ETHNIC KOREANS IN THE FORMER SOVIET UNION KORYO SARAM

A great number of Koreans live in the Central Asian Republics nowadays. The Koreans were forced to move these regions from the far east of Soviet Russia in 1937. These Koreans sent to Central Asia are called Koryo Saram. This article starts by briefly mentioning the changes the name of Koryo Saram has gone through and the reason for the preference of this name. Later, the period from the initial settlement of the Koreans in the Far East of Russia to the forced migration of the former Soviet geographical regions was discussed. Then, the process the Koreans got accustomed to the regions they settled in Central Asia was examined. Finally, the issues what kind of problems the Koryo Sarams meet today, and the relations between Korean compatriots living in South Korea and the Central Asian regions, and what the South Korean government is doing were discussed. This article aims to bring attention to the existence of the Koreans, the Koryo Sarams, who are living in Central Asia for a long time. The article also aims at preventing their story in which these people faced numerous difficulties from being buried in history. This article is the first attempt written in Turkish which aims to be the voice of Koryo Saram who have recently had problems in such issuses as citizenship and work permits in South Korea