OSMANLI’DA MİLLİYETÇİLİK AKIMLARI: TOPLUMSAL DEĞİŞİM VE TARİHİ BAYRAKLAR ÜZERİNDEN OKUMAK

Yıl 2025, Cilt: 137 Sayı: 273, 365 - 404, 30.10.2025

Arif Akbaş

https://doi.org/10.55773/tda.1621018

Öz

Bu makale, Osmanlı İmparatorluğu’nda milliyetçilik akımlarının toplumsal değişimle olan ilişkisini tarihi yönden bayraklar üzerinden incelemektedir. Araştırma, sosyolojik nitel betimleyici yöntem kullanılarak gerçekleştirilmiş ve dönemin ideolojik dönüşümlerine odaklanılmıştır. Çalışmada “tarihsel-sosyolojik analiz”, “ikonografik yöntem” ve “doküman analizi” gibi yaklaşımlar da kullanılmıştır. Osmanlı’da bayrakların yalnızca birer sembol değil, aynı zamanda ulusal kimlik arayışlarının ve toplumsal yapıdaki değişimlerin yansıması olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Araştırmada, tarihsel belgeler, ikonografik analiz ve literatür taraması bir arada kullanılarak bayrakların ideolojik anlamları çözümlenmiştir. Elde edilen bulgular, Osmanlı’daki milliyetçilik akımlarının, modernleşme süreci ve Batılılaşma etkisiyle eş koşut/ analojik olarak şekillendiğini göstermektedir. Özellikle, farklı etnik ve dini grupların kendilerine özgü kimlikler oluşturma sürecinde bayrakların, bu kimliklerin kolektif bilincinde önemli bir yer tuttuğu belirlenmiştir. Ayrıca, bayraklar üzerinden okunan semboller, milliyetçilikle birlikte Osmanlı’nın çokkültürlü yapısının çözülme sürecini de ortaya koymaktadır. Osmanlı’da milliyetçilik akımlarının bayraklar üzerinden incelenmesi, toplumsal değişimin ideolojik ve sembolik boyutlarını anlamak açısından önemli bir perspektif sunmaktadır. Osmanlı’da milliyetçilik, yalnızca ayrışma değil, tarihsel bir aidiyetin yeniden tanımlanmasıdır. Milliyetçilik, Osmanlı’nın çokkültürlü mozaiğinde sadece bir çatlak değil, modern dünyanın çekiç darbeleridir. Osmanlı’da milliyetçilik, tarihin derinliğinden gelen seslerin modern dünyanın kaosu içinde yankı bulmasıdır. Osmanlı bayraklarında işlenen motifler, yalnızca birer süs değil; tarih, kimlik ve direnişin simgeleridir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Etnik sosyoloji , Tarihsel sosyoloji , Milliyetçilik , Osmanlı İmparatorluğu , Bayraklar , Toplumsal değişim , Kimlik inşası

Nationalist Movements in the Ottoman Empire: Reading Social Change and History Through Flags

Öz

This article examines the relationship between nationalist movements in the Ottoman Empire and social change through a historical lens by analyzing flags. The research employs a sociological qualitative descriptive method and focuses on the ideological transformations of the period. Additionally, approaches such as “historical-sociological analysis,” “iconographic method,” and “document analysis” are utilized. The study identifies that Ottoman flags were not merely symbols but also reflections of the search for national identity and the transformations within the social structure. By combining historical documents, iconographic analysis, and literature review, the ideological meanings embedded in the flags were deciphered. The findings reveal that nationalist movements in the Ottoman Empire developed analogously with the processes of modernization and Westernization. Particularly, it was determined that flags played a significant role in the collective consciousness of different ethnic and religious groups as they constructed their unique identities. Moreover, the symbols depicted on the flags reveal not only the rise of nationalism but also the gradual dissolution of the Ottoman Empire’s multicultural fabric. Examining nationalist movements in the Ottoman Empire through the lens of flags provides a significant perspective on understanding the ideological and symbolic dimensions of social change. Nationalism in the Ottoman context represents not merely a process of separation but also a redefinition of historical belonging. It was not simply a crack in the Ottoman’s multicultural mosaic but rather the hammer strikes of modernity. The motifs on Ottoman flags were not merely decorative; they symbolized history, identity, and resistance.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Ethnic sociology , Historical sociology , Nationalism , The Ottoman Empire , Flags , Social change , Identity construction

