Pontic Greeks are ethnic Greeks from the Pontus region, a northeastern region of Asia Minor adjacent to the Black Sea (Pontus Euxine). Their self-name is Romei. The ideologists of the national movement, in order to distinguish themselves from the inhabitants of mainland Greece, use the name Pontians. The Turks called them Urum.
History of the Pontic Greeks
Greeks have lived in Asia Minor since time immemorial. Before the conquest of the peninsula by the Ottomans, the Greeks were one of several indigenous peoples here. The Greeks created here the cities of Smyrna, Sinop, Samsun, Trebizond. The latter became an important trading city and capital of the Trebizond Empire in the Middle Ages.
After the conquest of the Trebizond state by the Turks, its territory became part of the Sublime Port. The Greeks in the Ottoman Empire constituted a national and religious minority. Some of the Pontians converted to Islam and adopted the Turkish language.
In 1878, the Greeks were given equal rights with the Muslims. At the beginning of the 20th century, separatist sentiments began to mature among the Pontic Greeks. The idea of creating their own Greek state on the territory of Pontus was popular among the population.
With the outbreak of World War I, the Turkish government began to view the Pontic Greeks as an unreliable element. In 1916, they, along with the Armenians and Assyrians, began to be evicted to the inner regions of the Ottoman Empire. The resettlement was accompanied by massacres and looting. This process is often referred to as the Greek genocide. The Greek rebels began an armed struggle to create an independent state.
After the withdrawal of Turkish troops from Pontus, the power in the region passed to the Greeks. A government was formed headed by Metropolitan Chrysanthus. After the capture of the region by Turkish troops in 1918, a massive exodus of the Greeks began. Refugees were sent to Transcaucasia (Armenia and Georgia), Greece and Russia.
The rest were resettled to Greece in 1923 as part of the Lausanne Peace Treaty, which contained an article on the Greek-Turkish population exchange. The Pontic Greeks viewed their forced departure as a national catastrophe. Muslims from the Balkan countries were settled in their place.
The language of the Pontic Greeks
During the period of their residence in the Ottoman Empire, the Pontic Greeks were bilingual. In addition to Greek, they also used Turkish. Certain groups of the Greek population switched to Turkish in the 15-17 centuries.
Pontic Greek is significantly different from the language of mainland Greece. The inhabitants of Athens and other cities do not understand him. Many linguists consider Pontic to be a separate language. There is a widespread belief among the Pontians about the great antiquity of their language.
The historical name of the Pontic language is Romeika. After resettling to Greece in 1923, the Pontians were encouraged to forget their language and give up their identity. Now only representatives of the older generation, who are over 80, remember their native language.
Pure Romeika is partially preserved only in the Villa of O in Turkey. These are the descendants of the Greeks who converted to Islam in the 17th century. Several thousand people speak this language here. The Pontic dialect is very similar to the language of the “Mariupol Greeks” living in Ukraine.
