Ilıca Anatolia

Immigration and Rumeli immigrants in Ilica town

Yörüks dwelling in Ilıca Town, Kahramanmaras, Turkey are called ‘Muhacir’. As the requirements of Ottoman Empire’s settlement policy, Muhacirs are immigrated from Eastern Anatolia to Selanik territory and are the children of raiders called ‘Evlad-ı Fatihan’. One of the basics components who faunded founding the great state of Ottoman, Yörük tribes are recorded in the historical documents as Rumeli Yörüks as they were settled in Rumeli. They were immigrated at the latest period of the Ottoman Empire during Balkan War 1912-1913 and were settled firstly around Suleymanli (Zeytun) and around Kısla Villages. Yörük tribe, whose life was an adventure of immigration, is called as Selanik Muhacirs in their new settlements. In this study, firstly conceptual analyses were performed to define the terms of ‘Yörük, Oymak, Tribe (boy), immigration, immigrant settlement and town’. The history and adventure of Rumeli Yörüks immigration was explained. The reflections of immigration and settlement on Rumeli Yörük tribes, settled in Ilıca Town, and the matters of social integration between the local people were studied.