Aziz Nesin
Encyclopedia
Aziz Nesin was a famous Turkish
writer and humorist of Crimean Tatar
origin and author of more than 100 books.
under which he started publishing. He wrote under more than fifty noms de plume, such as the pseudonym "Vedia Nesin", his first wife's name, which he used for love poems published in the magazine Yedigün.
of Istanbul
, in the days of the Ottoman Empire
. After serving as a career officer for several years, he became the editor of a series of satirical
periodicals with a socialist slant. He was jailed several times and placed under surveillance by the National Security Service (MAH in Turkish) for his political views. Among the incriminating pieces of evidence they found against him during his military service was his theft and sale for 35 Lira of two goats intended for his company—a violation of clause 131/2 of the Military Penal Code. One 98-year-old former MAH officer named Neşet Güriş alleged that Nesin was in fact a MAH member, but this has been disputed.
Nesin provided a strong indictment of the oppression and brutalization of the common man. He satirized bureaucracy and exposed economic inequities in stories that effectively combine local color and universal truths. Aziz Nesin has been presented with numerous awards in Turkey, Italy, Bulgaria and the former Soviet Union. His works have been translated into over thirty languages. During latter parts of his life he was said to be the only Turkish author who made a living only out of his earnings from his books.
On 6 June 1956, he married a coworker from the Akbaba magazine, Meral Çelen.
In 1972, he founded the Nesin Foundation. The purpose of the Nesin Foundation is to take, each year, four poor and destitute children into the Foundation's home and provide every necessity - shelter, education and training, starting from elementary school - until they complete high school, a trade school, or until they acquire a vocation. Aziz Nesin donated, gratis, to the Nesin Foundation his copyrights in their entirety for all his works in Turkey or other countries, including all of his published books, all plays to be staged, all copyrights for films, and all his works performed or used in radio or television.
Aziz Nesin was a political activist. After the 1980 military coup led by Kenan Evren
, the intelligentsia was oppressed. Aziz Nesin led a number of intellectuals to take a stand against the military government, by issuing the Petition of Intellectuals .
He championed free speech, especially the right to criticize Islam
without compromise. In early 1990s he began a translation of Salman Rushdie's controversial novel, The Satanic Verses
. This made him a target for radical Islamic organizations, who were gaining popularity throughout Turkey. On July 2, 1993 while attending a mostly Alevi
cultural festival in the central Anatolian city of Sivas, a mob organized by radical Islamists gathered around the Madimak Hotel, where the festival attendants were accommodated, calling for Sharia
and death to infidels. After hours of siege, the mob set the hotel on fire. After flames engulfed several lower floors of the hotel, firetrucks managed to get close, and Aziz Nesin and many guests of the hotel escaped. However, 37 people were killed. This event, also known as the Sivas massacre
, was seen as a major assault on free speech
and human rights in Turkey
, and it deepened the rift between religious- and secular-minded people.
He devoted his last years to combating religious fundamentalism. Aziz Nesin died on July 6, 1995 due to a heart attack, after a book signing event in Çeşme
, İzmir
. After his death, his body was buried at an unknown location in land belonging to the Nesin Foundation, without any ceremony, as requested in his will.
translation.
title: Böyle Gelmiş Böyle Gitmez) is a multi-volume autobiography by Turkish writer Aziz Nesin published by University of Texas Press
and Southmoor Studios, in English language translation by Joseph S. Jacobson.
Editions
short story collection by Turkish writer Aziz Nesin published by Three Continents Press, in English language translation by Louis Mitler.
Editions
by Southmoor Studios, in English language translation by Joseph S. Jacobson.
Editions
by Southmoor Studios, in English language translation by Joseph S. Jacobson.
Editions
by Southmoor Studios, in English language translation by Joseph S. Jacobson.
Editions
title: Sosyalizm Geliyor Savulun!) is a 2001
selection of three stories from a short story collection by Turkish writer Aziz Nesin, published by Milet Books
, in a dual of the original Turkish and an English language translation by Damian Croft, as part of its series of Turkish-English Short Story Collections.
