Decentralization Reform Demands of the Notables of Mardin in the Context of Arab Nation Thought (1913-1915)

Abstract

In 1913, the notables of Mardin requested from the Ottoman central authority that Mardin and its surroundings be separated from Diyarbekir and transformed into a new province, and that the official language of the new province to be established be Arabic. According to the notables, the people of Diyarbekir and Mardin were ethnically different from each other. However, the Cezire region, consisting of Mardin, Zaho, Zor and Kevkeb, was an Arab country with ethnic integrity. Therefore, the new province to be established in the Cezire region centered in Mardin would be a more manageable administrative unit due to ethnic integrity. The request, which clearly emphasized Arab ethnicity, language and geography, contained the signatures of many notables. Starting from this point, this study examines whether the idea of an Arab nation had a mass base in Mardin on the eve of World War I.