HISTORICAL ORIGINS OF INSTITUTIONALIZED WOMEN'S MOVEMENT IN TURKEY
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Authors: Ceyda Kuloğlu
Keywords: women's movement in Turkey, women's movement in Ottoman Period, women's movement in Turkish Republic, women's movement in pre-Islamic period
Abstract: 1980s are the period that women’s movement in Turkey gained momentum relative to the previous years. Although the women’s movement and its institutionalization period were a near-perfect though in theory, it still has an importance to review the historical background of the women’s movement in Turkey for the contemporary and future studies. The reason for this is that most of the studies can remain in the descriptive study dimension due to the fact that they do not refer to the previous period of women’s movement and that they do not have the knowledge of their roots. The purpose of this review work in this context is to put forth the historical roots of the institutionalization of the women's movement in Turkey in order to shed light on the contemporary studies and to develop new strategies for contemporary policies with the help of the past experiences.
In explaining the development of feminism in Turkey, different periodization studies were used. Some of them are: According to Sirman (1989); (a) The Ottoman Period (b) The first periods of the Republic (c) 1980s are 3 periods. According to Tekeli (1986); (a) Before Tanzimat (b) Tanzimat Period (c) The first years of the Republic and the period of one-party regime (d) From 1950 to the present four periods. According to Nizam (1993); (a) Before the War of Independence (b) After the War of Independence (c) After 1980;
In this study, the development of the feminist movement in Turkey has been differentiated according to the position of women in society. In this context, four chapters have been formed from the pre-Islamic period, which is conceptualized as a very controversial milestone.
1. The position of women in the pre-Islamic society
2. The position of women in the society after Islam and in Ottoman times
3. The position of women in society in the Republican period
4. The position of women in society from 1980s to the present