Turks, who were once temporary “guests” in Germany, became permanent “inhabitants” over time, and today they constitute the largest immigrant community living in Germany. Although the Turkish community’s integration and adaptation to German culture is a widely discussed issue, community leaders believe that Turks have made indispensible contributions to German culture.
According to Kenan Kolat, head of the Turkish Community in Germany (TGD), the biggest contribution Turkish immigrants have made is economic. “Nearly 40 percent of Turkish workers already had a profession in Turkey, and they worked as master workmen or apprentices at factories in Germany. They made a remarkable contribution to the country’s economy, and they helped Germany become what it is today,” Kolat said. Noting that there are nearly 70,000 Turkish entrepreneurs currently working in Germany, Kolat said there were also numerous doctors, lawyers, engineers, sportsmen, artists and scientists of Turkish origin in the country and that the youngest professor there is also a Turk.
Turks brought pragmatic solutions
Kolat also claimed Turkish immigrants introduced “flexibility” and the “ability to solve problems” to German culture. “Germany has a tough logical culture. We have enriched this country with our emotions and different approaches. We have combined German rigidity with Turkish flexibility,” he said. “In Germany, when problems are being discussed, things that will hinder the solution are mentioned first. I believe pragmatic solutions and ways to resolve an issue were brought here by our community,” he added. Pointing to the unique foods introduced by the Turkish community, Kolat said: “Turks made a major contribution to the narrow and limited German cuisine. In my opinion, the food culture and the joyful approach brought by Turkish people are irreplaceable things.”
Immigrants taught Germans ‘flexibility,’ how to deal with ‘public space’
Commenting on the issue, Martin Düspohl, curator of Berlin’s Kreuzberg Museum, said there had been many visible changes since immigrants arrived in Germany. Citing examples from letters readers sent to German newspapers in the 1960s, Duspohl said: “In those letters, they used to say: ‘It’s incredible, immigrants sit on the lawn in public parks. They just put their blankets and sit down.’ People were annoyed because you don’t touch the public greenery. Now, when you go to public parks, you find everybody sitting outside, and they all have their barbecues. That would have been incredible 40 years ago. Germans do it as well; they learned it.” Düspohl said immigrants taught Germans “how to deal with public space” and thanks to their influence, Germans no longer conformed to widespread stereotypes and were more easygoing and flexible.
Safter Çınar, spokesperson for the Turkish Community in Berlin-Brandenburg (TBB), also stated that Turks brought “flexibility” to German culture. “Once, I read something really interesting in a book. It said that the visiting hours of hospitals had been changed because of immigrants. I remember, hospitals and prisons were not so different in the past. There used to be visiting hours only twice a week. The writer said that Turkish families [ignored] those hours, and this attitude caused many hospitals to adjust the rules,” he said. Çınar said Turks also caused a change in store hours. “Shops used to close by 6 p.m. on weekdays and 2 p.m. on Saturdays. Turks slowly started to breach that rule. It was convenient for Germans as well. Laws regarding opening and closing hours were amended afterwards,” he said. Çınar also noted that Turks had brought a unique food and entertainment culture to Germany.
