Pomaks in Turkey Pomaks in Turkey The Pomaks in Turkey refers to an ethnic group, who are predominantly Muslim and speak their own dialect of Bulgarian. They mostly live in Eastern Thrace, though some are also present in Anatolia. In the census of 1965, 23,138 Turkish citizens spoke Pomak as mother language. Proportionally, they were most numerous in Edirne (3.4%), Kırklareli (1.3%) and Çanakkale (1.0%). 2,776 of these could only speak Pomak . Another 34,234 spoke Pomak as second best language. The Pomaks of Turkey speak a Bulgarian dialect. According to Ethnologue at present 300,000 Pomaks in European Turkey speak Bulgarian as mother
First Army (Turkey) First Army (Turkey) The First Army of the Republic of Turkey () is one of the four field armies of the Turkish Army. Its headquarters is located at Selimiye Barracks in Istanbul. It guards the sensitive borders of Turkey with Greece and Bulgaria, including the straits Bosporus and Dardanelles. The First Army is stationed in East Thrace. Ali İhsan Sabis is the first commander of the 1st Army, which has been operating since the Ottoman Empire. The 1st army depends on the Turkish Land Forces. The army is responsible for the Thrace region, the straits and the safety of Istanbul.