Writers Famous Writers from Turkey

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List of famous writers from Turkey, listed alphabetically with photos when available. Turkey is home to many prolific writers, including those who write fiction, non-fiction, poetry, biographies and more. These are some of the best Turkish writers that have ever lived, so if you're a native of Turkey and an aspiring writer then use this list as inspiration to achieve your own writing goals.

This list is made up of writers like Abdulhakim Arvasi and İlyas Salman.

This list answers the questions, "Who are popular Turkish writers?" and "Which writers are from Turkey?"

You can click on the names of these renowned writers of Turkey in order to get more information about each one. Some of these historic writers may no longer be living in Turkey, but they're all of Turkey descent.

1

Moris Farhi age 83 Moris Farhi MBE is a Turkish author who has been vice-president of International PEN since 2001.

2

Aziz Nesin Died at 80 (1915-1995) Aziz Nesin was a Turkish writer and humorist who authored more than 100 books.

3

Elia Kazan Died at 94 (1909-2003) Elia Kazan was a Greek-American director, producer, writer and actor, described by The New York Times as "one of the most honored and influential directors in Broadway and Hollywood ...more

4

Yılmaz Güney Died at 47 (1937-1984) Yılmaz Güney was a kurdish film director, scenarist, novelist, and actor of Zaza People origin. Many of his works were devoted to the plight of ordinary, working class people in Turkey. ...more

5

Fatih Akın age 45 Fatih Akın is a German film director, screenwriter and producer of Turkish descent.

6

Memduh Ün age 98 Memduh Ün is a Turkish film producer, director, actor and screenwriter. His film The Broken Pots was entered into the 11th Berlin International Film Festival.

7

Cüneyt Arkın age 81 Fahrettin Cüreklibatır, better known by his stage name Cüneyt Arkın, is a Turkish film actor, director, and producer. Having starred in somewhere around 248 movies and also TV series, ...more

8

Nâzım Hikmet Died at 61 (1902-1963) Nâzım Hikmet Ran, commonly known as Nâzım Hikmet was a Turkish poet, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, director and memoirist. He was acclaimed for the "lyrical flow of his ...more

9

İbrahim Tatlıses age 66 İbrahim Tatlıses is a Turkish folk singer and former actor. He was born in the city of Şanlıurfa. Tatlıses has recorded 42 albums, including notable albums such as Ayağında Kundura and Selam ...more

10

Kartal Tibet age 80 Kartal Tibet is a Turkish actor and film director. Some of his famous films include Ölmeyen Aşk, Dağlar Kızı, Senede Bir Gün, Sultan, Zübük, Gol Kralı, Gol Krale and Şalvar ...more

11

İhsan Yüce Died at 62 (1929-1991) İhsan Yüce was a Turkish actor and occasionally, scenarist and director.

12

Fikret Hakan age 84 Fikret Hakan is a prolific Turkish film actor and a recipient of the honorary State Artist, a prestigious title awarded by the Turkish government. Hakan began his artistic career in 1950 as an ...more

13

Osman F. Seden Died at 74 (1924-1998) Osman Fahir Seden usually credited as Osman F. Seden was a Turkish film director, screenwriter and film producer. He directed and wrote for over 120 films between 1955 and 1987.

14

Türker İnanoğlu age 82 Türker İnanoğlu is a Turkish screenwriter, film director and producer.

15

Atıf Yılmaz Died at 81 (1925-2006) Atıf Yılmaz Batıbeki was a renowned Turkish film director, screenwriter, and film producer. He was almost a legend in the film industry of Turkey with 119 movies directed. He also wrote 53 ...more

16

Nuri Bilge Ceylan age 59 Nuri Bilge Ceylan is a Turkish photographer, screenwriter, actor, and film director. He was the winner of the Palme d'Or, the highest prize at the Cannes Film Festival, in 2014. He is married to ...more

17

Mehmet Aslantuğ age 57 Mehmet Aslantug is an actor.

18

Emrah age 47 Emrah İpek, also known as Emrah is a Turkish singer and actor. Born in Ergani, Diyarbakır Province, he professionally entered the music world with his album Ağam Ağam already during his middle ...more

19

Tuncel Kurtiz Died at 77 (1936-2013) Tuncel Tayanç Kurtiz was a Turkish theatre, movie and TV series actor, playwright, and film director Since 1964, he acted in more than 70 movies, including many international

20

İlyas Salman age 69 İlyas Salman is a Turkish actor, film director, author, screenwriter and musician. He shared the Adana Golden Boll International Film Festival's Best Actor Award in 2012 together with Engin ...more

21

Fatma Girik age 76 Fatma Girik is a Turkish actress and later politician.

