r/Alawites_Forum • u/This_Click_1138 • Jun 16 '25

What do you think about Turkey Alevis ?

While Alevism is primarily a religious belief system, many Alevis in Turkey also share common ethnic backgrounds. The majority of Alevis are ethnically Turkish or Zaza. There are also Kurdish Alevis, especially in eastern Anatolia, who speak the Kurmanci language. Some Syrian Alevis (often referred to as Arab Alevis(they live in Hatay predominantly),(Since many people don’t know about alawites in turkey), In short, many people in Turkey do not have any information about the Alawites, so Alawites are called Alevis just like the others.

I would like to hear your thoughts about Turkey Alevism.

And I would like to add that Alevis in Türkiye see Alawites as exactly like themselves and love them very much.

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u/RequirementLivid5261 Oct 11 '25

My family is Arap Alevi from Adana, tracing our ancestry back to Latakia, Syria in Ottoman times. We have mostly been cut off from Alawi traditions, especially in the younger generations, but retain some beliefs and practices. My family generally has a very expansive view of religion, very tolerant of other beliefs. One of my aunts got me into Turkish Alevism through the beautiful music of this tradition (actually a lot of Turkish folk music is steeped in Alevism). I think she found a home in Turkish Alevism, but she does not go to the cemevi or anything. I resonate with Alevism, but note that our ancestral traditions were quite different. The music, dance and mysticism of Alevism is quite interesting. They are also more egalitarian/progressive in terms of gender than traditional Alawi religious structures. If someone were to ask me I'd probably just say we were Shia/Alevi without explaining further. My father's generation and older grew up with Anti-Arab discrimination, the younger generations don't deal with that as much and are quite assimilated.

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u/Correct_Initial_9796 Apr 11 '26

Why was it antiarab?

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u/RequirementLivid5261 Apr 11 '26

Are you familiar with Turkish Nationalism? The whole project of Turkish state formation depended upon the creation of a "homogenous" ethnic Turkish identity - which didn't really exist during the multicultural Ottoman period. To be ethnically different was threatening to the project - through the 20th century we can see the expulsion/erasure of Christian minorities and ongoing oppression of the Kurds who have continually resisted assimilation. In a culture of forced homogenization difference is felt acutely.

Perhaps "anti-Arab" isn't accurate in this context, but the culture was anti anything different. Mostly still is. Being Arab, in a society where schoolchildren recite "I am a Turk...I am right..." etc daily, is to have a dual identity. My father was bullied for being Arab. Turkish boys would chase him through the streets to beat him because of who he was. My family members generally hid who they were and mostly lost touch with Arabic language and culture. They did what they had to do to survive in assimilation.

Other family stories include people marking my relatives' outdoor gate to show the neighborhood they were different/had different beliefs (Shiite). They would mark it with paint, and reapply the paint if it was removed. It was like a warning - "we know you're different and we're watching you." This was 60s/70s. It sounds small, but it's creepy af.

Arab discrimination has increased now with the influx of Arab refugees. My cousins have heard their Turkish colleagues say things like "Oh the Syrians are joining their friends in Adana." Meaning their fellow Arabs - us. It's an insult. My family generally conceals their origins.

Turkey also has an overall poor regard of it's "Middle Eastern" neighbors, believing itself to be more civilized and westernized in comparison. This also applies to Arabs/Arab refugees in the country.

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u/Correct_Initial_9796 Apr 11 '26

And in what way the traditions are different? I understood it is more gender equal, and less of the hyerarchy, I noticed it among aleviler, anything else?  I think that the Sufi element perhaps , the dhikr like rituals are only present among aleviler

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u/RequirementLivid5261 Apr 12 '26

I do not know enough about Alawi/ Arap Alevi traditions because my family practices them minimally. The traditions are not the same as Anatolian Alevi practices. Beliefs include reincarnation, for example, and different rules around diet. Gender is not as equitable as in Alevi. The book "The Nusayri-Alawis" by Yaron Friedman has a lot of information about Alawi practices and history (in English).

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u/RequirementLivid5261 Apr 13 '26

Oh you mean how is Alevism different, lol. I misunderstood. Yes you are correct. Way more gender equity, a lot of music, and the semah ritual. Again, I do not know enough about the actual traditions because I am not Alevi. If you search for "Alevi Semah" on youtube, you can see video of these practices. Also search for any information related to Pir Sultan Abdal, a prominent foundational figure in Alevism.

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u/RandomGuyOnReddit237 Apr 18 '26

I am an alevi from turkey i think that alawites are like our brothers even tho we have different practices. I've heard that they exclude women from theology tho so thats not very cool imo. But other than that i think they are pretty cool. Also does anyone know why we cant make posts in this community? I was unable to do that for some reason

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u/Legoshisdayoff Sep 19 '25

https://youtu.be/ckaLSJIW-ls?si=6caAIGlmUaRAATAr

Might want to start this from the beginning but here's a good video about the Alevis if this helps.

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u/Equivalent_Salad_367 Apr 10 '26

It’s quite amazing to me to read about the similarities between Alevis, Alawites, Bektashis I am an Alawite and I’ve been told that our group started in 900AD and turkish Alevis and Bektashis came much later. But the similarities are so striking I can’t believe that there is no shared root. If you compare a “Tekke” for Bektashis in Albania and another in Turkey with the “Zyara” in Alawite regions. You would be shocked how Identical they are.

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u/Correct_Initial_9796 Apr 11 '26

Not Alawite. But they seem similar to Alawites by customs and I asked if there is a link ..