Women and gender in Turkish diplomacy: historical legacies and current patterns

Abstract

This chapter analyses the status and roles of women in Turkish diplomacy, both historically and in terms of current patterns. Apart from the formal diplomatic positions that women have begun to occupy in growing numbers in recent decades, there is a much longer historical legacy of informal diplomatic roles played by Ottoman/Turkish women. In the Turkish Ministry for Foreign Affairs (TMFA), the distribution of female diplomats across career categories, rank, and receiving countries manifests some gender-based patterns. Despite their growing numbers, Turkey’s women diplomats continue to face structural barriers that emerge at the intersection of gender structures in the TMFA and patriarchal norms in Turkish society. These barriers shape the career paths and the professional strategies of women diplomats in significant ways.