A sociospatial analysis on public representation of cultural identity: The case of Siirt city

Cultural identity is one of the factors that determine our daily life. The socialized person tries to gain a place, to show himself and to integrate with the society in the private sphere and in the public spaces created by the social group or groups in which he lives. The multicultural society model created by cultural diversity reveals different dynamics within the space. Because, as Harvey and Lefebvre pointed out, the production of space actually has a social and social content together with physical visibility. While Habermas and Arendt construct the shaping of the public sphere through the activism of what people do and the power of communication, Sennett states that people experience a collapse in the public sense with capitalism. In these contexts, the analysis of how the cultural identity is viewed socio-spatially in the public sphere in the city of Siirt forms the basis of the study. In order to achieve this aim, in-depth interviews were conducted with thirty-five participants from twelve neighborhoods in the city of Siirt, using semi-structured interview forms. In the study, it has been concluded that cultural identity has different effects in public spaces and brings conscious preferences in spatial use practices. It has been seen that the multicultural reflection of existence in the public sphere comes to life only through beliefs, traditions and customs. It has been seen that othering and segregation in social, psychological and political terms harms social unity. The findings section of the study, which includes the analysis, is based on the examination of the concepts of public space and space through the context of difference, similarity and relationality of cultural identity.