<br> <div class="guest_name"> <a href="https://history.virginia.edu/people/baris-unlu" target="_blank"> with Barış Ünlü </a></div><div class="host_name"> <a href="https://history.virginia.edu/people/chris-gratien" target="_blank">hosted by Chris Gratien</a><a href="https://history.virginia.edu/people/kubra-sagir" target="_blank"> and Kubra Sagir</a></div> <div class="hidden_synopsis"> | What does it mean to be Turkish? In this episode, we examine that question with sociologist Barış Ünlü. In <a href="https://tupress.temple.edu/books/the-turkishness-contract" target="_blank"><i>The Turkishness Contract</i></a>, Ünlü studies the historical process by which Turkishness developed through a contractual relationship between the state and its citizens. In our conversation, we explore the late Ottoman roots of this process, as well as how the experiences of non-Turkish religious and ethnolinguistic groups shed light onto the often unspoken and unconscious behaviors, attitudes, and beliefs that govern Turkishness. We also discuss the book&#39;s <a href="https://www.dipnotkitap.com/kitap/turkluk-sozlesmesi/246" target="_blank">wide reception in Turkish</a> and how in its new English translation, Ünlü connects the Turkish experience to global perspectives on race and belonging in the modern world.    </div> <a href="https://www.ottomanhistorypodcast.com/2026/03/turkishness-contract.html#more">« Click for More »</a>