Research

The primary objective of the research endeavour undertaken by the Centre for Asia Minor Studies has been the collection of the oral history of Asia Minor Hellenism on the basis of a broad-ranging systematic questionaire and the documentation of its presence across the entire geographical expanse of the Asia Minor peninsula. The testimonies of the expatriates constitute the Oral Tradition Archive, which comprises 300,000 handwritten pages. This rich informative material covers the three phases of the historical trajectory of the Asia Minor Greeks chronologically: a) the peaceful period of prosperity (19th – early 20th century); b) the period of wars (Balkan Wars, World War I and the Asia Minor Campaign); and c) the Asia Minor Catastrophe of 1922, the Exodus and their resettlement in Greece.

The classification structure of the Archive makes possible the examination of Asia Minor settlements within the context of the broader geographical and social environmnet in which they were integrated. The investigation of each settlement, primarily on the basis of oral testimonies, is multifaceted and comprehensive, taking into account the collected evidence which covers a wide range of thematic fields, such as language, geography, economy, social and religious life, communal organisation, relations between Muslim and non-Muslim, popular worship, popular science, education, local history and the impact of significant historical events.

The thematic range and the wealth of information, as well as the specific timing of its recording, make this oral material unique in its kind. The narrations of ordinary people capture an often elusive facet: the view  and perceptions of those who experienced the direct impact of events.

In addition to the Oral Tradition Archive, the Centre holds private archives, codices of Orthodox Church communities, educational and ecclesiastical documents, manuscripts of Asia Minor Greeks, a rich Photographic Archive and the Library, with old and new books on issues related to the history of Asia Minor.

At present, the Centre makes available its rare archival collections and disseminates its research results to the wider public through the publication of monographs, primary source materials and its scholarly journal, as well as through public seminars, events, exhibitions, etc. At the same time, it collaborates with universities and research centres in Greece and abroad and provides archival material not only to scholars and researchers with the aim of promoting research, but also to Asia Minor refugees of younger generations who are interested in their ancestral homeland.