TURKISH NATIONALISM AND TURKISH ISLAM: A NEW BALANCE

Nationalism and Islam have widely tended to be viewed as separate elements in the Turkish context. However, Islam has, in fact, been a foundational part of Turkish identity since the establishment of the Turkish Republic; and, on the popular level, Islam cannot actually be separated from nationalism. The equation of Turkish with Muslim identity was always tacitly understood; now it is explicit. Previous Turkish governments have, at times, won support by appealing to both nationalist and religious sentiments as well but none has done this so successfully as the AKP... The current Turkish government's rhetoric manages to appeal to both impulses, and that is why it is such a powerful brew. The AKP has been able to achieve what no other government has before: wedding popular religious nationalism to the levers of government and remaining in power whilst doing so.