The judicial status of the minorities and foundations of the minorities in Turkey

The first chapter of the work discusses the historical background and the shaping process of the concept of ?minority? up to now. The concept of ?minority? and the history of ?minority? are investigated in the first part, and international attempts on minorites are investigated in the second part of the first chapter. The regulations of the international organizations about minorities and minority rights in the historical process are explained one by one.By thinking the necessity of defining the concept of minority, the most extensive judicial and sociological definitions in the international documents are explained on one hand, and touched on the difficulties for reaching the universal and binding definitions because of the unwillingness of the states in this way on the other hand. The definitions of the international organizations are examined from League of Nations to United Nations, Council of Europe, OSCE and European Union chronologically.The first part of second chapter scrutinizes the history of the minorities in Turkey, the features of the Nation System (Millet Sistemi) and the minority rights in the Ottoman Empire, and finally the political, social and cultural changings by the Tanzimat (reforms). This chapter puts forward the accepting only the non-Muslims as minority, as an inheritance to the mentality of Turkish Republic from Ottoman Empire, by the Treaty of Lausanne as well.In the second part of second chapter is related with the new regulations of Turkish Republic to the minorities in the process of the European Union membership, and judicial state of the minority foundations.