Minstrel (b. 1894, Sivrialan
village / Şarkışla / Sivas – d. 21 March 1973). His surname was Şatıroğlu. In
the village of Sivralan of 50 houses (formerly called Söbalan), in which he was
born and lived until his late juvenile years, the Şatıroğlu family used to live
on agriculture and stock-breeding.
He lost one of his eyes because of smallpox, which he had when he was
seven years old and lost sight on the other eye in an accident. He began to
play the bağlama* and to sing upon the advice and encourage of his father, who
hoped him to be consoled. His sorrow deepened even more, when he lost his
mother and father in 1920. The poet Ahmet Kutsi Tecer, who was the director of
National Education in the province of Sivas in 1930, helped him to be
recognized. At the ceremony of folk poetry organized by Ahmet Kutsi Tecer in
Sivas on 5 January 1931, he attracted public attention. He was invited to
Ankara on the 10th anniversary of Republic (1933). He sang his poems at cafés,
by playing the bağlama*. He was appointed as a lecturer for folk songs at the
Village Institutes. He sang his poems at the Arifiye, Hasanoğlan (1943-44) and
Çifteler Village Institutes, at the People's Houses, and on radios. On an
exclusive resolution by the Turkish Grand National Assembly, he was given
regular salary for his contributions to the Turkish language and national unity.
Influencing many succeeding poets, as one of the greatest poets of Turkish
literature, Aşık Veysel expressed in his poems the very transitive nature of
the world, the reality of death, and the necessity to control the will, and
dealt with thoughts and beliefs prevailing in the traditional folk poetry. He
also renounced the deep resentment between people, and praised love for land,
as a rural poet. He developed a world of poetry on learning by hearing. He has
some poems that are the products of his knowledge of Sufism, which he obtained
via the lodge culture. As a great minstrel of the Republican Era, he is
regarded as the last representative of the tradition of folk poetry, which was
initiated by Yunus Emre. Thus, like all minstrels, he wrote his poems in a
clear and purified language, understandable by the people. His life was filmed
under the name Karanlık Dünya (The Dark World) which was
produced by Metin Erksan.
WORKS:
Âşık Veysel'den Deyişler (Poems from Âşık Veysel, 1944), Sazımdan
Sesler (Sounds from my Bağlama*, 1949), Âşık Veysel Hayatı ve
Şiirleri (Âşık Veysel, His Life and Poems, 1953), Dostlar Beni
Hatırlasın (Friends Shall Remember Me, collected poems, edited by Ümit
Yaşar Oğuzcan, 1970).
REFERENCE: Ahmet Kutsi Tecer / Âşık Veysel Deyişler (1944) - Âşık
Veysel Hayatı ve Şiirleri (1960), İbrahim Aslanoğlu / Âşık Veysel (1964), M.
Uluğ Turanlıoğlu / Âşık Veysel Şatıroğlu (1973), Mehmet Kaplan / Cumhuriyet
Devri Türk Şiiri (1973, s. 366-375), Memmed Aslan / Yunus Emre - Âşık Veysel
İki Zirve (1982), TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi IV (1991), Özkan Yalçın / Âşık Veysel
(2000), Doğan Kaya / Âşık Veysel (2004), Halil Soyuer / Şair Dostlarım (2004),
Erdoğan Alkan / 110. Doğum Yıldönümünde Âşık Veysel’in Şiir Dünyası (Varlık,
Mart 2004), İhsan Işık / Yazarlar Sözlüğü (1990, 1998) - Türkiye Yazarlar
Ansiklopedisi (2001, 2004) – Encyclopedia of Turkish Authors (2005) - Resimli
ve Metin Örnekli Türkiye Edebiyatçılar ve Kültür Adamları Ansiklopedisi (2006,
gen. 2. bas. 2007) - Ünlü Sanatçılar (Türkiye Ünlüleri Ansiklopedisi, C. 5,
2013) - Encyclopedia of Turkey’s Famous People (2013).
