Do you know that Greeks are pissed that Turks have a dish named Iskender Kebap?

Question

Well, Iskender Kebap is a meat dish (yummy!) made with yogurt and pide, and was invented by a Turkish cook named Iskender a few decades back. The name Iskender comes from the same root as Alexander, the great Macedonian hero. I don't know why, but I heard that Greeks are pissed that we have a dish that seems to have been named after their hero... which isnot correct of course. Can you think of any reason why? Do you think they will claim ownership of the dish, just like they claim ownership on the name Macedonia?

If the logic of the Greek answerers below is correct, yalanci dolma, which is distinctly a Turkish name, must be exclusively Turkish. So, decide, guys, you either claim the Greek name "Macedonia" and lose the Turkish named yalanci dolma, or you lose the exclusive ownership of the name "Macedonia" and can claim some kind of ownership over "yalanci dolma." What do you choose?

Thanks, iguana, for the contribution. You have shown us how Greeks claim ownership of a dessert which is the specialty of Eastern Anatolia. Watch Yabanci Damat again, if you have any doubt as to where it originally was made. And if you want to eat the true stuff, forget the fakes and go for the Turkish Gulluoglu in Athens.

Answer 1

The recipes have been shared between the two culture for so many year no one really knows what name belongs to what recipe . each country may have different name or pronunciation for the same food. but the greek is better of course.

Answer 2

OK. I am Turkish (Turkish Cypriot) and I would like to say "some Greeks" and not generalize. This controversy has been going on for a long time between Greeks and Turks as to which dish belongs to who. Personally I do not care. We have lived together with them for almost 1000 years now. Therefore, it is only natural that our cultures and cuisines have got mixed up. We have learned a lot from each other. I have a feeling that "yalndji dolma" (stuffed vine leaves) could be Greek, although the name is Turkish. But definitely, Iskender Kebap is originally Turkish. Back in 1967 I had the priviledge of eating it at the original Iskender Restaurant in Bursa, Turkey. And I talked to Iskender's son Nurettin who was running the place at the time.

Answer 3

The reason why is because we Greeks do not trust the Turks and we never will. All of the Arab countries have tried to lay claim to many a Greek dish..baklava, dolma, kebab, etc. They are only copying the best, of course. And Macedonia is a part of Greece, has been and always will be. My family is from there. the Slavs are crazy. They steal the emblem of Alexander the Greats family and put it on their flag. And, as a side note, I can't wait until the Greeks kick the Turks out of Cyprus!!

Answer 4

No one is pissed - why, anyway? Would the Turks be pissed if somewhere in Germany a "kemal biftek" was served?
In general, the greek and turkish cuisine have a lot of common dishes (sometimes they even have the same name for them) and so do the neighboring countries, i.e. stuffed wine leaves exist in Greece, Turkey and Bulgaria alike and this is natural and very common in other regions also (gulash is common in Hungary, Czeck republic and Germany alike). So, rarely can one nation "claim ownership" of a dish, especially today in our globalised world, when in Europe we eat Sushi and in Asia you probably enjoy "french cuisine".
As far as Macedonia is concerned, it is a geographical region where the ancient greek tribe of Macedonians lived b.C. Since the balkan wars, most of this region obviously returned to Greece, but a small part lays nowadays in Bulgaria and in the Former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia. It is exactly like Thrace (Thraki): Greece owns today eastern Thrace and Turkey owns western Thrace. Both names are greek, but in modern times the frontiers have changed - and we should not care any more, should we? Otherwise, we could always be at war with our neighbors.

Answer 5

I am not pissed that Turks use their name of Alexander for a dish as you explain it comes from a cook and not from the Greek hero. What i am pissed about is that you dare to connect your question with Macedonia. The name Macedonia is a Greek name by root belonging to a Greek region and people for thousands of years. I do not find it funny relating it to the name of the dish and making ironic comments about Greek claims.
In Greece there is baklava as well . You think the Turks will put claim on it as they put claim in Thrake and the Aegean?

reply to asker
Can you honestly say who made a dish or dessert for the first time?Greeks have been living with Othomans for 5 hundred years and they were in the Area of Asia Minor thousand of years before the Othomans.Can you be sure who started what?Egypt,Turkey,Greece,Lebanon,Cyprus they all have very similar cusine.Its not sign of clever man to say Greeks made the tzatziki or Turks the Baklava etc. And dont worry i have tried baklava in Constaninople and i enjoyed it much more than in Greece.Your kazan dipi though is terrible,they make it much better in Thessaloniki.
My advice try to enjoy the food and stop worrying about where it comes from.

Answer 6

i do no longer care faith first of all.whether it would not advise i visit be a stupid hippi that ought to forget approximately who's buddy ,who's the enemy .i be attentive to the historic previous .Our dispute with Greeks isn't non secular or racial. it is nationwide . it would not advise i visit be rude to Greek people as quickly as I meet them , yet there are 6 million different concepts in this international to be buddy .I m no longer likely to hug my stressful neighbore ...Peace is advantageous and sufficient ..enable's shop the obstacles, no could be close.

Answer 7

Dont think that we care for ownership of a dish.....
As for Macedonia, the slavs claim ownership.....
WE HAVE OWNERSHIP OF THE NAME.
History can not be rewritten because someone wakes up one day and says so....
The original name of the territory they live in, is Skopia..... which guess what..... IT'S GREEK

Answer 8

Well we are not 'pissed' because simply we do not care what do you eat and what dishes you have.As for Macedonia the name is greek and Macedonia is in northern Greece.Ancient Macedonians spoke greek and they were greek (just like spartans,athenians and all of the greek tribes) as we still speak today(I am macedonian(greek)).The slavs from fyrom didn't even existed till the 6th century after Jesus.(You too).

Answer 9

The author of this question is obviously bulgarian and just wants to cause strif between Turks and the greeks.. but just remeber don't get the Greeks angry or we'll get the Spartans! after you!!!!!!!

Answer 10

I would not be suprised if they are. They want to label everything Greek.