Map of the Greek Prefectures according to the 1991 census with the minority highlighted.

The Muslim minority of Greece (Greek: μουσουλμανική μειονότητα Ελλάδος, Turkish: Yunanistan müslüman azınlık, Bulgarian: мюсюлманско малцинство на Гърция, Romani: Xoraxani selyori andi Elada) is the only explicitly recognized minority in Greece. It numbers 97,604 people or 0.95% of the total population, according to the 1991 census.^[1] Romani (or Romany) is the language of the Roma and Sinti, peoples often referred to in English as Gypsies. The Indo-Aryan Romani language should not be confused with either Romanian (spoken by Romanians), or Romansh (spoken in parts of southeastern Switzerland), both of which are Romance languages. ... A minority or subordinate group is a sociological group that does not constitute a politically dominant plurality of the total population of a given society. ...

The Muslim minority consists of several ethnicities. A similar term, "Muslims by nationality", was used in Yugoslavia to describe a similar situation. Muslims by nationality was a term used in Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to describe people who spoke Serbo-Croatian language and professed Islam that werent identified as one of the other nations. ... Yugoslavia (Jugoslavija in all South Slavic languages, Југославија in Serbian and Macedonian Cyrillic) is a term used for the three separate political entities that existed during most of the 20th century on the Balkan Peninsula in Europe. ...

For historical reasons, the minority resides in the Greek region of Thrace where they make up 28.88% of the population. They form the majority in the Rhodope Prefecture (51.77%) and sizable percentages in the Xanthi (41.19%) and Evros Prefectures (4.65%).^[2] Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... Western or Greek Thrace is the part of Thrace located between the rivers Nestos (Bulgarian Mesta) and Evros (Bulgarian Maritsa, Turkish Meriç) in northeastern Greece. ... Rhodope (Greek: Ροδόπη, Rodopi) is one of the prefectures of Greece. ... Xanthi (Greek: Ξάνθη) is one of the fifty-one prefectures of Greece. ... Evros (Greek: Έβρος) is one of the fifty-one prefectures of Greece and is the northernmost. ...

Background

Under the Treaty of Lausanne, 1923, Greece and Turkey conducted a population exchange: all Christian inhabitants of Turkey subject to the Patriarch of Constantinople – the Greek Patriarch – would be resettled in Greece apart from those of Istanbul (Constantinople), Imbros and Tenedos, and all Muslims in Greece would be resettled in Turkey apart from the Muslims of Greek Thrace. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Conference of Lausanne. ... 1923 (MCMXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Cartoon depicting a Turk and a Greek arguing over the exchange. ... Istanbul (Turkish: , Greek: , see other names) is Turkeys most populous city, and its cultural, and economic centre. ... Gökçeada and Bozcaada are two islands in the Aegean Sea which are part of Canakkale Province in Turkey. ... Gökçeada and Bozcaada are two islands in the Aegean Sea which are part of Canakkale Province in Turkey. ...

Ethnic composition of the central Balkans (including present-day Greek Thrace) in 1870.

The exchanged populations were not homogenous; the Christians resettled in Greece included not only Greek speakers, but also Georgian speakers, Arabic speakers and even Turkish speakers. Similarly, the Muslims resettled in Turkey included not only Turkish speakers, but also Albanian speakers, Bulgarian speakers, Vlach speakers and even Greek speakers (see Greek Muslims). This was due to the millet system of the Ottoman Empire, where religious and national allegiance coincided, and thus Greece and Turkey were considered the parent state of each group respectively. Image File history File links Ethnographic_Map_of_Turkey_in_Europe. ... Image File history File links Ethnographic_Map_of_Turkey_in_Europe. ... Megleno-Romanians (In Megleno-Romanian: Vlaşi, in Greek: Βλαχομογλενίτες; Vlachomoglenítes) is a disputed exonym for a people inhabiting six villages in the Moglená region spanning the Pella and Kilkis prefectures of Macedonia, Greece, as well as a single village across the border in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. ... The term refers to a religious minority in western Thrace, in north-east Greece. ...

