Islam in Anatolia: Some Observations on the Sunni-Alevi Character of Turkmen Interpretation of Islam in the Age of Ghazis (12th-14th Centuries)

Abstract

It is known to the common wisdom that some sufi currents with re- markable Alevi characters appeared in the Ottoman realm by the sixteenth century. Among them Qizilbashes that emerged under the auspice of Safavid Shahs or shaykhs and Bektashis who developed a sufi order around the name of Hacı Bektash come to the fore. One may add to this list some other Alid oriented sufi orders such as Rufa’i, Qadiri, Khalveti. Nevertheless, in terms of the relation with Ottoman regi- me and ideology, Qizilbash and Bektashi had always assumed a peculiar place and consequently became asylum of Alevi-Shi’ite ideals within the Ottoman fold. The socio-cultural, political, and religious roots of the both might be traced back to the Seljukid period. In the meantime, how far back can we trace the Alevi attribute of the- se groups is still subject of dispute. So far, two main trends dominated the academic works. Popular acceptance presupposes that Alevi-Shi’ite elements emerged during the fifteenth- and sixteenth centuries as a result of Safavid propaganda. According to the second approach, the penetration of Alevi-Shi’ite ideals occurred during the Seljukid period. This work aims to revisit the available scholarship and discusses the existence of Alevi-Shi’ite ideals in the pre-fifteenth century Anatolia. It also offers a new framework to apprehend the question of Sunni-Alevi differentiation in Anatolia during the age of ghazis.