22

Kenan Işık age 71 Kenan Işık is a leading Turkish actor, anchorman, author, director, dubbing artist, screenwriter, and television host.

23

Yılmaz Erdoğan age 51 Yılmaz Erdoğan is a Turkish filmmaker, actor and poet of Kurdish descent, who is most famous for his box-office record-breaking debut comedy film Vizontele and the television series Bir Demet ...more

24

Filiz Akın age 75 Filiz Akın is a Turkish film actress. She is one of the famous actresses in the history of Turkish cinema with more than 120 films, mostly in the 1960s and 1970s.

25

Başak Daşman age 37 Başak Daşman is an actress.

26

Ahmet Ağaoğlu Died at 70 (1869-1939) Ahmet Ağaoğlu, also known as Ahmed bey Agayev was a prominent Azerbaijani and Turkish publicist and journalist. He was recognized as one of the founders of pan-Turkism.

27

Zeki Demirkubuz age 54 Zeki Demirkubuz is a contemporary Turkish film director, screenwriter, producer and film editor.

28

Hayko Cepkin age 40 Hayko Cepkin is a Turkish musician of Armenian descent.

29

Ferzan Özpetek age 59 Ferzan Özpetek is a Turkish film director and screenwriter, residing in Italy; who also has Italian citizenship.

30

Ferdi Tayfur age 73 Ferdi Tayfur is one of Turkey's most successful and famous Turkish arabesque singer, actor and composer. In recent years, he has also become popular in Afghanistan, Lebanon, Trinidad and Tobago, ...more

31

Zülfü Livaneli age 72 Kendal is a film score composer.

32

Cem Yılmaz age 45 Cem Yılmaz is a Turkish stand-up comedian, actor and filmmaker and cartoonist, best known for his films G.O.R.A., A.R.O.G and Yahşi Batı, who has won two Sadri Alışık awards for his roles in ...more

33

Orhan Pamuk age 66 Ferit Orhan Pamuk is a Turkish citizen who born to Circassian parents novelist, screenwriter, academic and recipient of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Literature. One of Turkey's most prominent ...more

34

Mahsun Kırmızıgül age 49 Mahsun Kırmızıgül is an ethnic Zaza-Kurdish singer–songwriter, actor and a director of Turkey. Mahsun Kırmızıgül is also known as a businessman for his partnership in one of the ...more

35

Ferhan Şensoy age 67 Ferhan Şensoy is a prominent Turkish playwright, actor and stage director.

36

Abidin Dino Died at 80 (1913-1993) Abidin Dino, was a Turkish artist and a well-known painter.

37

Engin Günaydın age 46 Engin Günaydın is a Turkish actor and comedian.

38

Mert Fırat age 37 Mert Fırat is an actor.

39

Adnan Oktar age 62 Adnan Oktar, also known as Harun Yahya, is a Turkish author referred to as "the biggest propagator of ijaz literature" as well as an Islamic creationist. In 2007, he sent thousands of ...more

40

Çağan Irmak age 48 Çağan Irmak is a Turkish film and television writer and director, who has managed to attract a large audience in Turkey and is best known for the TV series Çemberimde Gül Oya ...more

41

Ata Demirer age 46 Ata Demirer is a Turkish filmmaker and stand-up comedian famous for a string of Turkish box-office hits including Berlin Kaplanı, Eyyvah Eyvah 2, Eyyvah Eyvah as well as being one of the top 10 ...more

42

Tunç Başaran age 80 Tunç Başaran is a Turkish screenwriter, film director, film producer and actor.

43

Semih Kaplanoğlu age 55 Semih Kaplanoğlu is a Turkish playwright, film director and producer.

44

Ahmet Ertegun Died at 83 (1923-2006) Ahmet Ertegün, was a Turkish-American businessman, songwriter and philanthropist. He was best known as the founder and president of Atlantic Records, and for discovering and championing ...more

45

Daron Acemoğlu age 51 Kamer Daron Acemoğlu is a Turkish-born American economist of Armenian origin.

46

A. I. Bezzerides Died at 99 (1908-2007) A.I. " Buzz" Bezzerides was an American novelist and screenwriter, best known for writing noir and action motion pictures, especially several of Warners' "social conscience" ...more

47

Haldun Taner Died at 71 (1915-1986) Haldun Taner was a well-known Turkish playwright and short story writer. He was born on March 16, 1915 in Istanbul. After graduating from the Galatasaray High School in 1935, he studied politics ...more

48

Ertem Eğilmez Died at 60 (1929-1989) Ertem Eğilmez was a Turkish film director, producer and screenwriter. He is known as the name behind some of the most popular films in Turkish film history. Many of these were produced by his ...more

