Claiming the Homeland?

Ottoman Muslim nationalism reached its climax during the National Struggle (1918-1922), the focal point of this chapter. Simultaneously, the conceptualization of the “nation” (millet) underwent further adjustments in response to evolving circumstances. In conflict with the central government and foreign powers, the resistance movement, led by the Ottoman military-bureaucratic elite, faced vulnerability and sought legitimacy from its domestic population base and abroad. This reliance on local support reshaped the conceptualization of the nation, altering the conventional state-nation framework significantly. While Ottoman nation-building typically involved the state seeking its nation, the National Struggle saw a shift, with the national discourse resembling a nation seeking its state. This change aimed to reconcile diverse nation-building approaches influenced by internal and external factors, resulting in a composite religio-ethnic and people-centric rhetoric, marked by ambiguity and adaptability.