Turkic peoples

Turkic peoples are Northern and Central Eurasian peoples who speak languages belonging to the Turkic family of languages and which share in varying degrees, ethnic, cultural and historical traits. Even though many consider this term to be distinct from the term Turkish, growing use of term Turkish opposed to Turkic has been noted in the Turkish/Turkic world. Turkic languages belong to the Altaic language group and is one of the most geographically widespread in the world, spoken in a geography spanning from Europe to Siberia.

Geographical Distribution

The Turkic peoples have many different branches and their total population is around 150 million. Roughly half of them belong to Turks of Turkey dwelling predominantly in Turkey, previously Ottoman-dominated areas of Eastern Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, and in Western Europe, Australia and the Americas as immigrants. The other half is spread in Central Asia, Russia, Southern Caucasus and Northern and Central Iran.

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At present, there are six independent Turkic countries: Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Turkey and Uzbekistan. There are also several autonomous Turkic republics and Turkic-governed regions in the Russian federation: Altai, Bashkortostan, Chuvashia, Dagestan, Hakasia, Karachay-Malkar, Tatarstan, Tuva and Yakutia. Each autonomous Turkic republic within the Russian federation has its own flag, parliament, laws and official state language.

Related Topics:
Azerbaijan - Kazakhstan - Kyrgyzstan - Turkmenistan - Turkey - Uzbekistan - Altai - Bashkortostan - Chuvashia - Dagestan - Hakasia - Karachay-Malkar - Tatarstan - Tuva - Yakutia

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There are also two other major autonomous Turkic region: The Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (also known as East Turkestan) in western China, and the autonomous state of Gagauzia, located in eastern Moldova, bordering Ukraine to the north. In addition, there are several stateless Turkic regions in Iran, and parts of Iraq, Georgia, Bulgaria, Greece, Macedonia, Tajikistan, Afghanistan and western Mongolia. The Azerbaijanis of Iran (largely concentrated in Southern Azerbaijan and major urban centers) are the largest stateless Turkic people in the world. The Turks of Turkey numbers about seventy-five million including expatriates and minorities in Europe, while the second largest Turkic nation is the Azerbaijanis, who number more than thirty-five million worldwide, with most of them living in northwestern Iran, a region refered to by some as Southern Azerbaijan.

Related Topics:
Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region - Gagauzia

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