Freedom of religion in Turkey

Byzantine mosaic of two men
Ottoman Mehmed the Conqueror and Greek Orthodox Patriarch Gennadios II. Mehmed II allowed the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople to remain active in the city after its conquest by the Ottoman Turks in 1453 and established the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople in 1461 as part of the millet system. The Byzantines regarded the Armenian Church as heretical and forbade it inside the Walls of Constantinople.

Turkey is a secular state in accordance with Article 24 of its constitution. Secularism in Turkey derives from Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's Six Arrows: republicanism, populism, laïcité, reformism, nationalism and statism. The Turkish government imposes some restrictions on Muslims and other religious groups, as well as Muslim religious expression in government offices and state-run institutions, including universities.[1]

Religion in Turkey (Optimar survey, 2019)[2][3][4][5]

  Islam (89.5%)
  Irreligion (Deism) (4.5%)
  Irreligion (Agnosticism) (2.7%)
  Irreligion (Atheism) (1.7%)
  Other Religions (Christianity, Baháʼí Faith, Judaism, Tengrism, Yazidism) (0.5%)
  Unanswered (1.7%)

In 2023, the country was scored two out of 4 for religious freedom;[6] land disputes for religious buildings are a large source of tension.[citation needed]

  1. ^ Turkey: International Religious Freedom Report 2007. United States Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor.
  2. ^ Özkök, Ertuğrul (21 May 2019). "Turkey is no longer the country with 99% population is Muslim".
  3. ^ "Faith survey from Optimar: 89% of population believes monotheism" (in Turkish). T24.com.tr. 15 May 2019.
  4. ^ Report. Bir eşitlik arayışı: Türkiye’de azınlıklar Minority Rights
  5. ^ "Tengrism is also rising". odatv.com. OdaTV. 9 April 2018. Archived from the original on 15 August 2019. Retrieved 15 August 2019.
  6. ^ "Turkey: Freedom in the World 2022 Country Report". Freedom House. Retrieved 26 November 2023.