Ístanbul’da Ve Ímroz’da Rum Olmak, Atina’da Rum Kalmak
Becoming Greek in Istanbul and Greece, Staying Greek in Athens

Summary/Abstract: We are in the 50th anniversary of the deportation of 1964 when Rum of Greek descent were deported from Turkey. The year of 1964 is the most important date accelerating the extinction of Rum minority in Turkey. In 1964, 12000 Rum nationals of Greek descent were deported and 30000 Rum of Turkish descent were obliged to migrate on account of family ties; but migration did not stop after that date. Because of the fact that living in Turkey has become more difficult for Rums and that the Rum community has been desolated, thousands of Rums remaining also migrated in the following years. In this way, the ancient Rum identity in Istanbul and in Imbros (Gökçeada) has henceforth kept alive in an entirely different place, especially in certain neighborhoods of Athens by first-generation Rum immigrants. This text, which is based on a field study1 realized in December 2013 in Athens by the method of observation and semi-structured interviews and on a literature review about the subject; is the product of an effort to understand how Rum nationals -forced to migrate in Greece- lived their identity in Turkey and also preserved it in Greece before, after and in 1964. In different words, this texts aims to transpose the efforts of Greek nationals for “being Rum” in Istanbul and in Imbros and for “tarrying Rum” in Athens by focusing on their daily lives and their experiences.

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