The publisher states that, “In these hilarious and entertaining stories, the legendary Aziz Nesin turns his uniquely incisive, satirical wit on shifting ideologies, bureaucracy and the question of who’s really (in)sane: the ones locked up or the ones outside.”
A review in Write Away states that, “These are thought provoking parables of our time,” that, “take the mickey out of bureaucracy and political ideology and hypocrisy,” and “should leave readers laughing and thinking.”
The volume consists of the stories;
For an English-only edition of the full collection, see below under Socialism Is Coming: Stand Aside.
Editions
by Milet Books, in English language translation by Ruth Christie.
Editions
by Southmoor Studios, in English language translation by Joseph S. Jacobson.
Editions
by Dost Yayınları, in English language translation by Talât Sait Halman.
Editions
short story collection by Turkish writer Aziz Nesin published by Turkish Ministry of Culture, in English language translation by Masud Akhtar Shaikh, with an introduction by the translator.
The volume consists of the stories;
Editions
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
writer and humorist of Crimean Tatar
Crimean Tatar
Crimean Tatar may refer to:* Crimean Tatars, ethnic group* Crimean Tatar language, language of the Crimean Tatars...
origin and author of more than 100 books.
Pseudonyms
Generally going by the name "Aziz Nesin", this was originally his father's name, used by Nesin as the pseudonymPseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
under which he started publishing. He wrote under more than fifty noms de plume, such as the pseudonym "Vedia Nesin", his first wife's name, which he used for love poems published in the magazine Yedigün.
Biography
Nesin was born in 1915 on Heybeliada, one of the Princes' IslandsPrinces' Islands
The Princes' Islands , are a chain of nine islands off the coast of Istanbul, Turkey, in the Sea of Marmara. The islands also constitute the Adalar district of Istanbul Province...
of Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, in the days of the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
. After serving as a career officer for several years, he became the editor of a series of satirical
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
periodicals with a socialist slant. He was jailed several times and placed under surveillance by the National Security Service (MAH in Turkish) for his political views. Among the incriminating pieces of evidence they found against him during his military service was his theft and sale for 35 Lira of two goats intended for his company—a violation of clause 131/2 of the Military Penal Code. One 98-year-old former MAH officer named Neşet Güriş alleged that Nesin was in fact a MAH member, but this has been disputed.
Nesin provided a strong indictment of the oppression and brutalization of the common man. He satirized bureaucracy and exposed economic inequities in stories that effectively combine local color and universal truths. Aziz Nesin has been presented with numerous awards in Turkey, Italy, Bulgaria and the former Soviet Union. His works have been translated into over thirty languages. During latter parts of his life he was said to be the only Turkish author who made a living only out of his earnings from his books.
On 6 June 1956, he married a coworker from the Akbaba magazine, Meral Çelen.
In 1972, he founded the Nesin Foundation. The purpose of the Nesin Foundation is to take, each year, four poor and destitute children into the Foundation's home and provide every necessity - shelter, education and training, starting from elementary school - until they complete high school, a trade school, or until they acquire a vocation. Aziz Nesin donated, gratis, to the Nesin Foundation his copyrights in their entirety for all his works in Turkey or other countries, including all of his published books, all plays to be staged, all copyrights for films, and all his works performed or used in radio or television.
Aziz Nesin was a political activist. After the 1980 military coup led by Kenan Evren
Kenan Evren
Ahmet Kenan Evren was the seventh President of Turkey; a post he assumed by leading the 1980 military coup. He was also the last president to be born in the Ottoman Empire.- Biography :...
, the intelligentsia was oppressed. Aziz Nesin led a number of intellectuals to take a stand against the military government, by issuing the Petition of Intellectuals .
He championed free speech, especially the right to criticize Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
without compromise. In early 1990s he began a translation of Salman Rushdie's controversial novel, The Satanic Verses
The Satanic Verses
The Satanic Verses is Salman Rushdie's fourth novel, first published in 1988 and inspired in part by the life of Prophet Muhammad. As with his previous books, Rushdie used magical realism and relied on contemporary events and people to create his characters...
