Research Article

Young Syrians’ Experiences of Social Integration in the Turkish City of Gaziantep

Volume: 9 Number: 2 December 24, 2024
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Young Syrians’ Experiences of Social Integration in the Turkish City of Gaziantep

Abstract

This article attempts to demonstrate refugees’ experiences of social integration based on a case study conducted in 2017 among young male Syrians in the Turkish city of Gaziantep. Already a ‘chaotic concept’, integration gets more complicated today in the era of transnationalism in which people tend to remain mobile even after arriving to their destination through their networks that transcend national borders. This study aims to illustrate how Gaziantep turns into a multicultural city with refugees, who are mostly from Syria’s second biggest city of Aleppo, creating their own locality that represents a different sociality, culture and way of living. It also argues how young Syrians’ experiences of integration are strained at the crossroad of the temporality of their stay and the transnational character of their migratory behaviour.

Keywords

References

  1. Ager, A. and Strang. A. (2008) “Understanding Integration: A Conceptual Framework”. Oxford University Press, 21 J. Refugee Stud. pp.166-19.
  2. Ager, A. and Strang, A. (2010) “Refugee Integration: Emerging Trends and Remaining Agendas.” Oxford University Press, 23 J. Refugee Stud. pp.589-607.
  3. Al Hessan, M., Bengtsson, S., Kohlenberger, J. (September 2016) “Understanding the Syrian Educational System in a Context of Crisis” Working Paper, Vienna Institute of Demography.
  4. Allsopp , J. (2017) ‘Masculinities in the European ‘Refugee Crisis’, A Gendered Approach to the Syrian Refugee Crisis, Eds: Freedman, J., Kivilcim, Z., Baklacioglu, N.O., Routledge.
  5. Aras, N.E.G. & Mencutek, Z.S. (2015), “The International Migration and Foreign Policy Nexus: The Case of Syrian Refugee Crisis and Turkey”, Migration Letters, Volume: 12, No: 3, pp.193-208.
  6. Asik, G.A. (13 April 2017) “Turkey Badly Needs a Long-Term Plan for Syrian Refugees” Harvard Business Review.
  7. Aydogan, J.G. (October 2023), “Naturalization and Syrian Refugee Integration in Türkiye: A Critical Case Study on recent Turkish Citizenship Practices”, Social Sciences University of Ankara the Graduate School of Social Sciences, Master’s Thesis.
  8. Beirens, H., Hughes, N., Hek, R. and Spicer, N. (2007), Preventing Social Exclusion of Refugee and Asylum Seeking Children: Building New Networks, Cambridge University Press.

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Migrant Cultural Studies, Migration, Labour, Migration and Development, Sociology of Migration, Ethnicity and Multiculturalism, International Migration

Journal Section

Research Article

Publication Date

December 24, 2024

Submission Date

May 31, 2024

Acceptance Date

December 5, 2024

Published in Issue

Year 2024 Volume: 9 Number: 2

APA
Sonmez, Z. (2024). Young Syrians’ Experiences of Social Integration in the Turkish City of Gaziantep. Middle East Journal of Refugee Studies, 9(2), 113-143. https://doi.org/10.70045/mejrs.1493752
AMA
1.Sonmez Z. Young Syrians’ Experiences of Social Integration in the Turkish City of Gaziantep. Middle East Journal of Refugee Studies. 2024;9(2):113-143. doi:10.70045/mejrs.1493752
Chicago
Sonmez, Zumrut. 2024. “Young Syrians’ Experiences of Social Integration in the Turkish City of Gaziantep”. Middle East Journal of Refugee Studies 9 (2): 113-43. https://doi.org/10.70045/mejrs.1493752.
EndNote
Sonmez Z (December 1, 2024) Young Syrians’ Experiences of Social Integration in the Turkish City of Gaziantep. Middle East Journal of Refugee Studies 9 2 113–143.
IEEE
[1]Z. Sonmez, “Young Syrians’ Experiences of Social Integration in the Turkish City of Gaziantep”, Middle East Journal of Refugee Studies, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 113–143, Dec. 2024, doi: 10.70045/mejrs.1493752.
ISNAD
Sonmez, Zumrut. “Young Syrians’ Experiences of Social Integration in the Turkish City of Gaziantep”. Middle East Journal of Refugee Studies 9/2 (December 1, 2024): 113-143. https://doi.org/10.70045/mejrs.1493752.
JAMA
1.Sonmez Z. Young Syrians’ Experiences of Social Integration in the Turkish City of Gaziantep. Middle East Journal of Refugee Studies. 2024;9:113–143.
MLA
Sonmez, Zumrut. “Young Syrians’ Experiences of Social Integration in the Turkish City of Gaziantep”. Middle East Journal of Refugee Studies, vol. 9, no. 2, Dec. 2024, pp. 113-4, doi:10.70045/mejrs.1493752.
Vancouver
1.Zumrut Sonmez. Young Syrians’ Experiences of Social Integration in the Turkish City of Gaziantep. Middle East Journal of Refugee Studies. 2024 Dec. 1;9(2):113-4. doi:10.70045/mejrs.1493752