Anyone Good with Geography?

Question

discuss the implications of the Turkey being part of Europe and the Middle East. Thank you everyone!

Answer 1

Turkey has traditionally been a part of Europe, for a number of reasons.

1. In ancient times, Turkey was known as I Mikri Asia (Asia Minor) or Anatolia and was mainly Greek speaking.

2. For hundreds of years, Anatolia was part of the Christian, European Byzantine Empire.

3. Even when conquered by the Turks, most of the previously Greek and Syriac speaking inhabitants peacefully converted to Islam. The ancestors of modern Turks are a mixture of European and Turkic peoples.

The only reason people claim it is Middle Eastern is:

1. Because it is Muslim (there are many Muslims in Europe however).

2. Because the Ottoman Empire, based in Turkey, ruled most of the Middle East. That is easy to answer, since the Ottoman Empire ruled most of the Balkans as well.