49

Ara Güler age 90 Ara Güler is a Turkish Armenian photojournalist, nicknamed "the Eye of Istanbul" or "the Photographer of Istanbul". He is considered one of Turkey's few internationally

50

Halit Refiğ Died at 75 (1934-2009) Halit Refiğ was a Turkish film director, film producer, screenwriter and writer. He made around sixty films, including feature films, documentaries and TV serials. He is considered to be the ...more

1 Moris Farhi age 83 Moris Farhi MBE is a Turkish author who has been vice-president of International PEN since 2001.

2 Aziz Nesin Died at 80 (1915-1995) Aziz Nesin was a Turkish writer and humorist who authored more than 100 books.

3 Elia Kazan Died at 94 (1909-2003) Elia Kazan was a Greek-American director, producer, writer and actor, described by The New York Times as "one of the most honored and influential directors in Broadway and Hollywood ...more

4 Yılmaz Güney Died at 47 (1937-1984) Yılmaz Güney was a kurdish film director, scenarist, novelist, and actor of Zaza People origin. Many of his works were devoted to the plight of ordinary, working class people in Turkey. ...more

5 Fatih Akın age 45 Fatih Akın is a German film director, screenwriter and producer of Turkish descent.

6 Memduh Ün age 98 Memduh Ün is a Turkish film producer, director, actor and screenwriter. His film The Broken Pots was entered into the 11th Berlin International Film Festival.

7 Cüneyt Arkın age 81 Fahrettin Cüreklibatır, better known by his stage name Cüneyt Arkın, is a Turkish film actor, director, and producer. Having starred in somewhere around 248 movies and also TV series, ...more

8 Nâzım Hikmet Died at 61 (1902-1963) Nâzım Hikmet Ran, commonly known as Nâzım Hikmet was a Turkish poet, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, director and memoirist. He was acclaimed for the "lyrical flow of his ...more

9 İbrahim Tatlıses age 66 İbrahim Tatlıses is a Turkish folk singer and former actor. He was born in the city of Şanlıurfa. Tatlıses has recorded 42 albums, including notable albums such as Ayağında Kundura and Selam ...more

10 Kartal Tibet age 80 Kartal Tibet is a Turkish actor and film director. Some of his famous films include Ölmeyen Aşk, Dağlar Kızı, Senede Bir Gün, Sultan, Zübük, Gol Kralı, Gol Krale and Şalvar ...more

11 İhsan Yüce Died at 62 (1929-1991) İhsan Yüce was a Turkish actor and occasionally, scenarist and director.

12 Fikret Hakan age 84 Fikret Hakan is a prolific Turkish film actor and a recipient of the honorary State Artist, a prestigious title awarded by the Turkish government. Hakan began his artistic career in 1950 as an ...more

13 Osman F. Seden Died at 74 (1924-1998) Osman Fahir Seden usually credited as Osman F. Seden was a Turkish film director, screenwriter and film producer. He directed and wrote for over 120 films between 1955 and 1987.

14 Türker İnanoğlu age 82 Türker İnanoğlu is a Turkish screenwriter, film director and producer.

15 Atıf Yılmaz Died at 81 (1925-2006) Atıf Yılmaz Batıbeki was a renowned Turkish film director, screenwriter, and film producer. He was almost a legend in the film industry of Turkey with 119 movies directed. He also wrote 53 ...more

16 Nuri Bilge Ceylan age 59 Nuri Bilge Ceylan is a Turkish photographer, screenwriter, actor, and film director. He was the winner of the Palme d'Or, the highest prize at the Cannes Film Festival, in 2014. He is married to ...more

17 Mehmet Aslantuğ age 57 Mehmet Aslantug is an actor.

18 Emrah age 47 Emrah İpek, also known as Emrah is a Turkish singer and actor. Born in Ergani, Diyarbakır Province, he professionally entered the music world with his album Ağam Ağam already during his middle ...more

19 Tuncel Kurtiz Died at 77 (1936-2013) Tuncel Tayanç Kurtiz was a Turkish theatre, movie and TV series actor, playwright, and film director Since 1964, he acted in more than 70 movies, including many international

20 İlyas Salman age 69 İlyas Salman is a Turkish actor, film director, author, screenwriter and musician. He shared the Adana Golden Boll International Film Festival's Best Actor Award in 2012 together with Engin ...more

21 Fatma Girik age 76 Fatma Girik is a Turkish actress and later politician.

22 Kenan Işık age 71 Kenan Işık is a leading Turkish actor, anchorman, author, director, dubbing artist, screenwriter, and television host.

23 Yılmaz Erdoğan age 51 Yılmaz Erdoğan is a Turkish filmmaker, actor and poet of Kurdish descent, who is most famous for his box-office record-breaking debut comedy film Vizontele and the television series Bir Demet ...more

24 Filiz Akın age 75 Filiz Akın is a Turkish film actress. She is one of the famous actresses in the history of Turkish cinema with more than 120 films, mostly in the 1960s and 1970s.

