Narratives on religion-state relations in Turkey: continuities and discontinuities

Hazır A.

TURKISH STUDIES, vol.21, no.4, pp.557-577, 2020 (SSCI) identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 21 Issue: 4
  • Publication Date: 2020
  • Doi Number: 10.1080/14683849.2019.1685881
  • Journal Name: TURKISH STUDIES
  • Journal Indexes: Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, IBZ Online, International Bibliography of Social Sciences, Historical Abstracts, Index Islamicus, MLA - Modern Language Association Database, Political Science Complete, Public Affairs Index, Sociological abstracts, Worldwide Political Science Abstracts
  • Page Numbers: pp.557-577
  • Van Yüzüncü Yıl University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

This article investigates the trajectories of conflicting narratives that describe religion-state relations in Turkey. It explores the main tenets of the secular-religious polarization perspective (SRPP) that has been dominant until recently. It argues that while the SRPP is losing its hegemony in the field of academia, it has enduring power in the political field. The paper also contributes to the literature by discussing the ways in which the SRPP has been instrumentalized for political purposes in both domestic and international contexts by hegemonic political powers, including the ruling party, the AKP, in Turkey.