. This made him a target for radical Islamic organizations, who were gaining popularity throughout Turkey. On July 2, 1993 while attending a mostly Alevi
Alevi
The Alevi are a religious and cultural community, primarily in Turkey, constituting probably more than 15 million people....
cultural festival in the central Anatolian city of Sivas, a mob organized by radical Islamists gathered around the Madimak Hotel, where the festival attendants were accommodated, calling for Sharia
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
and death to infidels. After hours of siege, the mob set the hotel on fire. After flames engulfed several lower floors of the hotel, firetrucks managed to get close, and Aziz Nesin and many guests of the hotel escaped. However, 37 people were killed. This event, also known as the Sivas massacre
Sivas massacre
The Sivas massacre refers to the events of July 2, 1993 which resulted in the deaths of 37 people, mostly Alevi intellectuals, and two hotel employees. Two people from the mob were also dead...
, was seen as a major assault on free speech
Censorship in Turkey
Censorship in Turkey is largely focused on "insults to Turkishness" and expressions of political extremism. Censorship in Turkey is regulated by domestic and international legislation, which takes precedence over domestic law according to Article 90 of the Constitution following its amendment in...
and human rights in Turkey
Human rights in Turkey
Human rights in Turkey are theoretically protected by a variety of international law treaties, which take precedence over domestic legislation, according to Article 90 of the 1982 Constitution....
, and it deepened the rift between religious- and secular-minded people.
He devoted his last years to combating religious fundamentalism. Aziz Nesin died on July 6, 1995 due to a heart attack, after a book signing event in Çeşme
Çesme
Çeşme is a coastal town and the center-town of the district of the same name in Turkey's western-most end, on a promontory on the tip of the peninsula which also carries the same name and which extends inland to form a whole with the wider Karaburun Peninsula...
, İzmir
Izmir
Izmir is a large metropolis in the western extremity of Anatolia. The metropolitan area in the entire Izmir Province had a population of 3.35 million as of 2010, making the city third most populous in Turkey...
. After his death, his body was buried at an unknown location in land belonging to the Nesin Foundation, without any ceremony, as requested in his will.
English language bibliography
Several of Nesin's works have been published in English languageEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
translation.
Istanbul Boy
Istanbul Boy: The Autobiography of Aziz Nesin (TurkishTurkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
title: Böyle Gelmiş Böyle Gitmez) is a multi-volume autobiography by Turkish writer Aziz Nesin published by University of Texas Press
University of Texas Press
The University of Texas Press is a university press that is part of the University of Texas at Austin. Established in 1950, the Press publishes scholarly books in several areas, including Latin American studies, Texana, anthropology, U.S...
and Southmoor Studios, in English language translation by Joseph S. Jacobson.
Editions
Turkish Stories from Four Decades
Turkish Stories from Four Decades is a 19911991 in literature
The year 1991 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Douglas Coupland publishes the novel Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture, popularizing the term Generation X as the name of the generation....
short story collection by Turkish writer Aziz Nesin published by Three Continents Press, in English language translation by Louis Mitler.
Editions
Dog Tails
Dog Tails is a short story collection by Turkish writer Aziz Nesin republished in 20002000 in literature
The year 2000 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* February 13 - Final original Peanuts comic strip is published...
by Southmoor Studios, in English language translation by Joseph S. Jacobson.
Editions
Memoirs Of An Exile
Memoirs Of An Exile (Turkish title: Bir Sürgünün Hatıraları) is an autobiographical memoir by Turkish writer Aziz Nesin about his exile to Bursa, republished in 20012001 in literature
The year 2001 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* The film version of J. R. R. Tolkien's classic book, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, is released to movie theaters...
by Southmoor Studios, in English language translation by Joseph S. Jacobson.
Editions
Hayri the Barber Surnâmé
Hayri the Barber Surnâmé (Turkish title: Surnâme) is a novel by Turkish writer Aziz Nesin republished in 20012001 in literature
The year 2001 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* The film version of J. R. R. Tolkien's classic book, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, is released to movie theaters...
by Southmoor Studios, in English language translation by Joseph S. Jacobson.
Editions
Out of the Way! Socialism's Coming!
