WHICH RELIGION IN TURKEY?
Turkey Which Religion? What Religion Do Turks Believe? Are Turks Muslim? What Religion Are People In Turkey?
99% of Turkey’s population believes in Islam. According to official figures, the majority of Turkey consists of Muslims. However, people living in coastal areas, that is, the regions of Turkey opening to the Mediterranean Sea and the regions located on the Aegean Sea side, live a more liberal lifestyle. People living in the inner parts of Turkey and in the eastern region, on the other hand, have more faithful lifestyles to their religion. Although the majority of the population in Turkey is Muslim, the principle of ‘secularism’ has been accepted in the Turkish Constitution.
Laws in Turkey were not made on the basis of Islam. Secularism is accepted in Turkey. In fact, basic laws such as the Civil Code and the Penal Code were taken from European countries. Turkey is a party to many international agreements. In fact, it has been accepted that in case of conflict between international agreements signed in the Turkish Constitution on human rights and Turkish laws, international agreements will be superior to Turkish laws. There has been tension between conservatives and secular people for a long time in Turkey. This tension has especially focused on the headscarf for women, which is one of the orders of the religion of Islam. The opposition of some ultra-secular segments to the headscarf and not allowing the headscarf in some public institutions have led to some social events. The most striking example of these events is the events known as ’28 February events’. It is observed that these events are not currently happening in Turkey and that conservatives and secular people are at peace. Turkey is a country negotiating for EU membership. It has close relations with many European countries. On the other hand, since it is a Muslim country, it has relations with many Arab countries and Central Asian countries. There are also Armenians and Greeks in Turkey. These people, who are not crowded in terms of population, generally live under a congregation. There are Christian communities, Jewish communities and Syriac communities in Turkey. According to Turkish law, freedom of religion has been accepted. It is adopted not to put pressure on anyone’s religion and views. However, there are also issues that almost all segments of society view with hatred. An example of this is homosexuality. Many people in Turkey abhor homosexuality. The subject of homosexuality in Turkey is explained in our article titled “Is Homosexuality Prohibited in Turkey?“.
Since a large part of the population in Turkey is Muslim, pork is not consumed in the country. Most people in Turkey are disgusted with pork. For this reason, more cow, sheep and chicken meat is preferred in the country. You can find information about food in Turkey in our article titled “What Do People Eat in Turkey?“