Ziya Gökalp was a Turkish writer, social scientist, poet and politician. He is the founder of Turkish sociology and one of the most important thinkers of Turkish nationalism. He is a great writer who had a significant impact on political, social thought and art in Turkey in the first half of the twentieth century.
Ziya Gökalp was born in Diyarbakir in 1876. After leaving high school, he took Arabic and Persian lessons from his uncle. He attempted suicide due to financial problems and his family's pressure to marry, thus he could not continue his education. He enrolled in the veterinary school in 1896, but was sent to prison for reading forbidden books at that time. Ziya Gokalp married Vecihe Hanim in 1900 due to his uncle's will and had four children from this marriage. After the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I, he was arrested by the British forces at the university in 1919, was exiled to Malta and stayed there for 2 years. He died in Istanbul on 25th of October 1924 and was buried in the cemetery next to the mausoleum of Sultan Mahmut II.
The works of the author, who wrote in the genres of history, politics, research and analysis are:
- Limni ve Malta Mektuplari (Letters from Lemnos and Malta)
- Kizil Elma (Red Apple)
- Türklesmek, Islamlasmak, Muasirlasmak (Becoming Turkified, Islamization, Modernization)
- Altin Isik (Golden Light)
- Yeni Hayat (New Life)
- Dogru Yol (Right Way)
- Türkçülügün Esaslari (Fundamentals of Turkism)
- Türk Medeniyet Tarihi (History of Turkish Civilization)
- Kürt Asiretleri Hakkinda Sosyolojik Tetkikler (Sociological Studies on Kurdish Tribes)
- Hars ve Medeniyet (Culture and Civilization)
- Kugular (Swans)
- Felsefe Dersleri (Philosophy Lessons)