Turkish soap operas have been appealing to global audiences for some time, but seldom have any generated the levels of fandom that Diriliş Ertuğrul (Resurrection Ertuğrul) has. Even more significantly, it is the first to have seriously penetrated the UK. From talks up and down the country, to arranged travel tours to the set, there […]
On Thursday 21 February, the Yunus Emre Institute London is hosting a book launch and talk by Martyn Downer, a historian, author and expert on Admiral Horatio Lord Nelson. Downer’s new book Nelson’s Lost Jewel delves into the history behind one of Lord Nelson’s most treasured possessions: a diamond Chelengk (‘Çelenk’), gifted to him by […]
Thousands of photos documenting the final decades of the Ottoman Empire have been made available online. The photographs, spanning the 19th and early 20th centuries, can now be studied and downloaded for free following a painstaking digitisation process by the US-based Getty Research Institute. The originals are held at the institute’s Pierre de Gigord Collection, […]
We’ve again evidenced the rollercoaster of life these past twelve months, experiencing individual and collective highs and lows, as well as drama, wonder and tragedy. Turks in their various cultural, religious, political, and professional shades continue to make their mark in Britain as elsewhere, raising the profile of the community across society, in politics, in […]
Sunday 11 November marks the centenary of the Armistice which brought an end to the hostilities of the First World War in which millions perished. The anniversary will be a chance to pay tribute to the fallen, with thousands of remembrance services taking place in the UK, France and around the world. An estimated 40 million […]
A community of ethnic Greek Muslims who were exiled from Greece to Syria in 1897 seek to return to their homeland in Crete. Yet despite presenting the deeds for properties seized by the Greek Orthodox Church 120 years ago, they once again find themselves victims of public resentment and institutional discrimination. “Wherever we go, we […]
A Turkish organisation has started to renovate five Ottoman-era Islamic sites including four mosques and one Sufi or dervish lodge in Albania this month. The restoration works, which are expected to last two years, are part of the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency’s efforts to preserve cultural and historical assets shared by both Turks and […]
“The Arab world will not be led by Tehran or Ankara,” said United Arab Emirates (UAE) Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash on Twitter last Wednesday. “The sectarian and partisan view is not an acceptable alternative,” he tweeted making calls for Arab states to co-operate around an axis led by Saudi Arabia and […]
On 20 May 1897, the Ottoman Empire and the Kingdom of Greece reached an armistice after a month-long war. The war was one of several conflicts between the Ottomans and an irredentist Greece. The Kingdom of Greece for its part had been established in 1832 when Russia, Britain, France and Bavaria brought the young […]
Today 68 years ago, the Republic of Turkey became the first Muslim-majority country to formally recognise the state of Israel, which had been founded in 1948. This recognition, signed by Turkish President İsmet İnönü on 28 March 1949, led to the opening of the first Turkish diplomatic mission in Tel Aviv in 1950. This […]
