Religion and philanthropy in Turkey

Abstract

With its predominantly Muslim population and a secular institutional setting, Turkish philanthropy presents a suis generis case. First, this chapter summarizes the conceptual foundations of Muslim philanthropy in the context of Turkey, arguing that religious and non-religious donations are empirically impossible to differentiate. Next, a macro-level evaluation of foundations in the country is provided to underline geographic cleavages in the institutional background for philanthropic engagement. Then, from a micro-individual perspective focusing solely on fitre, zekat, and sacrificial lamb skin donations, it traces the development of donations within these three frameworks. Finally, the concluding section underlines the open questions that need further research.