Refik Halit Karay


Refik Halit Karay was a Turkish educator, writer and journalist.

Biography

He was born in Beylerbeyi, İstanbul, on 14 March 1888. His parents were Mehmed Halid Bey and Nefise Ruhsar Hanım. After studying at Galatasaray High School and Istanbul University Faculty of Law, he briefly served in the Ministry of Finance of the Ottoman Empire.
During the Second Constitutional Era in 1908 he resigned from his post and published a short-living newspaper. He also wrote in literary periodicals. Being an opponent of the Committee of Union and Progress he was exiled to several cities in Anatolia. After returning to İstanbul he wrote mainly on Anatolian life style. He was a pioneer in Anatolian based literature. He attended the Freedom and Accord Party. During the reign of the Freedom and Accord Party he served as the teacher of Literature in Robert College and then the General Director of Turkish PTT. He published a periodical named Aydede and was one of the contributors of Kalem, a political satire magazine between 1908 and 1911. In addition, he served as the editor-in-chief of another political satire magazine, Cem, between 1910 and 1912.
Karay opposed the Turkish War of Independence and at the end of the war he escaped to Beirut and Aleppo. In 1938 after the amnesty law he returned to Turkey. He resumed his writing career and wrote a number of novels. He died on 18 July 1965. He was buried at Zincirlikuyu Cemetery in Istanbul.

Works

Novels

The following are his novels
  • 1920 İstanbul’ın İçyüzü
  • 1939 Yezidin Kızı
  • 1939 Çete
  • 1941 Sürgün
  • 1947 Anahtar
  • 1950 Bu Bizim Hayatımız
  • 1952 Nilgün
  • 1953 Yeraltında Dünya Var
  • 1953 Dişi Örümcek
  • 1954 Bugünün Saraylısı
  • 1954 2000 Yılın Sevgilisi
  • 1955 İki Cisimli kadın
  • 1955 Kadınlar Tekkesi
  • 1956 Karlı Dağdaki Ateş
  • 1957 Dört Yapraklı Yonca
  • 1965 Sonuncu Kadeh
  • 1971 Yerini Seven Fidan
  • 1980 Ekmek Elden Su Gölden
  • 1980 Ayın Ondördü
  • 1981 ''Yüzen Bahçe''

Short story and humour

  • 1919 Memleket Hikayeleri
  • 1940 Gurbet Hikayeleri
  • 1915: Sakın Aldanma İnanma Kanma
  • 1918: Kirpinin Dedikleri
  • 1918: Agop Paşa’nın Hatıraları
  • 1922 Ay Nur
  • 1922 Tanıdıklarım
  • 1925 Guguklu Saat