Why are the most Alawites found in Turkey?

Question

And where?

Be good Santa is coming,yea i know the Alawites are mostly found in Syria and Lebanon,but i heard there are so many of them living in Turkey,anyway thx for the info

Answer 1

Never heard of the term Alawite but if you mean Nusayris, they mostly live in the south of Turkey..not surprisingly close to the Syrian border. Most of the Nusayris live in Antakya (Hatay), Adana, Mersin and Iskenderun.

Edit: Denyocan you are quite wrong. There is a considerable number of nusayris in Turkey.

Answer 2

According to the wikipedia article, they are mostly in Syria, although some live in Lebanon and some live in Turkey where they are called nusayri.

Alawites are sometimes confused with Alevis, a distinct group, which is found in Turkey. Were you referring to Alevis? Alevis constitute something like 25% of the population of Turkey.

There is a map in the wikipedia article which shows where the Alevis live. And the Alawite article describes where they live.

I don't really have any info. on these groups except what is in the articles below. I hope this is helpful.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alawite

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alevi

They both sound like interesting groups.

Answer 3

Alawites
Arabic: calawī (sing.), calawīya (pl.)


ALAWITES IN THE MIDDLE EAST

Last column: % Alawites of the population
Lebanon 50,000 1.4%
Syria 2,200,000 11%
Total *) 2,250,000 0.5%
*) Calculated for the total population of North Africa and the Middle East, approx. 460,000,000.


Islamic sect, stemming from the Twelver Shi'is. They live in Syria, mainly in the mountains near the city of Latakia, but many also live in the cities of Hama and Homs, and in recent decades there has been a migration to Damascus.
Alawites are often referred to as Nusayris.
Their exact number is not known, but estimated to be between 1.5 and 2.5 million. Most of them live from agriculture, but the Alawites are also central in the leadership of Syria, President Bashar al-Assad being an Alawite (similar to his late father, Hafez).
The Alawites are not Alevi, another religion, which usually is classified as a Shi'i-originated branch of Islam, with some 21 million adherents, mainly in Turkey.
Their name is a recent one — earlier they were known as Nusairis, Namiriya or Ansariyya. The names 'Nusairi' and 'Namiriya' came from their first theologian, Muhammadu bni Nusairi n-Namiri. The name 'Ansariyya' came from the mountain region in Syria where this sect lived.
TEACHINGS
In their view, Ali, cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad, is the bearer of divine essence, and he is the second most elevated prophet (next to Muhammad).
The Alawites have 7 pillars in their religion. Five of these are similar to those of other Muslims, (the creed, the prayers, alms, pilgrimage to Mecca and fasting during the month of Ramadan), but the Alawites consider these as symbols, and therefore they do not practice what other Muslims consider as duties. The other 2 pillars are jihad, holy struggle, and waliya (devotion to Ali, and struggle against his enemies).
The Alawites celebrate the same festivals as most other Shi'is, like Id al-Fitr, Id al-Kabir and Ashura. But they also celebrate some of the same festivals as the Christians, like Christmas and Epiphany, as well as Nawruz, which originally is the Zoroastrian New Year.
Through their history, the Alawites have often been in conflict with the rulers as well as other Muslims, who often have claimed that they are not Muslims. The Alawites consider themselves to be moderate Shi'i Muslims.

HISTORY
857: Muhammadu bni Nusair claims to be the gate (Bab) or representative to the 10th imam among the Shi'is, Ali al Hadi.
10th century: The sect is firmly established by Husayn ibn Hamdan al-Khasibi, during the Shi'i Hamdanid dynasty of Aleppo.
1004: The Hamdanid dynasty falls, and the Alawites are driven out of Aleppo, and centuries of hardship begin.
12th century: The Alawites are badly treated by Crusaders.
1971: The Alawite Hafez al-Assad becomes president of Syria. This brought an end to the Alawites being outcasts in Syrian society. Since then their status has significantly improved, as have their living standards.
1974: The Lebanese leader of the Twelver Shi'is, Imam Musa al-Sadr, issues a legal decision saying that the Alawites are Shi'i Muslims.

Answer 4

there is almost no Alawite living in Turkey. You confuse them with Alevis who have nothing to do with Alawites.