Thesis Proposal Baker in Turkey Istanbul – Free Word Template Download with AI

Scholarship on food heritage in Turkey has often emphasized historical Ottoman cuisine (İstanbul Mutfağı) (Kınay, 2018), but rarely centers the baker as an active agent of preservation. Existing studies on Turkish foodways focus on restaurants or home cooking (Beyazıt, 2020), neglecting the fırın as a socio-cultural institution. Meanwhile, urban studies highlight Istanbul’s gentrification-driven displacement (Hüseyin, 2021), yet overlook how it specifically impacts small-scale food producers. The concept of "slow food" (Slow Food International, 2019) offers theoretical grounding for analyzing artisanal practices but lacks contextualization within Turkey’s unique socio-economic framework. Crucially, no study has mapped the baker’s role as a cultural bridge between Istanbul’s Ottoman past and its modern identity—making this research both novel and urgently needed.

1. To document the traditional techniques, ingredients, and daily practices of artisanal bakers in Istanbul using ethnographic methods.
2. To analyze socioeconomic pressures (rising rents, competition from industrial bakeries) affecting baker sustainability.
3. To assess how cultural identity shapes business models and community engagement among bakars.
4. To propose actionable policy recommendations for municipal support of culinary heritage preservation in Turkey.

This mixed-methods study combines qualitative and quantitative approaches across 18 months (2025–2026). Phase 1 involves ethnographic fieldwork: participant observation in 15 bakeries across Istanbul’s selected districts, focusing on daily operations, ingredient sourcing (çavdar, bulgur), and customer interactions. Phase 2 employs semi-structured interviews with 30 bakers (aged 35–70) to explore generational knowledge transfer and challenges. Phase 3 uses survey data from 150 local customers to measure community perceptions of bakery culture. All data will be analyzed using thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006) for qualitative insights and regression modeling for economic trends. Crucially, the baker’s perspective—their voice—will anchor all findings, avoiding top-down academic abstraction.

This research directly addresses gaps in both Turkish heritage studies and urban food justice discourse. For Istanbul—a UNESCO World Heritage site with over 3,500 bakeries—preserving the bakar's craft is not merely economic but existential. Traditional breadmaking embodies Ottoman social structures (e.g., neighborhood çarşı interactions), and its erosion signifies cultural loss beyond food. The findings will provide Istanbul’s municipality with a blueprint for heritage-sensitive urban planning, such as subsidized rent zones for bakeries or culinary tourism initiatives that center artisanal producers. For Turkey, this work aligns with the Ministry of Culture’s 2023 “Intangible Heritage Strategy,” positioning Istanbul as a global model for safeguarding foodways in megacities.

This thesis anticipates four key contributions: First, it will produce the first comprehensive archive of Istanbul’s artisanal baking techniques, preserving oral histories at risk of being lost. Second, it will reveal how bakers act as community stabilizers—e.g., during Ramadan when bakeries provide free bread to low-income households—challenging narratives of bakeries as purely commercial entities. Third, the proposed policy framework (e.g., “Heritage Bakery Certificates” for tax breaks) offers Istanbul a scalable solution applicable to other Turkish cities like Antalya or İzmir. Finally, by centering the bakar’s lived experience, this study redefines food heritage as dynamic practice rather than static artifact.

Months 1–3: Literature review & IRB approval (Istanbul University).
Months 4–9: Fieldwork: Bakery site selection, interviews, and initial observations.
Months 10–15: Data collection (surveys) and thematic analysis.
Months 16–20: Drafting thesis & policy recommendations.
Month 24: Final submission with stakeholder workshop at Istanbul Cultural Heritage Center.

The baker of Istanbul is not merely a vendor of bread but a guardian of cultural memory. In a city where every locket-shaped simit on the Bosphorus shore echoes centuries of tradition, this thesis argues that preserving the baker’s craft is inseparable from safeguarding Istanbul’s soul. This research moves beyond academic curiosity to deliver tangible tools for policymakers, bakers, and communities—ensuring that the scent of fresh kaymaklı ekmek continues to rise over Istanbul’s streets long after today. By placing the baker at the heart of urban heritage discourse, this proposal asserts that in Turkey Istanbul, the future of food is baked into its past.

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