Kaynakça

• Abrams, Philip. Historical Sociology. New York: Cornell University Press, 1982.
• Akçura, Yusuf. Üç Tarz-ı Siyaset. Ankara: Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi, 1987.
• Alt, Betty. Following the Flag: Marriage and the Modern Military. Santa Barbara: Praeger, 2006.
• Arhiv Jugoslavije. Konstitutivni Akti Jugoslavije. Ustav FNRJ, 31 Januar 1946.
• Ashraf, Quamrul, and Oded Galor. “Genetic Diversity and the Origins of Cultural Fragmentation.” American Economic Review 103, no. 3 (2013): 528-533.
• Bankov, Kristian. “Flags, Identity, Memory: From Nationalisms to the Post-truth Uses of Collective Symbols.” In Flags, Color, and the Legal Narrative: Public Memory, Identity, and Critique, 11-27. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2021.
• Banton, Michael. “The Sociology of Ethnic Relations.” Ethnic and Racial Studies 31, no. 7 (2008): 1267-1285.
• Baruah, Sanjib. “‘Ethnic’ Conflict as State–Society Struggle: The Poetics and Politics of Assamese Micro-Nationalism.” Modern Asian Studies 28, no. 3 (1994): 649-671.
• Becker, Julia C., Katharina Enders-Comberg, Ulrich Wagner, Oliver Christ, and Ralf Butz. “What Do National Flags Stand For? An Exploration of Associations Across 11 Countries.” Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology 48, no. 3 (2017): 335-352.
• Benson, George Willard. The Cross: Its History and Symbolism. Courier Corporation, 2013.
• Biger, Gideon. “Is the Sykes–Picot Agreement of 1916 Was the Basis for the Political Division of the Middle East?” Journal of Geography, Politics and Society 6, no. 3 (2016): 50-58.
• Brown, Michael E., Owen R. Coté Jr., Sean M. Lynn-Jones, and Steven E. Miller, eds. Nationalism and Ethnic Conflict. Massachusetts: MIT Press, 2001.
• Calhoun, Craig. “Why Historical Sociology?” In Handbook of Historical Sociology, edited by Engin F. Isin and Gerard Delanty, 1-14. Sage Publications, 2003.
• Cerulo, Karen A. “Symbols and the World System: National Anthems and Flags.” Sociological Forum 8, no. 2 (1993): 243-271.
• Chernilo, Daniel. A Social Theory of the Nation-State: The Political Forms of Modernity Beyond Methodological Nationalism. London: Routledge, 2008.
• Coşgun, Melih, Çağdaş Zarplı. “Ortadoğu’da Uluslaşma Sorunu Üzerine Bir Deneme: Modernlik.” Hak İş Uluslararası Emek ve Toplum Dergisi 4, sayı 8 (2015): 20-32.
• Devletü’l Katar. Katar Bayrağı Hakkında, Ek No:1, 14 Sayılı Kanun, 2012.
• El-İmârâtü’l-Arabiyyetü’l-Müttahide. Birlik Bayrağı. MS 1971 Tarih ve 4 Sayılı Federal Yüksek Konsey Kararı, MS 1971 Tarih ve 2 Sayılı Federal Kanun ile 9/202 Sayılı Bakanlar Kurulu Kararı.
• Elgenius, Gabriella. “Expressions of Nationhood: National Symbols and Ceremonies in Contemporary Europe.” PhD diss., London School of Economics and Political Science, 2005.
• Elgenius, Gabriella. “National Flags, the Politicization and Sanctification of Nations.” In Symbols of Nations and Nationalism: Celebrating Nationhood, 57-93, 2011.
• Ellinikí Dimokratía. Ethnósimo tis Ellinikís Dimokratías. Nómos 48, Efimerís tis Kyverníseos, F. 108, téfchos A´, 7.6.1975.
• El-Memleketü’l-Arabiyyetü’s-Suûdiyye. Abdul Rahman bin Suleiman Al-Ruwaished, Suudi Bayrağının Tarihi, Ulusal Bayraklar, Süslemeler ve Rozetler. Kral Fahd. Riyad Kütüphanesi, 1. baskı, 1428 H./2007 MS.
• Eriksen, Thomas Hylland, Richard Jenkins, eds. Flag, Nation and Symbolism in Europe and America. London: Routledge, 2007.
• Feinstein, Yuval. “Applying Sociological Theories of Emotions to the Study of Mass Politics: The Rally-Round-the-Flag Phenomenon in the United States as a Test Case.” The Sociological Quarterly 61, no. 3 (2020): 422-447.
