THE ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL STRUCTURE OF GAGAUZIAN TURKS

Özet

Most of the Gagauz population live in Bucak region in the South of Republic of Moldova. Gagauz people’s language has the closest accent to Turkish language spoken in Turkey. The Gagauz gained their autonomy September 23 in 1993. Their population covers %4 of the total population of Moldova. Despite the fact that The Gagauz is a small society in the Balkans, Turkey attaches high importance to them. The connection between Gagauz people and Turkey reaches to the first years of Turkish Republic. Ataturk met the needs of The Gagauz and supported them in those years. In this study political statute, ethnic identity, economic situation and the geographical position of Gagauz people have been examined. The Gagauz that had not known well by Turks until the 1990s has been researched in details. Besides it has been mentioned that Gagauz people bridge The Republic of Moldova and Turkey both culturally and commercially as well as building amity between two nations.