Definition of Turkic peoples

The Turkic peoples are a group of peoples residing in northern, central and western Eurasia who speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family. These peoples share, to varying degrees, certain cultural traits and historical backgrounds. The term Turkic thus represents a broad, ethno-linguistic group of people and includes existing cultures such as the Kazakhs, Kyrgyz and Turkish people, as well as historical societies such as the Seljuq and Timurid. Although usually referring to the citizens of Turkey, the word Turks may also be used loosely to refer to all Turkic peoples. The adjective Turkish, on the other hand, usually specifically refers to the Turkish language, the citizens of Turkey, or Turkish-speaking people of Turkish ethnicity.