by Saqet Vejseli
Summary
“Turkodoksë” refers to Asia Minor Greeks who arrived after the 1923 population exchange. Many modern Greeks hesitate to acknowledge that Arvanites—mostly Albanians—were key contributors to Greece’s independence. Historical sources indicate that so-called “true Greeks” would not have expelled Muslim Albanians, who alongside Macedonians and foreigners, actively resisted Ottoman rule. Prominent families like the Kallergis of Crete and symbols in the modern Greek flag reflect this diverse heritage. Contemporary accounts even describe mainland Greeks labeling Asia Minor Greeks as “Turkish seed,” highlighting social prejudices. Statues in Pedion tou Areos commemorate many of these figures, most of whom were Albanian.
Do modern Greeks feel ashamed or uncomfortable admitting that the Arvanites were Albanians, and that they made up the majority of those who fought for Greece’s independence? Do they feel inferior acknowledging that another ethnic group played a decisive role in liberating Greece for them?
No—absolutely not.
First point:
“True Greeks,” it is argued, would never have expelled Muslim Albanians by labeling them simply as “Turks.” At the time, society had become so degraded that even the desire for freedom had weakened. For many years after independence, the period of Ottoman rule was still remembered by some as a relatively stable time. It was Albanians, Macedonians, and various foreign actors who actively fought against Ottoman rule.
Source:
Nassau William Senior, Conversations with M. Thiers, M. Guizot, and Other Distinguished Persons during the Second Empire (1878), Vol. II, pp. 304–305.
The General Kallergi mentioned in this context belonged to the prominent Kallergis family, an aristocratic family from Crete, which claimed descent from Nikephoros II Phokas and at one time was among the most powerful noble houses on the island. It is also claimed that elements of the modern Greek flag are derived from this family’s heraldic symbols.
Another example is a statement attributed to the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew I of Constantinople, in October 1991, shortly before his enthronement. A contemporary newspaper commentary framed him with the phrase “Turkish seed” (“turkosporos”), reflecting a term sometimes used pejoratively by mainland Greeks toward Asia Minor Greeks.
What did this so-called “Turkish seed” say?
“Unfortunately, the two peoples interrupted a successful 400-year coexistence when certain ‘sans-culottes’ rose up in 1821 and created the well-known conflicts.”
The expression draws a comparison to the French Revolution, a parallel sometimes invoked in modern interpretations of the Greek War of Independence.
So the question remains: do they feel discomfort about these contradictions?
The argument presented here suggests they do not.
Postscript:
At Pedion tou Areos (Field of Ares) in Athens—named in analogy to the French Champ de Mars and the ancient Campus Martius—stand statues of figures associated with the 1821 uprising. It is claimed that many of these figures were of Albanian origin.
