Turkey | polstudentexchange

Due to her long history, Turkey is often being regarded as a country with a diverse culture. Historically speaking, this mix was a result of encounters of the Turks with other peoples who ran into the Turkish path of history during their migration from Central Asia to the West.

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"Turkish culture is a mixed combination with other cultures. Shisha, belly dance, architectures, and even Turkish food originate mostly from Arabic and partly from the Roman culture."

Chan Ying Lun (BSSAPM)

Exchange study at Bilkent University,

Ankara, Turkey (2012-13 Semester B)

Cultural Discovery of Turkey

- where the East meets West

A mix of different cultural influences

Along with the cultural influences of European countries, the interaction between the Ottoman Empire and the Islamic world contributed to a blend of Turkic, Islamic and European traditions in Turkish arts and architectures.

Turkish Architectures

The mix of cultural influences can be revealed from a variety of artifacts.

From an architectural sense, the Seljuk Turks, which was a Turkish Sunni Muslim dynasty, combined the elements and characteristics of the Turkic architecture of Central Asia with those of Persian, Arab, Armenian and Byzantine architecture.

Selected examples of buildings from this era can be seen from the gallery below.

Until the early 1950s, architects who either studied in Europe or had information of the modernist architecture of the time became more influential in the architectural arena.

Although Turkish architects were able to follow the modern design of international style and rationalism, they were however heavily constrained by the economic factors such as a lack of technological infrastructure or insufficient financial resources.

Since the 18th century, the Turkish architecture has been increasingly influenced by Western styles, and this can be seen particularly in the Tanzimat era buildings of Istanbul like the Dolmabahçe, Çırağan, and Yıldız palaces.

In addition, the Ottoman era waterfront houses on the Bosphorus also reflect the fusion between classical Ottoman and European architectural styles during the period

Modern Turkish culture can be considered as a blend of various elements, including the Oğuz Turkic, Anatolian, Ottoman, and Western cultures and traditions, which started with the westernization of the Ottoman Empire and is still continuing today.

In other words, theTurkish culture is a product of efforts to be a "modern" Western state, while maintaining traditional religious and historical values.