7th Homeros Book Days Welcomes Guest of Honor Hidayet Karakuş

The 7th Homeros Book Days, organized by Bornova Municipality in memory of master poet Attila İlhan, welcomed its Guest of Honor, acclaimed author and educator Hidayet Karakuş, who met with his readers. During the talk titled “The Language of Enlightenment,” moderated by Bornova poet Atila Er, Karakuş said, “In all my works, all my books, my novels and my poems, I have used Turkish as the language of enlightenment.”

The 7th Homeros Book Days, organized by Bornova Municipality “in memory of Attila İlhan,” continues at Büyükpark with the enthusiastic participation of book lovers from Bornova and across İzmir. The event, bringing together 65 publishing houses, 440 authors and more than 790,000 books with readers, hosted acclaimed author and educator Hidayet Karakuş, the Guest of Honor of the 7th Book Days, at Sahne Homeros.

Bornova poet Atila Er, who moderated the talk, said: “Today, I am truly excited to be here with a master, a fellow traveler and an older brother. I am very happy to share the stage with someone like Hidayet Karakuş, who holds such an important place in the world of literature and thought.”

Karakuş: “Being the Guest of Honor Is a Special Honor”

Expressing his happiness at meeting book lovers as the Guest of Honor of the 7th Homeros Book Days, Hidayet Karakuş said:

“From the moment I arrived here, I have been met with tremendous interest. I believe this interest is not directed at me personally, but at my identity as a writer. If I have contributed something to Turkish literature, I consider this interest a sign of respect for that contribution as well.”

Put Turkish First

Continuing his remarks by celebrating Language Day on September 26, Hidayet Karakuş said:

“I recommend that all our citizens be comfortable with the Turkish language, think in Turkish and put Turkish first. As a citizen of the Republic of Türkiye and as an individual following in the footsteps of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, I recommend that you put Turkish first in your conversations, correspondence, writing, on your phones and on your tablets.”

The Language of Enlightenment: Turkish

Karakuş stated that Turkish is the language of enlightenment and that he has used Turkish throughout all his books and publications:

“The language of enlightenment began with the language reform. Many writers, novelists, short-story writers and poets had written many works before as well. However, the scientific work of the Turkish Language Association, established by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in 1932, helped our country raise many intellectuals, writers, poets, thinkers, philosophers and scientists. These people were able to establish themselves through the light of the Turkish language.

Names such as Fazıl Hüsnü Dağlarca, Cahit Sıtkı Tarancı, Ziya Osman Saba, Nâzım Hikmet, Edip Cansever, Orhan Kemal and Yaşar Kemal all came into their own through the language of enlightenment. If they had written in Ottoman Turkish, none of us would have loved them. We would not have understood them in the first place. And because we did not understand them, we would not have loved them. Therefore, in this sense, the language of enlightenment is a very important language that makes us who we are.”

Following the talk, Hidayet Karakuş answered questions from the audience.

Continuing Until October 4

As part of the event, which will continue through Sunday, October 4, book signings, workshops, children’s activities and panels will be held free of charge at Büyükpark, welcoming residents of İzmir.