Alevi Discourse Analysis in Contemporary Turkey

Talking about the Alevis discourse in Turkish society is a multidimensional and complex subject. A mass group that has experienced various ups and downs in the path of identity and in the interaction with the political powers around them. In the Ottoman period, especially in the conditions of the political and ideological competition between the Ottoman Empire and the Safavid regime, the Alevis were known as Iranian spies or Shiite-oriented Iranians and were prohibited from any activity. After the establishment of the Turkish government in 1923, the Alevian community of Turkey was allowed to work and found a new discourse. O. The existence of various and sometimes contradictory components in the political and social life of the Alevis has had various implications for the discourse of this group and its discursive analysis has become important. On the other hand, the affiliations of this group with the Shiite thoughts and their adherence to Iran, doubles the significance of this discursive research. The main question of the leading research is: what are the semantic signatures of Alawi discourse? In this paper, Lacla and Mouffe's discourse analysis is used for data analysis. The findings of the research indicate that the Alevi discourse in contemporary Turkey, centered on the central slab of Turkish nationalism, emphasizes on other semantic principles such as secularism, conservatism, tolerance, the restoration of Alevi identity, democracy, and security.