Writer
(b. 4 September 1947, Kalecik / Ankara). He started his primary education in Kalecik and
completed his education at Ulus Primary School and Cebeci Elementary School in
Ankara after his family had moved to Ankara. He entered the Advanced School of
Press and Publishing, Faculty of Social Sciences after he had graduated from
Ankara Gazi High School in 1986. He graduated from the Department of Radio and
Television at this school in 1972. He worked at the Turkish Historical Society
(as an editor, 1975-77), the Turkish
Radio and Television Corporation (as an advisor to the general manager
(1972-74) and at Dergâh Publications (1978). He did not work for some time. He
was involved in the founding of the Writers Union of Turkey and established Birlik
Publications (1978-80). He started to work as a contractual film producer and
scriptwriter at the film department of the Ministry of Culture. He served as a
member of the Film Inspection Committee. He left the Ministry of Culture in
1986. He joined the editorial team of the newspaper Zaman and wrote
daily articles for this newspaper with the title Kimlik (Identity)
(1986-87). He was arrested with two of his friends and put on trial at the
State Security Courts (1987) because he placed a black wreath in front of the
Tunisian Embassy protesting the punishment of the Tunisian writer Gannuşi, but
he was acquitted. He left the newspaper Zaman in the same year. He wrote
for the review Yörünge for a time (1991-92). He gave lectures on being a
writer at Gazi University, Faculty of Communications (1991-93). He wrote daily
articles for the newspaper Vakit (Akit) (1994-1996) and worked as the
General Director of Birlik Medya A.Ş (1994-95). He was selected as a member of
the Turkish Radio Television Supreme Committee by the Turkish Grand National
Assembly in 1996.
He started to work in the
review Fikir ve San’atta Hareket while he was a student at university. Apart
from Hareket, he has written for reviews such as Türk Edebiyatı, Mavera, İslâm, İlim ve
Sanat, İzlenim and Nehir. Doğan planned the publication of the Encyclopedia of Turkish Language
and Literature and organized the first volumes. He wrote various articles for
this encyclopedia. He also organized the publication of the Turkish Family
Encyclopedia (3 volumes, 1991-92).
He has especially studied
social and economic history, history of thought, journalism and language. He
has also written television scripts and screenplays. He has worked on the
production of various programs and films. Doğan was one of the founders of the
Mehmet Âkif Thought and Art Foundation, the Writers Union of Turkey and the
Foundation of Turkish Volunteer Organizations. He was the Chairman of the Writers Union of Turkey for a long time
(1978-1996) and was the Director of the Culture and Arts Almanac, which was
published by this organization (1984-1996). He was also the founder of the
Writers Union of Turkey Foundation and served as the chairman of the Board of
Trustees (1991-1996). He contributed towards the introduction of written works
by collecting writers in a forum and introducing great Turkish writers, living
and dead. He worked for the permanent commemoration of “The March of
Independence” writer Mehmet Âkif Ersoy and protecting the Taceddin Dervish
Lodge where Mehmet Âkif Ersoy lived in Ankara during the National Struggle. He
put forward the project to demolish the illegally built constructions around
the Taceddin Lodge and converting the area to a “March of Independence Garden /
Park”. In 1998, he started the “Phases Lectures” at the Writers Union of Turkey
in order to study the foundation texts of the Turkish language. He has
pioneered the poetry festivals held in cities and districts such as Dursunbey, Suçıktı, Çorum and
Konya. He planned the Writers School Preparation to Writing Seminars and
pioneered the beginning of writing education in Turkey (2000).
He won the Turkish National
Culture Foundation Encouragement Award (1978) with his work Tarih ve Toplum (History
and Society), the Writers Union of Turkey Language Award (1982) with Büyük
Türkçe Sözlük (The Grand Turkish Dictionary, 1982) and the International
Kaşgarlı Mahmut Award by the Writers Union of Uzbekistan with the Expanded 10th
Edition of the Grand Turkish Dictionary in 1995. He won the 7th
Balkan Service to Turkish Culture Award for his services to the Turkic World
and the cultures of Balkan Turks. He is a pioneer of international Turkish
poetry festivals that have become important places for reestablishing relations
and improving cultural and literary ties within the Turkic World.
WORKS:
STUDY-RESEARCH:
Batılılaşma İhaneti (The Treason of
Being Western, 1975), Tarih ve Toplum-Toplum
Yapımızın Tarihi Oluşumu (History
and Society – the Foundation of Our Social Structure, 1977), Dil Kültür Yabancılaşma (Language
Culture Alienation, 1984), Halka Karşı
Demokrasi (Democracy
Against the People, 1988), Camideki
Şair-Mehmet Akif (Poet in the Mosque – Mehmet Akif, 1989), Türkiye’de
Darbeler Müdahaleler ve Siyasî Sistem (Coup
Interventions and the Political System, 1990), Kemalizm (Kemalism, 1992, expanded edition with the name Bir
Savaş Sonrası İdeolojisi: Kemalizm-A Post-War Ideology: Kemalism, 1994), Kültürel Savaş ve Savaş Kültürü
(Cultural War and The Culture of War, 1992), İletişim veya Dehşet Çağı (Communication or The Age of Fear, 1993),
Türkistan Türkiye Gergefinde İran
(Iran within the Framework of Turkey and Turkistan, 1996), Kitaplık Kılavuzu
(Book Guide, 1996), Türkendülüsiye
(Turkendulisia, 1998), Bir Lügat
Bulamadım (I Could Not Find
a Dictionary, 2001), Yüzyılın Soykırımı (The Genocide of the Century,
2004),
DICTIONARY: Büyük Türkçe
Sözlük (The Grand Turkish Dictionary, 1981, expanded 15th.
edition 2001), Okullar İçin Büyük Türkçe Sözlük (Big Dictionary for
Elementary School, 1984, 6th. edition, 1996), İlk Sözlük
(Primary Dictionary, 1989), Temel Büyük Türkçe Sözlük (Basic Turkish
Dictionary, 1994, 3rd edition, 1996).
SCREENPLAY: Sanat Sözlüğü (Dictionary of Art, 1977), Ulucami (Ulucami, 1977), Şairler Meydanı (Poets’ Square, 1978), Kaybolan Şehirler (Lost Cities, 1985), Nureddin Topçu (Nureddin Topçu, 1985), Mehmed Akif (Mehmet Akif, 1986), Yaşayan Geçmiş (The Living Past, 1987), Mimar Sinan (Mimar Sinan 1988).