• Fenton, Steve. “The Sociology of Ethnicity and National Identity.” Ethnicities 11, no. 1 (2011): 12-17.
• Flags of the World, “Evolution of the Iraqi Flag.” Erişim tarihi: 11 Ocak 2025, https: //www. fotw.info /flags/ iq_ evol.html.
• Fraser, Nancy. “Social Justice in the Age of Identity Politics: Redistribution, Recognition and Participation.” In Geographic Thought, 11-27. London: Routledge, 2008.
• Geiger, Vladimir, Suzana Leček. “Politička i Ideološka Pozadina Dizajna i Ikonografije Novčanica Kraljevine Jugoslavije, 1929.-1941. Godine.” Numizmatičke Vijesti 61, no. 72 (2019): 122-156.
• Gitlin, Todd. The Intellectuals and the Flag. Columbia University Press, 2007.
• Guenter, Scot M. “Revitalized Flag Magic: Flag Retirement Rituals and the Power of Talismans.” In 25th ICV Rotterdam, The Netherlands and FIAV No. 1 (2013): 1-13.
• Gupta, Dipankar. “Caste, Infrastructure and Superstructure: A Critique.” Economic and Political Weekly (1981): 2093-2104.
• Güler, Gül. “Anadolu Müzelerinde Bulunan Bayrak ve Sancak Alemleri.” Yüksek lisans tezi, Hacettepe üniversitesi, 1993.
• Haas, Ernst B. “What Is Nationalism and Why Should We Study It?” International Organization 40, no. 3 (1986): 707-744.
• Haas, Ernst B. Beyond the Nation-State: Functionalism and International Organization. ECPR Press, 2024.
• Hadi, Mahdi Abdul. “Palestine: The Meaning of the Flag.” Erişim 13 Ocak 2025. http://www.passia.org /palestine_facts/meaning_of_flag.htm.
• Hayastani Hanrapetut’yun. Hayastani Petakan Khorhrdanshannery - Gradaran -Hayastani Nakhagah. President.am. Verts’vats e 2019 t’. hoktemberi 24-in. Healey, Joseph F., and Andi Stepnick. Diversity and Society: Race, Ethnicity, and Gender. Sage Publications, 2019.
• Heimer, Željko. Grb i Zastava Republike Hrvatske. Zagreb: Leykam International, 2008.
• Howard, Judith A. “A Social Cognitive Conception of Social Structure.” Social Psychology Quarterly 57, no. 3 (1994): 210-227.
• Jaskulowski, Krzysztof. “The Magic of the National Flag.” Ethnic and Racial Studies 39, no. 4 (2016): 557-573.
• Jenkins, Richard. “Boundaries and Borders.” In Nationalism, Ethnicity and Boundaries, edited by Jennifer Jackson and Lina Molokotos-Liederman, 11-27. London: Routledge, 2014.
• Klandermans, P. G. “Identity Politics and Politicized Identities: Identity Processes and the Dynamics of Protest.” Political Psychology 35, no. 1 (2014): 1-22.
• Kolstø, Pål. “National Symbols as Signs of Unity and Division.” Ethnic and Racial Studies 29, no. 4 (2006): 676-701.
• Kurtaran, Uğur. “Osmanlı İmparatorluğu’nda Millet Sistemi.” Kafkas Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi 1, sayı 8 (2011): 57-71.
• Lachmann, Richard. What Is Historical Sociology? Malden: Polity, 2013.
• LEGE. Nr. 75 din 16 iulie 1994 privind arborarea drapelului României, intonarea imnului național și folosirea sigiliilor cu stema României de către autoritățile și instituțiile publice. Textul actului publicat în M.Of. nr. 237/26 aug. 1994.
• LIGJ. Per Formen Dhe Permasat E Flamurit Kombetar, Permbajtjen E Himnit Kombetar, Formen Dhe Permasat E Stemes Se Republikes Te Shqiperise Dhe Menyren E Perdorimit Te Tyre. Nr. 8926, date 22.7.2002.
• LIGJI. Për Protokollin e Shtetit të Republikës së Kosovës. NR.03/L-132, Qer 01 2009.
• Lightfoot, Jonathan. “Race, Class, Gender, Intelligence, and Religion Perspectives.” Race, Gender & Class 17, no. 1/2 (2010): 31-38.
• Logan, Katie. “Changing Geography: Transcultural Arab Identity in the Age of the EU.” In Cultural Production and Social Movements After the Arab Spring, 45-62, 2021.