25 Başak Daşman age 37 Başak Daşman is an actress.

26 Ahmet Ağaoğlu Died at 70 (1869-1939) Ahmet Ağaoğlu, also known as Ahmed bey Agayev was a prominent Azerbaijani and Turkish publicist and journalist. He was recognized as one of the founders of pan-Turkism.

27 Zeki Demirkubuz age 54 Zeki Demirkubuz is a contemporary Turkish film director, screenwriter, producer and film editor.

28 Hayko Cepkin age 40 Hayko Cepkin is a Turkish musician of Armenian descent.

29 Ferzan Özpetek age 59 Ferzan Özpetek is a Turkish film director and screenwriter, residing in Italy; who also has Italian citizenship.

30 Ferdi Tayfur age 73 Ferdi Tayfur is one of Turkey's most successful and famous Turkish arabesque singer, actor and composer. In recent years, he has also become popular in Afghanistan, Lebanon, Trinidad and Tobago, ...more

31 Zülfü Livaneli age 72 Kendal is a film score composer.

32 Cem Yılmaz age 45 Cem Yılmaz is a Turkish stand-up comedian, actor and filmmaker and cartoonist, best known for his films G.O.R.A., A.R.O.G and Yahşi Batı, who has won two Sadri Alışık awards for his roles in ...more

33 Orhan Pamuk age 66 Ferit Orhan Pamuk is a Turkish citizen who born to Circassian parents novelist, screenwriter, academic and recipient of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Literature. One of Turkey's most prominent ...more

34 Mahsun Kırmızıgül age 49 Mahsun Kırmızıgül is an ethnic Zaza-Kurdish singer–songwriter, actor and a director of Turkey. Mahsun Kırmızıgül is also known as a businessman for his partnership in one of the ...more

35 Ferhan Şensoy age 67 Ferhan Şensoy is a prominent Turkish playwright, actor and stage director.

36 Abidin Dino Died at 80 (1913-1993) Abidin Dino, was a Turkish artist and a well-known painter.

37 Engin Günaydın age 46 Engin Günaydın is a Turkish actor and comedian.

38 Mert Fırat age 37 Mert Fırat is an actor.

39 Adnan Oktar age 62 Adnan Oktar, also known as Harun Yahya, is a Turkish author referred to as "the biggest propagator of ijaz literature" as well as an Islamic creationist. In 2007, he sent thousands of ...more

40 Çağan Irmak age 48 Çağan Irmak is a Turkish film and television writer and director, who has managed to attract a large audience in Turkey and is best known for the TV series Çemberimde Gül Oya ...more

41 Ata Demirer age 46 Ata Demirer is a Turkish filmmaker and stand-up comedian famous for a string of Turkish box-office hits including Berlin Kaplanı, Eyyvah Eyvah 2, Eyyvah Eyvah as well as being one of the top 10 ...more

42 Tunç Başaran age 80 Tunç Başaran is a Turkish screenwriter, film director, film producer and actor.

43 Semih Kaplanoğlu age 55 Semih Kaplanoğlu is a Turkish playwright, film director and producer.

44 Ahmet Ertegun Died at 83 (1923-2006) Ahmet Ertegün, was a Turkish-American businessman, songwriter and philanthropist. He was best known as the founder and president of Atlantic Records, and for discovering and championing ...more

45 Daron Acemoğlu age 51 Kamer Daron Acemoğlu is a Turkish-born American economist of Armenian origin.

46 A. I. Bezzerides Died at 99 (1908-2007) A.I. " Buzz" Bezzerides was an American novelist and screenwriter, best known for writing noir and action motion pictures, especially several of Warners' "social conscience" ...more

47 Haldun Taner Died at 71 (1915-1986) Haldun Taner was a well-known Turkish playwright and short story writer. He was born on March 16, 1915 in Istanbul. After graduating from the Galatasaray High School in 1935, he studied politics ...more

48 Ertem Eğilmez Died at 60 (1929-1989) Ertem Eğilmez was a Turkish film director, producer and screenwriter. He is known as the name behind some of the most popular films in Turkish film history. Many of these were produced by his ...more

49 Ara Güler age 90 Ara Güler is a Turkish Armenian photojournalist, nicknamed "the Eye of Istanbul" or "the Photographer of Istanbul". He is considered one of Turkey's few internationally

50 Halit Refiğ Died at 75 (1934-2009) Halit Refiğ was a Turkish film director, film producer, screenwriter and writer. He made around sixty films, including feature films, documentaries and TV serials. He is considered to be the ...more