Publication: Constructions of nationalism in Syria from historical roots to the syrian uprising
Abstract
Bu çalışma, Suriye Milleti düşüncesinin nasıl geliştiği ve bu düşüncenin destekçileri için ne anlama geldiği ile ilgili tarihsel kökenlerden yola çıkarak, Suriye ayaklanmalarının başladığı döneme kadar, Suriye’deki milliyetçi teorilerin gelişimini incelemektedir. Çalışmanın hareket noktasını Suriye’deki milliyetçilik olgusunu geniş ve karşılaştırmalı perspektiften ele alan, Suriye’deki milliyetçiliğin farklı dallarını inceleyen ve bunların birbirleriyle olan ilişkilerini ve uyuşmazlıklarını analiz eden literatürde gözlemlenen boşluk oluşturmaktadır. Tez iki ana bölümden oluşmaktadır. İlkinde, Suriye'de milliyetçiliğin tarihsel inşası analiz edilmektedir. Bu bölümde şu sorulara cevap aranmıştır: Suriye kimliği nasıl inşa edildi; Suriye Milliyetçiliği hangi işlevleri yerine getirdi; ve Suriye Milliyetçiliği diğer ideolojiler ve milliyetçiliklerle hangi bağlantılar içinde oldu? Tezin ikinci bölümünde ise, Suriye'deki modern milliyetçilik biçimleri ele alınmış; tarihsel kavramlarla olan devamlılığı incelenmiş ve ana uyuşmazlık noktaları belirlenmiştir. Teorik açıdan, bu çalışma, Ernst Gellner, John Breuilly ve Montserrat Guibernau'nun eserleri dahil olmak üzere, modernleşmeci Milliyetçilik okulu ve ulusların sosyal inşalar olduğu ana bulgusu üzerine yaslanmaktadır. Metodolojik açıdan, Butrus Al Bustani ve Jurji Yazdan gibi erken milliyetçi düşünürlerin eserleri incelenmiştir. Ayrıca, modern dönemlerdeki Milliyetçilik inşalarının analizi için, Suriye’deki aktörlerin siyasal programlarının içerik analizi yapılmıştır. Bu çalışma, Suriye'deki milliyetçi kimliklerin, Arap milliyetçiliği ve siyasal İslam gibi diğer ideolojilere ve etnisitelerlekarşılıklı bağlantılarını daha derinden anlamamıza katkıda bulunmaktadır. Anahtar bulgulardan biri, Suriye ulusal ve siyasal varlığının uyumu anlamında dışlayıcı Suriye Milletçiliğinin kısa süre yaşamış bir olgu olduğu ve Suriye milliyetçilik inşasının, bunun diğer farklı etnik, dinsel ve politik kavramlardan yola çıkan kimliklendirmeler arasındayalnızca bir etmen olarak yer aldığı karma ideolojilerle yer değiştirmesidir.
This study traces the development of nationalist thought within Syria, from its historical roots in the mid of the 19th century - looking at how the idea of a Syrian Nation developed and what it meant for its proponents - to the wake of the 2011 Syrian uprising. What motivated this research was the gap found in the existing literature about thephenomenon of nationalism in Syria from a broader and comparative perspective, including the different branches of nationalism that exist within Syria as well as their interrelationships and confrontations. In the first part, this thesis traces the historic constructions of nationalism in Syria beginning from Butrus Al Bustani’s ideas on theSyrian national identity in the middle of the 19th century. How was the Syrian national identity constructed, what functions did Syrian Nationalism fulfill and how did Syrian Nationalisms relate to other ideologies and nationalisms in the region? In the second part of the thesis, modern forms of nationalism in Syria are scrutinized, the continuity to historical concepts such as Islamic and Arab Nationalism is explored and main points of conflict between the different nationalisms are identified. Theoretically this works builds on the modernist literature on Nationalism, including the works of Ernest Gellner, John Breuilly and Montserrat Guibernau, and its main finding that nations are imagined and social constructs. Underpinning the thesis is an in-depth analysis of the works of key Syrian nationalists such as Butrus Al Bustani and Jurji Yazdan. Furthermore, this thesis draws from critical content analysis of political programmes of the key actors of current nationalisms in Syria. This study contributes to a deeper understanding of nationalist identities in Syria and their interconnectedness to other ideologies and ethnicities, likeArab Nationalism and political Islam. Among the key findings is that exclusivist Syrian Nationalism, in the meaning of one congruent Syrian national and political entity, was a short-lived phenomenon and replaced by mixed ideologies in which Syrian nationalist constructions are just one factor among other identifications with ethnic, religious and political concepts.
This study traces the development of nationalist thought within Syria, from its historical roots in the mid of the 19th century - looking at how the idea of a Syrian Nation developed and what it meant for its proponents - to the wake of the 2011 Syrian uprising. What motivated this research was the gap found in the existing literature about thephenomenon of nationalism in Syria from a broader and comparative perspective, including the different branches of nationalism that exist within Syria as well as their interrelationships and confrontations. In the first part, this thesis traces the historic constructions of nationalism in Syria beginning from Butrus Al Bustani’s ideas on theSyrian national identity in the middle of the 19th century. How was the Syrian national identity constructed, what functions did Syrian Nationalism fulfill and how did Syrian Nationalisms relate to other ideologies and nationalisms in the region? In the second part of the thesis, modern forms of nationalism in Syria are scrutinized, the continuity to historical concepts such as Islamic and Arab Nationalism is explored and main points of conflict between the different nationalisms are identified. Theoretically this works builds on the modernist literature on Nationalism, including the works of Ernest Gellner, John Breuilly and Montserrat Guibernau, and its main finding that nations are imagined and social constructs. Underpinning the thesis is an in-depth analysis of the works of key Syrian nationalists such as Butrus Al Bustani and Jurji Yazdan. Furthermore, this thesis draws from critical content analysis of political programmes of the key actors of current nationalisms in Syria. This study contributes to a deeper understanding of nationalist identities in Syria and their interconnectedness to other ideologies and ethnicities, likeArab Nationalism and political Islam. Among the key findings is that exclusivist Syrian Nationalism, in the meaning of one congruent Syrian national and political entity, was a short-lived phenomenon and replaced by mixed ideologies in which Syrian nationalist constructions are just one factor among other identifications with ethnic, religious and political concepts.