In 1922, the Muslim minority left in Thrace numbered approximately 86,000 people,^[2] and consisted of three ethnic groups: Turks, Pomaks (Muslim Bulgarians) and Muslim Roma (Gypsies), each of these groups having its own language and culture, yet all espousing the same national identity. For this reason, the Treaty defines them as one Muslim minority, rather than three minorities: a Turkish, a Pomak and a Muslim Roma minority.^[2] According to the Greek government, ethnic Turks form approximately 50% of the minority, Pomaks 35% and Muslim Roma 15%.^[2] The Pomaks (Помаци, Pomaci) or Bulgarian Muslims (Българи мюсюлмани, Bălgari myusyulmani), also known locally as ahrjani, are Slavs of the Islamic faith. ... This article is becoming very long. ...

The minority enjoys full equality with the Greek majority, and prohibition against discrimination and freedom of religion are provided for in Article 5 and Article 13 of the Greek constitution.^[3] In Thrace today there are 3 muftis, approximately 270 imams and approximately 300 mosques.^[4] It has been suggested that Religious toleration be merged into this article or section. ... A Mufti (Arabic: مفتى ) is an Islamic scholar who is an interpreter or expounder of Islamic law (Sharia), capable of issuing fataawa (plural of fatwa). // Role of a Mufti in governments In theocracies like Saudi Arabia and Iran, and in some countries where the constitution is based on sharia law, such... Imam (Arabic: إمام ,Persian: امام ) is an Arabic word meaning Leader. The ruler of a country might be called the Imam, for example. ... The Badshahi Masjid in Lahore, Pakistan with an iwan at center, three domes, and five visible minarets A mosque is a place of worship for followers of the Islamic faith. ...

Politics

The minority is always represented in the Greek parliament,^[4] and is currently represented by ND member Ahmet S. Ilhan. During the latest local elections (2002), approximately 250 Muslim municipal and prefectural councillors and mayors were elected, and the Vice-Prefect of Rhodope is also a Muslim.^[4] The main minority rights activist organization of the Turkish community within the minority is the "Turkish Minority Movement for Human and Minority Rights" (Greek: Τούρκικη Μειονοτική Κίνηση για τα Ανθρώπινα και Μειονοτικά Δικαιώματα, Turkish: İnsan ve Azınlık Hakları için Türk Azınlık Hareketi). Party logo New Democracy (ND, Greek: Νέα Δημοκρατία, Nea Dhimokratia), founded in 1974, is the main center-right liberal-conservative political party in Greece. ...

Education

Pomak village in Xanthi Prefecture.

In Thrace today there are 235 minority primary schools, where education is in the Greek and Turkish languages,^[2] and there are also two minority secondary schools, one in Xanthi and one in Komotini, where most of the minority is concentrated.^[2] In the remote mountainous areas of Xanthi where the Pomak element is dominant, the Greek government has set up Greek language secondary education schools in which religious studies is taught in Turkish and the Koran is taught in Arabic.^[2] The Pomak language (which is essentially a dialect of Bulgarian), however, is not taught at any level of the education system.^[5] The government finances the transportation to and from the schools for students who live in remote areas, and in the academic year 1997-98, approximately 195,000 USD was spent on transportation.^[2] Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (2559x1653, 770 KB) Summary Licensing File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Pomaks South Slavs Muslim minority of Greece ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (2559x1653, 770 KB) Summary Licensing File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Pomaks South Slavs Muslim minority of Greece ... Xanthi (Greek: Ξάνθη) is one of the fifty-one prefectures of Greece. ...

There are two Islamic theological seminaries, one in Komotini, and one in Echinos (a small town in Xanthi Prefecture inhabited almost exclusively by Pomaks), and under Law 2621/1998, the qualification awarded by these institutions has been recognized as equal to that of the Greek Orthodox seminaries in the country.^[2] Komotini (or Komotene Greek: Κομοτηνή, Turkish: Gümülcine, Bulgarian: Гюмюрджина (Gyumyurdjina)) is a city in north-eastern Greece. ...

