The impact of the creation of Hatay on communal and regional relations In 1939, after a brief interlude of joint French and Turkish rule, the French ceded the Sanjak of Alexandrette, renamed Hatay, to the Turkish Republic. The transfer of the sanjak to Turkey has largely been studied in the context of the politics of nationalism, imperial rule and French-Turkish relations (Khoury, 1987; Sanjian, 1956; Shambrook, 1998; Yeasimos, 1988) Only few studies offer a critical appraisal of communal relations and identity politics in the process. Satloff (1986) questions the validity of the common assumption that ethnicity played a paramount role in the process, but his valuable contribution is confined to the pre-Hatay period. The creation of Hatay impacted strongly on communal relations within the confined geographical area of the district, and, subsequently, on family and commercial networks transcending the district, in particular the ties connecting the area to Syria and Lebanon. The staging of Hatay implicated a prolonged negotiating of the – often ambiguous - communal boundaries for political objectives. Its creation was accompanied by the departure of many, in particular Armenians, but also of Arabic speaking inhabitants, including Christians, Alawis and Sunnis. Only a small number of Armenians remained behind, many being resettled in Lebanon (Anjar), but others opted for the village of Kassab, located right on the border with Hatay. This paper reviews social, economic and spatial consequences of the annexation of the district by Turkey for those communities that suffered from emigration. It will presents a number particular cases (taken from detailed documentation kept in Centre des Archives diplomatiques de Nantes) to illustrate the impact of the creation of Hatay on these communities and their networks in de region. The cases include border negotiations of 1939 in the Kassab area, compensation of lost property as well as individual request to resettle in Hatay. References Khoury, Philip, S. Syria and the French Mandate; the politics of Arab nationalism, 1920-1945. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1987. Satloff, Robert, B. “Prelude to conflict: communal interdependence in the Sanjak of Alexandretta 1920–1936.” Middle East Studies 22 (1986): 147-80. Sanjian, Avedis K. “The Sanjak of Alexandretta (Hatay): its impact on Turkish-Syrian relations, 1939-1956”, The Middle East Journal 10 (1956): 379-394. Shambrook, Peter A. French Imperialism in Syria. London: Ithaca Press, 1998. Yerasimos, Stéphane. “Le Sanjak D’Alexandrette: formation et intégration d’un territoire,” La Revue du Monde Musulman et de la Méditerranée 27 (1988): 198-212.