• Mazarákis-Ainián, Ioánnis K. I Istoría tis Ellinikís Simaías. 11i Etísia Diálexi Istorías-Archaiologías. Lefkosía: Politistikó Ídryma Trapézis Kýprou, 1996.
• Medinat Yisra’el. The Flag and the Emblem. Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs publication; by Joseph Sprinzak Speaker, 1948.
• Memleketü’l-Bahreyn. Tam Dünya Bayrakları: Bahreyn. DK Yayıncılık, 2014.
• Ministarstvo vanjskih poslova Bosne i Hercegovine. Zakon o Zastavi Bosne i Hercegovine. Neslužbeni Prečišćeni Tekst. “Službeni glasnik BiH”, Br. 19/01 od 3. augusta 2001.
• Mohamedou, Mohammad-Mahmoud Ould. “The Rise and Fall of Pan-Arabism.” In Routledge Handbook of South-South Relations, 168-176. London: Routledge, 2018.
• Monçev, Pavel B., and Ivan Paraskevov. Ivan i Stilyana Paraskevovi – Sŭzdateli na Pŭrvoobraza na Bŭlgarskoto Natsionalno Zname. Bŭlgarska Istoriya, 2021. Erişim 14 Ocak 2025. https://bulgarianhistory.org/suzdatelite-na-bulgarskiq-tribagrenik/.
• Nagel, Joane. “Constructing Ethnicity: Creating and Recreating Ethnic Identity and Culture.” Social Problems 41, no. 1 (1994): 152-176.
• Od Vlada na Republika Makedonija. Zakon za Grbot na Republika Makedonija. Služben vesnik na RM, Br. 138 od 17.11.2009.
• Özdemir, Kemal. Osmanlı Arması. İstanbul: Dönence Basım ve Yayın Hizmetleri, 1997.
• Plant, Raymond. “Jürgen Habermas and the Idea of Legitimation Crisis.” European Journal of Political Research 10, no. 4 (1982): 341-352.
• Preobrazenje. Ocila na Grbu Srbije. Erişim 14 Ocak 2025. http://preobrazenje.org/.
• Quataert, Donald. “Clothing Laws, State, and Society in the Ottoman Empire, 1720–1829.” International Journal of Middle East Studies 29, no. 3 (1997): 403-425.
• Rais, Faiza R. “Syria under Bashar al Assad: A Profile of Power.” Strategic Studies 24, no. 3 (2004): 144-168.
• Republic of Jordan. “Flags of the World: Jordan.” Erişim tarihi: 12 Ocak 2025. https://www.crwflags.com/fotw/ flags/jo.html.
• Republic of Lebanon. The Description of the Flag Is Cited in the Lebanese Constitution, Chapter 1, Article 5. The Lebanese Constitution, translated by Gabriel M. Bustros B.Sc. [Econ]. London: Bureau of Lebanese and Arab Documentation, 1973.
• Repùblika Bŭlgàriya. Zakon za Dŭrzhavnıya Pechat ı Natsıonalnoto Zname na Republıka Bŭlgarıya. V sila ot 25.05.1998 g.
• Repùblika Bŭlgàriya. Zakon za Gerb na Republıka Bŭlgarıya. Obn. DV. Br.62 ot 5 Avgust 1997g.
• Republike Srbije. Zakon o Izgledu i Upotrebi Grba, Zastave i Himne Republike Srbije. “Sl. glasnik RS”, Br. 36/2009 i 10/2023.
• Republıka Makedonıja. Zakon za Znameto na Republika Makedonija. Služben vesnik na RM 47/95, 1995.
• Reyers, Belinda, Sandra Díaz, Sebsebe Demissew, Ivar Jense, Patrick O’Farrell, Graciela M. Rusch, and Hien T. Ngo. “Getting the Measure of Ecosystem Services: A Social–Ecological Approach.” Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 11, no. 5 (2013): 268-273.
• Romania. Buletinul – Gazetă Oficială a Țării Românești. No. 34 of 14 October 1834, 144.
• Romania. Constıtuţıa Românıeı. Official Gazette, 31 October 2003.
• Saltanatü ʻUmān. “Sultanate of Muscat and Oman until 1970.” Erişim 15 Ocak 2025. https://www.crwflags.com /fotw/Flags/om_musca.html.
• Sarány, Orsı. “The Hungarian Designer Behind Romania’s Coat of Arms: József Keöpeczi Sebestyén.” Transylvania Now, 4 March 2020. https://transylvanianow.com/the-coat-of-arms-of-romania-and-its-hungarian-designer-jozsef-keopeczisebestyen-interview-part-ii/.
• Shanafelt, Robert. “The Nature of Flag Power: How Flags Entail Dominance, Subordination, and Social Solidarity.” Politics and the Life Sciences 27, no. 2 (2008): 13-27.
