The settlement of Turks in the Balkans dates back to the most ancient histories. Turks have arrived to the Balkans through two different ways. The first one is from the north of the Caspian Sea- Black Sea and the latter is from the south over Anatolia.
The first Turkish tribes that came to the Balkans had passed from the north section of the Black Sea and settled in the region. These are the Turkish tribes such as Oğur (Utrugur, Kutrugur), Bulgarians, Peceneks, Oguz people, Kuman people (Kipchaks), etc. However, most of these tribes had adopted the Christianity and became Slavs. The historians have called these seven Turkish tribes as the Lost Turkish Tribes or the Assimilated Tribes. According to the historians, these tribes led their nomadic life rooted from the Central Asia and could not attain a settled and organised lifestyle. Similarly, these tribes lost their identities due to the cruel fights among each other and/or with the Byzantine, Slav, Latin groups in the region and the ideological pressure imposed particularly by the Slavs and Byzantine people.
The second Turkish generation entered into the Balkans over Anatolia. Having come from the Central Asia and settled in Anatolia, Turks passed through the Straits of Dardanelles in the period of Ottomans and set foot in the Balkans. The absolute Turkish sovereignty started in the Balkans upon the Mohaç victory won in the year of 1526. The distinguished families selected from Anatolia were settled in the Western Trace, Bulgaria, Macedonia, the Former Yugoslavia and Romania. The Ottoman Empire started to decline in the century XIX and the lands in the Balkans were lost gradually. The Balkans were out of the Turkish dominion upon the recognition of the independence of Greece in 1830, the independencies of Serbia, Romania and Montenegro upon Berlin Agreement in 1878, the independence of Bulgaria upon Petersburg Agreement in 1909, and the independence of Albania in the course of Balkan Wars in 1911-12. Particularly after the years of 1830, the Balkans have become a slaughterhouse for the Turkish people, the Turkish cities were devastated, Turkish properties were despoiled and Turkish people started to immigrate to Anatolia rushing and surging in crowds.