| | Dean Christakos: Exploring some obscure corners of religion in Turkey (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-09-19) |
 | | However, their "fellow countrymen" were defined as those sharing the same religion, rather than the same language, which brings us to the Karamanlides, a group which explains the existence of the above-mentioned churches. |
 | | These were Turkish-speaking Christians who created a written language out of Greek characters, indicating that they were likely Greeks who maintained their religious traditions while adopting the Turkish language (or possibly Turkish settlers who converted to Christianity in Byzantine times and adopted the Greek alphabet for written communication). |
 | | Suffice it to say, however, once the Karamanlides were deported to Greece, they quickly assimilated as Greeks and prevented any "Turkish Orthodox Church" from gaining any traction, since it had no members. |
| www.christakos.com /archives/2006/04/exploring_some.html (887 words) |