• Shlapentokh, Dmitry. “The Images of the French Revolution in the February and Bolshevik Revolutions.” Russian History 16, no. 1 (1989): 31-54.
• Slovenská republika. Ústava Slovenskej republiky. Ustavného zákona č. 460/1992 Zb.z 1. septembra 1992.
• Smith, Anthony D. “Ethnic Myths and Ethnic Revivals.” European Journal of Sociology/ Archives Européennes de Sociologie / Europäisches Archiv Für Soziologie 25, no. 2 (1984): 283-305.
• Smith, Anthony D. “The Diffusion of Nationalism: Some Historical and Sociological Perspectives.” The British Journal of Sociology 29, no. 2 (1978): 234-248.
• Spasojević, V. Crnjanski. “Srbija i Dalje sa Dva Grba.” Novosti, 26. 10. 2013.
• Spyropoulos, Yannis. “The Creation of a Homogeneous Collective Identity: Towards a History of the Black People in the Ottoman Empire.” International Journal of Turkish Studies 16, no. 1-2 (2010): 25-46.
• Şahintürk, Elif. “16. Yüzyıl Osmanlı Minyatürlerinde Bayrak Üzerine Bir Araştırma.” Yüksek lisans tezi, Marmara Üniversitesi, 2011.
• Talbert, Ryan D. “Culture and the Confederate Flag: Attitudes Toward a Divisive Symbol.” Sociology Compass 11, no. 2 (2017): 1-10.
• Tefera, Goshu W., and A. Peter Castro. “Flag Politics in Ethiopia and the Ethio-American Diaspora.” Journal of International and Global Studies 8, no. 1 (2016): 1-26.
• Tipps, Dean C. “Modernization Theory and the Comparative Study of National Societies: A Critical Perspective.” Comparative Studies in Society and History 15, no. 2 (1973): 199-226.
• Titus Kolník. “Byzantské Korene Ikonografie a Symboliky Štátneho Znaku Slovenskej Republiky.” Matica slovenská, Historický odbor Matice slovenskej (2019): 1-12.
• Tlačová agentúra Slovenskej republiky. Zomrel Autor Výtvarného Spracovania Štátnych Symbolov SR. TASR-Slovakia, 2017.
• Torrey, Gordon Howard. Independent Syria, 1946-1954. University of Michigan, 1961.
• Ustav Republike Hrvatske. Zakon o Grbu, Zastavi i Himni Republike Hrvatske te Zastavi i Lenti Predsjednika Republike Hrvatske. Narodne novine, Br. 55/90., te članak 137, 21. prosinca 1990.
• Vlada Crne Gore. Odluka o Utvrđivanju Etalona Zastave Crne Gore. Na osnovu člana 3 stav 1 Zakona o državnim simbolima i Danu državnosti Crne Gore “Sl. list RCG”, broj 47/04. “Službeni list Republike Crne Gore”, Br. 058/04 od 17.09.2004.
• Vlada Crne Gore. Zakon o Državnim Simbolima i Danu Državnosti Crne Gore. Br. 56 od 29. prosinca 1993., stupio na snagu 6. siječnja 1994.
• Vojvoda, Mirjana. “Signis Receptis as a Reverse Motive on Roman Imperial Coins.” Archaeology and Science 11 (2015): 43-51. Vries, Hubert de. “Devletü’l-Küveyt.” Erişim 14 Ocak 2025. http://www.hubert-herald.nl/Kuwait.htm.
• Watad, Aida Fahmawi. “Semiotics of Flags in Colonial Spaces: The Flag as an Identity Rhizome in the Literature of Palestinians in Israel.” Journal of Holy Land and Palestine Studies 23, no. 1 (2024): 19-38.
• Weitman, Sasha R. National Flags: A Sociological Overview. Basel: De Gruyter Mouton, 1973.
• Whitney, Smith. “Flag of Yemen.” Erişim tarihi: 14 Ocak 2025. https://www.britannica.com/topic/flag-of-Yemen.
• Williams Jr, Robin M. “The Sociology of Ethnic Conflicts: Comparative International Perspectives.” Annual Review of Sociology 20, no. 1 (1994): 49-79.
• Wilson, Lee. “From the Mystical to the Molecular: Modernity, Martial Arts, and Agency in Java.” In Engaging the Spirit World: Popular Beliefs and Practices in Modern Southeast Asia, edited by Kirsten W. Endres and Andrea Lauser, 5-27. New York, Oxford: Berghahn Books, 2012.
• Yel, Ümit. “Bayrak ve Sancak Sevgisi Kazandırmada Sosyal Bilgiler Dersinin Önemi.” Yüksek lisans tezi, İnönü Üniversitesi, 2018.