Facade portrait: Serife Seyitler

Serife Seyitler

* 1928 in Maraş/Turkey

† 2015 in Turkey

Immigration to Bremerhaven: 1969

In 1969, at the age of 40, Serife Seyitler travels from the Turkish metropolitan city of Adana to Bremerhaven. What she has heard about Germany before her departure shocks her: “There is no water there, and everything is done with beer: cooking, washing, drinking.” But she still wants to go.

Serife leaves behind six children when she departs; they stay with their father. Two of her daughters already live in Germany and have been working at the Nordsee company since 1963. Here, Serife also wants to earn good money. And she succeeds: she works in fish processing for 16 years. She saves money to be able to build a house in Turkey. However, she lives in Bremerhaven until 2015 – three months after her return to Turkey, she passes away.

Serife Seyitler (left) with a friend, early 1950s in Adana/Turkey.

By 1980, Serife brings her six children and her husband, who had remained in Turkey, to Germany. Three of her children still live in Germany, while three have returned to Turkey. Her eldest son passes away in 2008, and one of her daughters in 2019.

Serife’s daughter Aygül worked in Bremerhaven at the Schottke company, now known as Frosta. With her savings, Aygül bought an apartment in Bursa, Turkey. She lives there today but comes back to Bremerhaven for a month every year. Two of her daughters live in Turkey, and one daughter lives and works in Bremen to this day.

Serife’s granddaughter Zübeyde is born in Bremerhaven in 1982. She takes on responsibilities early, translating for her parents and handling bureaucratic affairs. She dies in Cologne in 2020. Zübeyde’s three siblings move back to Turkey, study German studies, and work there as German teachers.