Out of the Way! Socialism's Coming! (TurkishTurkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
title: Sosyalizm Geliyor Savulun!) is a 2001
2001 in literature
The year 2001 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* The film version of J. R. R. Tolkien's classic book, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, is released to movie theaters...
selection of three stories from a short story collection by Turkish writer Aziz Nesin, published by Milet Books
Milet Books
Milet Books is a London publishing company that specialises in dictionaries and dual-language children’s literature.-Turkish-English Short Story Collections:...
, in a dual of the original Turkish and an English language translation by Damian Croft, as part of its series of Turkish-English Short Story Collections.
The publisher states that, “In these hilarious and entertaining stories, the legendary Aziz Nesin turns his uniquely incisive, satirical wit on shifting ideologies, bureaucracy and the question of who’s really (in)sane: the ones locked up or the ones outside.”
A review in Write Away states that, “These are thought provoking parables of our time,” that, “take the mickey out of bureaucracy and political ideology and hypocrisy,” and “should leave readers laughing and thinking.”
The volume consists of the stories;
- Out of the Way! Socialism's Coming!
- The Inspector's Coming
- The Lunatics Break Loose
For an English-only edition of the full collection, see below under Socialism Is Coming: Stand Aside.
Editions
The Dance of the Eagle and the Fish
The Dance of the Eagle and the Fish is a children's book adapted from the short story of the same name by Turkish writer Aziz Nesin and published in 20012001 in literature
The year 2001 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* The film version of J. R. R. Tolkien's classic book, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, is released to movie theaters...
by Milet Books, in English language translation by Ruth Christie.
Editions
Socialism Is Coming: Stand Aside
Socialism Is Coming: Stand Aside (Turkish title: Sosyalizm Geliyor Savulun!) is a short story collection by Turkish writer Aziz Nesin republished in 20022002 in literature
The year 2002 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*March 16: Authorities in Saudi Arabia arrested and jailed poet Abdul Mohsen Musalam and fired a newspaper editor following the publication of Musalam's poem The Corrupt on Earth that criticized the state's Islamic...
by Southmoor Studios, in English language translation by Joseph S. Jacobson.
Editions
The Tales of Nasrettin Hoca
The Tales of Nasrettin Hoca (Turkish title: Nasrettin Hoca Hikayeleri) is a short story collection by Turkish writer Aziz Nesin based on the folk tales of Nasrettin Hoca republished in 20022002 in literature
The year 2002 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*March 16: Authorities in Saudi Arabia arrested and jailed poet Abdul Mohsen Musalam and fired a newspaper editor following the publication of Musalam's poem The Corrupt on Earth that criticized the state's Islamic...
by Dost Yayınları, in English language translation by Talât Sait Halman.
Editions
Laugh or Lament
Laugh or Lament: Selected Short Stories is a 20022002 in literature
The year 2002 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*March 16: Authorities in Saudi Arabia arrested and jailed poet Abdul Mohsen Musalam and fired a newspaper editor following the publication of Musalam's poem The Corrupt on Earth that criticized the state's Islamic...
short story collection by Turkish writer Aziz Nesin published by Turkish Ministry of Culture, in English language translation by Masud Akhtar Shaikh, with an introduction by the translator.
The volume consists of the stories;
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Editions
On-line translations
- Istanbul Boy: The Autobiography of Aziz Nesin, Part I at University of Texas.
- A Patriotic Duty at Boğaziçi UniversityBogaziçi UniversityBoğaziçi University is a public university located on the European side of the Bosphorus strait in Istanbul, Turkey. It has five faculties and two schools offering undergraduate degrees, and six institutes offering graduate degrees...
.
Sources
- Nesin, Aziz. Istanbul Boy – The autobiography of Aziz Nesin, translated by Joseph S. Jacobson
- Turkishculture.org – Aziz Nesin (1916-1995)
- Biyografi.info – Biography of Aziz Nesin
- Biyografi.net – Biography of Aziz Nesin
- Allword, Edward. The Tatars of Crimea: Return to the Homeland : Studies and Documents. North Carolina: Duke University Press, 1998. ISBN 0822319942.
External links
- Nesin Foundation
- About Aziz Nesin & The Nesin Foundation
- Poems of Aziz Nesin Poetry of Aziz Nesin, translated into EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
- Online edition of Istanbul Boy, Part I
- Aziz Nesin: A Black-comedy Defiant Turkish Satirist