...excuse me, but your political affiliation is showing



You can tell a Turk's political affiliation by his facial hair. Seriously.
Of course, nowadays Turks are a little more free with beards and mustaches than they used to be, so the distinctions aren't so sharp anymore, but lots of people still use their facial hair to make a statement. Here are some examples:


The mustache above belongs to the current prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. It's a classic example of a "new Islamist" mustache. Its trimmed short and doesn't curl around the lips on the ends. These are increasingly popular and signify an affiliation with political Islam. Abdullah Gul, the newly elected president, also wears this kind of mustache.

Here's a different mustache:



This one is a classic nationalist mustache. Its bushier than the last one and it curls around the mouth on the ends and sometimes over the lips. Sometimes the nationalist mustache gets ridiculously long and becomes a "handlebar" mustache. If it's twirled at the edges it's a statement of nostalgia for Ottoman times, which is still a form of nationalism.

Here's an interesting picture:





This is a fight in parliament between members of the CHP, a secularist political party. They are the most serious opponents to the Islamist parties. Their mustaches are also bushy, but they don't curl around the mouth or over the lips. Apparently, one of these gentlemen accused the other of not being worthy of his mustache and decided that the best solution was to rip it out. Unfortunately the bushiness of this mustache makes it easier to get a handful. Since most Alevis (a sufi sect that you have to be born into) are also members of the CHP this mustache can also be called the Alevi mustache.



Here's one that's a little easier to identify:




No... it doesn't mean that at all. The goatee is usually associated with socialism or communism. Some people who wear the goatee say that it signifies an intellectual, but non-goatee wearers are likely to dispute that claim. Lots of this type of facial hair can be seen at anti-whatever rallies and on university campuses.

Here's one more not-to-be-missed example:


These are angry beards. They belong to radical Muslims, sometimes called "Fundamentalists" or "Jihadists." The mustache is trimmed short and thin and the beard is left to run wild. This type of beard is not limited to Turkey, and its meaning is the same wherever it is worn. This isn't the kind of beard one is likely to see at a "sit-in" or at a bar.


There are some other, more nuanced, facial hair statements, but these are some of the major ones. Many Turks, including politicians avoid being pegged in this way by remaining clean-shaven. In any case, whatever a Turk decides to do or not do with his face is likely to be invested with some kind of political statement.

Comments

Stacey said…
All I can say is that you have too much free time... lol but I like your style.
September 7, 2007 at 1:22 AM
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