Iraklılık Kimliği: Irak'ta Kimliğin Alternatif Tarihi

Irak’ta kimlik meselesi çoğunlukla yapaylık varsayımı üzerinden tartışılmaktadır. Bu ana akım yapaylık tezi, devlet-altı ve devlet-üstü kimlikleri önceleyerek devlet kimliğinin yokluğunu veya güçsüzlüğünü ispatlamaktan ziyade bu kimliğin üstünü örtmektedir. Bu makale, Irak’ta devlet kimliğinin mevcudiyetini, nüfuzunu ve kapsamını tarihsel ve güncel yansımaları üzerinden araştırmaktadır. Makale, Iraklılığın diğer aidiyet boyutlarının yanında bir alternatif teşkil edip etmediğini, bu kimliğin hangi yollarla kurgulandığını ve siyasî ve toplumsal olarak nasıl bir karşılığa sahip olduğunu araştırmaktadır. Bu anlamda, Irak siyasetini ve toplumunu tarihsel olarak okumanın ana paradigması olan yapaylık tezine karşılık Iraklılık kimliği üzerinde konumlandırılan bir bakışın Irak’ta kimliğin tarihini alternatif bir yoldan okuma imkânı verdiği ve alternatif bir kimlik tarihi ortaya çıkardığı savunulmaktadır. Bu okuma neticesinde bu kimlik tarihine dair birbiriyle alakalı dört farklı sonuca ulaşılmaktadır: İlk olarak, incelenen tarih içerisinde Iraklılığın önemli bir ideolojik/kültürel etken olarak hazır bulunduğu görülmektedir. İkinci olarak, Iraklılığın Irak’taki diğer aidiyet boyutlarıyla çoğu zaman bir etkileşim içerisinde olduğu gözlemlenmektedir. Üçüncü olarak, dönemlere ve aktörlere bağlı biçimde Iraklılığın kurgulanışında önemli farklılaşmalar tespit edilmektedir. Dördüncü olarak, Iraklılığın devletin ve seçkinlerin politikalarının ötesinde toplumsal yayılımı gözetilmektedir.

Anahtar Kelimeler:

Irak, Iraklılık, Milli Kimlik, Devlet Kimliği, Yapaylık

The Iraqi Identity: An Alternative History of Identity in Iraq

The issue of identity in Iraq has been debated usually through the lens of the artificiality assumption. This mainstream thesis assumes an absence or weakness of the state/national identity, and prioritizes sub-state and supra-state identities. This article examines the existence, scope and content of the national identity in Iraq through its historical and current manifestations. It questions whether the Iraqi identity has constituted an alternative dimension of belonging among the multiple identities of Iraq, in which ways this identity is imagined and constructed, and how it is performed in social and political domains. In this context, it argues that an examination of the Iraqi identity gives an alternative reading of the history of identity in Iraq. Such a reading draws four interrelated conclusions: First, the Iraqi identity has been an important ideological/cultural factor in Iraqi history. Second, Iraqiness has often been in interaction with other identity dimensions. Third, there have been significant differentiations of the imaginations of the Iraqi identity depending on the period and actors. Last, the Iraqi identity has extended beyond the policies of the state and elites, and has expanded into the Iraqi society.

Keywords:

Iraq, Iraqiness, National Identity, State Identity, Artificiality,

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