↑ arvau

Wikipedia / Bushnak

Bushnak (, meaning "Bosniann", also transliterated Bushnaq, Boshnak, Bouchenak and Bouchnak) is a surname among Levantines and Saudis (Arabic-speakers) of Bosnian Muslim origin. Those sharing this surname are the descendants of Bosnian Muslims, apprehensive of living under Christian rule after the Austro-Hungarian occupation of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1878, immigrated to Ottoman Syria.

While not originally from one family, most Bosnian Muslims who immigrated to the Levant adopted Bushnak as a common surname, attesting to their origins.

History

Some Bosnian movement to Palestine occurred when Bosnian Muslim soldiers were brought to Palestine in the late 1800s to provide reinforcements for the Ottoman army.

More substantial movement occurred after 1878, when the Austro-Hungarian empire, ruled by the House of Habsburg, occupied Bosnia. Bosnian Muslim emigration continued through this period, escalating after the Austro-Hungarian's 1908 annexation of Bosnia. Many immigrated to parts of what is now modern Turkey, while a smaller number settled in Ottoman Syria (modern Syria, Israel, Palestine, Lebanon and Jordan).

Bosnian immigrants settled predominantly in villages in the parts of the present day West Bank and Israel: Caesarea, Yanun, Nablus and Tulkarem. Their descendants still live in these villages, their Bosnian heritage reflected in the Arab surname of Bushnak.

Notable people bearing the surname

Bushnag

  • Mohammed Bushnag, Saudi Deputy Minister for the Tourism Human Capital at the Saudi Ministry of Tourism.

Bushnak

Bushnaq

Bouchnak

Boushnak

See also

Notes and references

Bibliography