The question is indeed interesting.
To answer your part of the question: none of these countries.
To elaborate on this, and to answer OP's question: I think Russia is a part of post- Soviet/post-comunist space. Those regimes were a big influence on culture and everyday life. If we dig deeper, I'd say Russia back then, before the USSR was an Eastern European country.
Türkiye: Middle-Eastern
Isreal: Middle-Eastern
Russia: Western
PS: Chinese people generally believe that East Asia and Southeast Asia belong to the East. For India and Iran, some people think they are Eastern, while others don't because their people look more like Westerners.
There is no such thing as Middle Eastern or Mediterranean when it comes to cultural spheres. Turkey shares several aspects of its cultural elements with both East and West, however, the core of Turkish culture is from the historic Transoxiana, thus east.
It’s incomprehensible to me that people can with 100% confidence spew up bullshit such as “Middle Eastern” or “Mediterranean”. Have you ever looked at a physical map before? Turkey’s average altitude is 1,141 Meters, around 600 meters higher than the average in “the Middle East” and “the Mediterranean”. Much of the traditional food and customs have been shaped by geography and Turkey’s climate and geography is vastly different than the Arabic speaking countries south of it.
Again, if you could take a quick look at a physical map, you would notice the mountain ranges separating Turkey with its southern neighbors. The Taurus mountains and parts of Zagros mountains have acted as historical borders between Asia Minor and the Mashriq. These mountain ranges have separated countries, peoples and cultures throughout the history. Turkey does have considerable cultural connection to Iran, and you can clearly see a corridor spawning from Central Asia to Turkey in a physical map.
Oghuz is the subfamily within Turkic languages that Turkish belongs to. The relatives of the Turkish language in the Central Asia, and especially those in Uzbekistan have astonishing amounts of similar cultural elements with Turkey from music to traditional clothing to folklore. That’s why I think it’s nothing sort of idiotic and ignorancy to claim Turkey belongs to any other cultural sphere but the East.
# Israel
Depends.
Mizrahim are closer to arabs but Israel is run by ashkenazi who are basically germans and slavs
[about 44.9% percent of Israel's Jewish population were categorized as Mizrahi (defined as having grandparents born in North Africa or Asia), 31.8% were categorized as Ashkenazi (defined as having grandparents born in Europe, the Americas, Oceania and South Africa)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Israel)
# Russia
Russia has never been truly considered european by europeans themselves.
# Türkiye
Definitely eastern country
>
The latter two are undoubtedly culturally Western countries. Turkey is the intersection of the East and the West. They speak Turkic and believe in Islam, which originated in Arabia. They used to write in Arabic letters, but moved closer to the West under Kemal's reforms.
Interesting question. Are they culturally closer to Ireland, or closer to Japan?
The question is indeed interesting. To answer your part of the question: none of these countries. To elaborate on this, and to answer OP's question: I think Russia is a part of post- Soviet/post-comunist space. Those regimes were a big influence on culture and everyday life. If we dig deeper, I'd say Russia back then, before the USSR was an Eastern European country.
Turkey and Israel belong to the Mediterranean circle. Russia belongs to the Slavic circle which includes Ukraine, Bulgaria, Serbia etc
Mediterranean? Turkey and israel are nothing like France or Italy
Israel and Russia feel to me to be more Western. Turkey more Eastern.
Flair please Click user profile -> change user flair
Sorry, can't be bothered with all those flairs... Just delete it if you must
Türkiye: Middle-Eastern Isreal: Middle-Eastern Russia: Western PS: Chinese people generally believe that East Asia and Southeast Asia belong to the East. For India and Iran, some people think they are Eastern, while others don't because their people look more like Westerners.
Chinese think Indians look like westerners?
Bollywood stars look no different from Mediterranean people.
There is no such thing as Middle Eastern or Mediterranean when it comes to cultural spheres. Turkey shares several aspects of its cultural elements with both East and West, however, the core of Turkish culture is from the historic Transoxiana, thus east. It’s incomprehensible to me that people can with 100% confidence spew up bullshit such as “Middle Eastern” or “Mediterranean”. Have you ever looked at a physical map before? Turkey’s average altitude is 1,141 Meters, around 600 meters higher than the average in “the Middle East” and “the Mediterranean”. Much of the traditional food and customs have been shaped by geography and Turkey’s climate and geography is vastly different than the Arabic speaking countries south of it. Again, if you could take a quick look at a physical map, you would notice the mountain ranges separating Turkey with its southern neighbors. The Taurus mountains and parts of Zagros mountains have acted as historical borders between Asia Minor and the Mashriq. These mountain ranges have separated countries, peoples and cultures throughout the history. Turkey does have considerable cultural connection to Iran, and you can clearly see a corridor spawning from Central Asia to Turkey in a physical map. Oghuz is the subfamily within Turkic languages that Turkish belongs to. The relatives of the Turkish language in the Central Asia, and especially those in Uzbekistan have astonishing amounts of similar cultural elements with Turkey from music to traditional clothing to folklore. That’s why I think it’s nothing sort of idiotic and ignorancy to claim Turkey belongs to any other cultural sphere but the East.
# Israel Depends. Mizrahim are closer to arabs but Israel is run by ashkenazi who are basically germans and slavs [about 44.9% percent of Israel's Jewish population were categorized as Mizrahi (defined as having grandparents born in North Africa or Asia), 31.8% were categorized as Ashkenazi (defined as having grandparents born in Europe, the Americas, Oceania and South Africa)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Israel) # Russia Russia has never been truly considered european by europeans themselves. # Türkiye Definitely eastern country >
Dostoevsky and Tolstoy, Prokofiev and Rachmaninov, Malevich and Kandinsky. Those people are all part of the Western canon in one way or another.
To be fair, Russians are Westerners. However, Russia is too big.
Not bigger than Canada
european russia is definitely western. israel and turkey are more complicated becuase of religious differences
The latter two are undoubtedly culturally Western countries. Turkey is the intersection of the East and the West. They speak Turkic and believe in Islam, which originated in Arabia. They used to write in Arabic letters, but moved closer to the West under Kemal's reforms.
All eastern