to migrate to the region. A minimal number of said Turks, and

intermarried with the native population, and their offspring were referred to as '' Kouloughlis'' () due to their mixed heritage. After the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire, Turks continued to migrate to Libya from the newly established modern states. However, contrary to popular belief, the large majority of said migrants were Cretan Muslims, who were often referred to as Turks by some Christian Greeks due to their religion; not their ethnic background. itation needed

History

Ottoman Libya

During Ottoman Alleigance/Alliance in

(1551–1912), Turkish Janissaries began to migrate to the region. A minimal number of said Turks, and

intermarried with the native population, and their offspring were referred to as '' Kouloughlis'' () due to their mixed heritage. Today there are no Libyans who record their ethnicity as Turkish, or acknowledge their descent from the

Ottomans Ottoman may refer to: * Osman I, historically known in English as "Ottoman I", founder of the Ottoman Empire * Osman II, historically known in English as "Ottoman II" * Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empir ...

Italian Libya

After Libya fell to the Italians in 1911, most Kouloughlis still remained in the region, They played no role in the Resistance itself, and remained an idle, subservient, minority of the population.

Culture

As a result of four centuries of Ottoman Presence/Alliance to and within Libya, the Libyans left some of their cultural imprints on the Turks, particularly their language, food, and costumes, which the Kouloughlis adopted from the locals.'' itation needed'

Religion

The Ottoman brought with them the teaching of the

Hanafi School The Hanafi school or Hanafism is the oldest and largest Madhhab, school of Islamic jurisprudence out of the four schools within Sunni Islam. It developed from the teachings of the Faqīh, jurist and theologian Abu Hanifa (), who systemised the ...

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

during the Ottoman, However the large majority of the Sunni Muslim Libyan population follows the Maliki school of thought.

Notable people

* Salah Badi, commander of the Al-Somood Front *, politician * Husni Bey, business tycoon * Wissam Bin Hamid, commander in the Libya Dawn * Mukhtar al-Jahawi, commander of the Anti-Terrorism Force * Abdul Rauf Kara, leader of the Special Deterrence Force * Ahmed Karamanli, founded the

Karamanli dynasty The Karamanli dynasty (also spelled Caramanli or Qaramanli) was an autonomous dynasty that ruled Ottoman Tripolitania from 1711 to 1835. Their territory comprised Tripoli and its surroundings in present-day Libya. At its peak, the Karamanli dy ...

(1711–1835) **successors: **

Ahmed I Ahmed I ( '; ; 18 April 1590 – 22 November 1617) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1603 to 1617. Ahmed's reign is noteworthy for marking the first breach in the Ottoman tradition of royal fratricide; henceforth, Ottoman rulers would no ...

(29 July 1711 – 4 November 1745) **Mehmed Pasha (4 November 1745 – 24 July 1754) **Ali I Pasha (24 July 1754 – 30 July 1793) ** Ali Burghul Pasha Cezayrli (30 July 1793 – 20 January 1795) **Ahmed II (20 January – 11 June 1795) ** Yusuf Karamanli (11 June 1795 – 20 August 1832) ** Mehmed Karamanli (1817, 1826, and 1832) ** Mehmed ibn Ali (1824 and 1835) ** Ali II Karamanli (20 August 1832 – 26 May 1835) *, film director and producer * Sadullah Koloğlu, former prime minister of

Benghazi Benghazi () () is the List of cities in Libya, second-most-populous city in Libya as well as the largest city in Cyrenaica, with an estimated population of 859,000 in 2023. Located on the Gulf of Sidra in the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean, Ben ...

and Darnah (from 1949 to 1952) *, writer *, soldier * Omar Abdullah Meheishy, former Member of the

Libyan Revolutionary Command Council The Revolutionary Command Council () was a twelve-member governing body that ruled the Libyan Arab Republic after the 1969 Libyan coup d'état by the Free Officers Movement (Libya), Free Officers Movement, which overthrew the Kingdom of Libya, Se ...

* Muhammad Sakizli, Libyan politician *, diplomat and ambassador to Greece * Ramadan al-Suwayhili, a co-founder of the short-lived Tripolitanian Republic in 1918 *, politician *, politician *, writer *, soldier * Hamida al-Unayzi, champion of women's education in Libya

References

Bibliography

*. * *. *. *. *. *. * *. *. *. {{Ethnic groups in Libya

Ethnic groups in Libya