Nurettin Topçu

Scholar and writer (b. 1909, İstanbul –d. 10 July 1975). He attended Bezm-i Alem Valide Sultan Primary School, Büyük Reşit Paşa Numune School, Vefa High School and graduated from İstanbul High School. On passing the exam for education abroad, he went to France in 1928. While he was in France he spent his time with Remzi Oğuz Arık and Ziyaettin Fahri Fındıkoğlu. He became a member of the Sociology Association and wrote philosophical articles for the publication of this association. He met Moris Blondel and Luis Masignon who were famous writers and took lessons in philosophy, ethics, psychology, art philosophy, history, logic, sociology and archeology in Strasbourg. Completing his PhD on philosophy at the Sorbonne, he became the first Turkish student at this university to do so (1934).

After coming back to Turkey, he worked as a philosophy teacher at Galatasaray High School (1935). Then he worked as a teacher at İzmir Atatürk High School and İstanbul Haydarpaşa High School for Boys. He gave lessons on the history of religions and philosophy at Imam-Hatip School and history at Robert College. He retired in 1974 while he was working at İstanbul High School for Boys. He completed his associate doctorate thesis on Bergson at İstanbul University, but as there wasn’t a need for staff at the time he didn’t stay at the university.

He was influenced by the theologians Nakşi Şeyh Hasip and Abdülaziz Efendi and he became a follower of Abdülaziz Bekkine. He received help from Celaleddin Ökten with Islamic sciences. He continued some parts of his ideational and cultural studies at the Turkish Culture Guild, the Turkish Nationalist Association, the Nationalist Association and the Initiative Association of Anatolia whose foundations he contributed to. He married the daughter of Hüseyin Avni Ulaş who was a friend of his father and then divorced. He published the magazine Hareket inİzmir. He left his wife and was exiled to Denizli because of his essay Çalgıcılar (Musicians) that had been published in the magazine. There he met Said-i Nursi who had been sentenced by a court judgment. Topçu, who established a school with his works and publications, is buried at Kozlu graveyard in Topkapı, İstanbul.

WORKS:

ESSAY-RESEARCH: Confeormisme et Revolte (PhD thesis, Paris, 1934; translated as İsyan Ahlâkı, Ethics of Rebellion), 1995), Garbın İlim Zihniyeti ve Ahlâk Görüşü (Mentality of Science and the Opinion of Morality of the West, 1955), Mehmet Akif (Mehmet Akif, with Ali Nihat Tarhan, 1957), Şehid (Martyr, 1959), Garbın İlim Zihniyeti ve Ahlâk Görüşü (Mentality of Science and the Opinion of Morality of the West, 1959), Taşralı (Countryman, Stories, 1959), Kominizme Karşı Yeni Nizam (The New Order Against Communism, 1960), Türkiye’nin Maarif Davası (The Problem of Education in Turkey, 1960), Ahlâk Nizamı (Order of Morality, 1961), Yarınki Türkiye (Turkey in The Future, 1961), Büyük Fetih (The Great Conquest, 1962), Varolmak (Existence, 1965), Varoluş Felsefesi (Philosophy of Existentialism, translated from P. Foulquie, 1967), Bergson (Bergson, 1968), İradenin Davası (The Problem of the Will, 1968), Devlet ve Demokrasi (State and Democracy, 1969), İslâm ve İnsan (Islam and Man, 1969), Kültür ve Medeniyet (Culture and Civilization, 1970), Mehmet Akif (Mehmet Akif, 1970), Mevlânâ ve Tasavvuf (Mevlana and Theosophy, 1974), Milliyetçiliğimizin Esasları (Principles of Our Nationalism, 1978), Millet Mistikleri (National Mystics, pub. and prep. by Ezel Erverdi- İsmail Kara. Sentimental and Literary essays written by Nurettin Topçu after the deaths of people who were well known and much appreciated, 2001.)

TEXT BOOK:  Psikoloji (Psychology, 1949), Sosyoloji (Sociology, 1952), Felsefe (Philosophy, 1952), Mantık (Logic, 1952), Ahlâk (Ethics, 1975).

New editions of his works were prepared by Ezel Erverdi and İsmail Kara in the series of Bütün Eserleri (All Works) and published by Dergah Publications. 

REFERENCE: Ali Birinci / Sevdiğim ve Tanıyabildiğim Hocam - Orhan Okay / Nurettin Topçu Bir İdealistin Ölümü - Prof. Dr. Mehmet Kaplan / Çağdaş Bir Mistik: Nurettin Topçu (Hareket-Nurettin Topçu Hatıra Sayısı, sayı: 112, 1976), Ali Nihat Tarlan / Fikir ve Sanatta Hareket (Ocak-Mart 1976), 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 Fikir ve Kültür Adamları (Türkiye Ünlüleri Ansiklopedisi, C. 3, 2013) - Encyclopedia of Turkey’s Famous People (2013), İsmail Kara / Türkiye’de İslâmcılık Düşüncesi (3. Cilt: 1994, s.113-237), Necmettin Doğan / “Türk Muhafazakârlığının Devlet Algısı: Nurettin Topçu Örneği (Doğu-Batı Üç Aylık Düşünce Dergisi (Ağustos-Eylül-Ekim 2011, sayı: 58, s. 213-228).