Finally, 0.5% of places in Greek higher education institutions are reserved for members of the minority.^[4]

All the aforementioned institutions are funded by the state.^[6]

Grievances

The main minority grievance regards the appointment of muftis. The Greek government started appointing muftis instead of holding elections after the death of Mufti of Komotini in 1985 (which is a failure to implement Law 2345/1920 according to Cultural Survival ^[7]), although the Greek government maintained that as the practice of state-appointed muftis is widespread (including in Turkey), this practice should be adhered to in Greece, and as the muftis perform certain judicial functions in matters of family and inheritance law, the state ought to appoint them.^[2] Human Rights Watch alleges that this is against Lausanne Treaty which grants the Muslim minority the right to organize and conduct religious affairs free from government interference ^[8] (although it is unclear whether issues such as inheritance law are religious matters). As such, there are two muftis for each post, one elected by the participating faithful, and one appointed by Presidential Decree. The elected Mufti of Xanthi is Mr Aga and the government recognized one is Mr Sinikoğlu; the elected Mufti of Komotini is Mr Şerif and the government recognized one is Mr Cemali. According to the Greek government, the elections by which Mr Aga and Mr Şerif were appointed were rigged and involved very little participation from the minority.^[2] As pretension of (religious) authority is a criminal offence against the lawful muftis under the Greek Penal Code, both elected muftis were prosecuted and on conviction, both were imprisoned and fined. When, however, the case was taken to the European Court of Human Rights, the Greek government was found to have violated the right to religious freedom of Mr Aga and Mr Şerif.^[9] A Mufti (Arabic: مفتى ) is an Islamic scholar who is an interpreter or expounder of Islamic law (Sharia), capable of issuing fataawa (plural of fatwa). // Role of a Mufti in governments In theocracies like Saudi Arabia and Iran, and in some countries where the constitution is based on sharia law, such... Cultural Survival (founded 1972) is a nonprofit group based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA which is dedicated to defending the human rights of indigenous peoples. ... Human Rights Watch Banner Human Rights Watch is a United States-based international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. ... European Court of Human Rights building in Strasbourg The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), often referred to informally as the Strasbourg Court, was created to systematise the hearing of human rights complaints against States Parties to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, adopted by...

Another controversial issue was Article 19 of the Greek Citizenship Code, which allowed the government to revoke the citizenship of non-ethnic Greeks who left the country. According to official statistics 46,638 Muslims (most of them being of Turkish origin) from Thrace and the Dodecanese islands lost their citizenships from 1955 to 1998, until the law was non-retroactively abolished in 1998.^[10]

The final grievance is the Greek government's restrictions on the usage of the terms "Turk" and "Turkish" when describing the minority as a whole. A number of organizations, including the "Turkish Union of Xanthi", have been banned for using those terms in their title.^[3]

See also

• Minorities in Greece
• Demographics of Greece
• Turks of Western Thrace
• Turkish Republic of Western Thrace
• Pomaks

Map of Greece Greece is a largely ethnically homogenous country. ... The Demographics of Greece includes the study of numerous language, cultural and ethnic groups over a five thousand year history. ... The Pomaks (Помаци, Pomaci) or Bulgarian Muslims (Българи мюсюлмани, Bălgari myusyulmani), also known locally as ahrjani, are Slavs of the Islamic faith. ...

References

1. ^ Υπουργείο Εξωτερικών, Υπηρεσία Ενημέρωσης: Μουσουλμάνικη μειονότητα Θράκης and Ελληνική Επιτροπή για τη διαχείρηση των υδατικών πόρων: Στοιχεία από την πρόσφατη απογραφή του πληθυσμού
2. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k} Υπουργείο Εξωτερικών, Υπηρεσία Ενημέρωσης: Μουσουλμάνικη μειονότητα Θράκης
3. ^ ^a b Report about Compliance with the Principles of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, by the Greek Helsinki Monitor, 18 September 1999
4. ^ ^a b c d Μουσουλμάνικη μειονότητα Θράκης
5. ^ Report on the Pomaks, by the Greek Helsinki Monitor
6. ^ United States Department of State: International Religious Freedom Report 2006
7. ^ Vestiges of the Ottoman Past: Muslims Under Siege in Contemporary Greek Thrace
8. ^ Human Rights Watch: The Turks of Western Thrace
9. ^ The case of Mehmet Emin Aga
10. ^ Press Release of Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe and HRW World Report 1999: Greece:Human Rights Developments