The Decline of Christianity in Turkey Over the Past Century

Turkey, located at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, has a rich Christian history dating back to the earliest days of the faith However, over the past century, the number of Christians living in Turkey has declined dramatically. From comprising 20-25% of the population in the late 19th century, Christians today make up less than 05% of Turkey’s predominantly Muslim population.

A Robust Christian Presence in the Late Ottoman Era

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, under Ottoman rule, Turkey was home to a thriving, diverse Christian community. Sources estimate there were between 3 to 4 million Christians living in Turkey at the time, making up around 20% of the total population

Christians could be found throughout the territory of modern-day Turkey, from Thrace in the northwest to the easternmost regions of Anatolia beyond Lake Van. Major Christian groups included Armenians, Greeks, and Assyrians, with communities of Chaldean Catholics, Syriac Orthodox, and other denominations also present.

Centers of Christian life included cities like Constantinople (Istanbul), Smyrna (Izmir), Trabzon, Antioch (Antakya), Tarsus, and more. Churches, monasteries, and Christian schools and institutions could be found across the land. Christianity was very much a vital, integral part of the religious landscape of the late Ottoman Empire.

Genocide and Forced Migration Decimate the Christian Population

This once thriving Christian presence in Turkey was dramatically reduced over the course of the early 20th century due to systematic campaigns of violence against Christian minorities.

The Armenian Genocide from 1915-1917, targeting the Ottoman Empire’s Armenian Christian population, resulted in the deaths of up to 1.5 million people. Other Christian ethnic groups, like Greeks and Assyrians, were also massacred in genocidal attacks during this period.

Those who survived the mass killings were subject to deportations and forced marches. The 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey also drove out hundreds of thousands more Greek Orthodox Christians.

In total, it is estimated that around 2.5 million Christians were killed or expelled from Turkey between 1894 and 1924, in what one history has termed “the thirty-year genocide.” This near annihilation of the Christian population was driven by a radical, religiously motivated nationalism that sought to create a homogenously Muslim country.

20th Century Emigration Empties Turkey’s Christian Communities

The successive waves of violence in the early 20th century permanently displaced or destroyed ancient Christian communities in Turkey. Christians went from making up 20% of the population to just 2% by 1927.

Those Christians who did remain in Turkey after these events faced continued harassment and pressure to leave in the coming decades. Pogroms against Christians took place in the 1950s, and policies discriminating against non-Muslim minorities made life difficult.

This environment led to a steady stream of Christian emigration from Turkey throughout the 20th century. Greeks, Armenians, Syriac Orthodox, and other groups migrated abroad in search of greater religious freedom and economic opportunities.

Christians in Turkey Today – A Tiny Fraction Remain

The combined impact of genocide, forced migrations, and emigration over the past century has decimated the once thriving Christian population of Turkey.

Today, there are only around 100,000 Christians remaining in Turkey, making up less than 0.5% of the country’s population of 84 million people. The majority of these Christians belong to the Armenian Apostolic, Syriac Orthodox, and Roman Catholic churches. Tiny Greek Orthodox and Protestant communities persist as well.

Centuries-old Christian communities have been reduced to a tiny fraction of their former size. The elimination of Turkey’s Christians stands as one of the great tragedies of 20th century religious history, as a diverse, integral part of Turkish society was systematically destroyed. While small Christian populations remain today, they are but a faint echo of Turkey’s rich Christian heritage.