İhsan Oktay Anar (born 1960 in

Yozgat Yozgat is a city and the capital district of Yozgat Province in the Central Anatolia Region of Turkey. According to 2019 census, population of the district is 421,200 of which 106,280 live in the city of Yozgat. History The first surveys were s ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

), is a Turkish writer, illustrator, literature translator and an academic. He studied philosophy in

Ege University Ege University or Aegean University ( tr, Ege Üniversitesi) is a public research university in Bornova, İzmir. It was founded in 1955 with the faculties of Medicine and Agriculture. It is the first university to start courses in İzmir and the ...

on undergraduate (1984), graduate (1989) and doctoral levels. Anar now teaches at the same university, lecturing in antique philosophy and

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

. In 2009, he won the

Erdal Öz Literature Award The Erdal Öz Prize is a Turkish literary award presented annually. It was established in 2008 by Can Publisher, in memory of author and founder of Can Publisher, Erdal Öz. The winner receives 15,000 Turkish liras, approximately US $500. Awar ...

"for his valuable novels and original style". Anar published his first novel, The Atlas of Misty Continents (''Puslu Kıtalar Atlası'') in 1995, also have a comic book version by caricaturist İlban Ertem, released in Spring of 2015. His novels are

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

pieces supported by historical facts and rumors especially related to the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

and a narration resembling fairy tales. He is known for well developed, various and original characters and providing a philosophical basis for his fantasy plots. Supernatural elements and references to folk literature and culture are commonly seen in his works. He uses a mixture of Ottoman and folk terminology within his Turkish writings, giving references to myths and historical scriptures. A trivial fact is that each of his books have a character named "Uzun İhsan" (meaning "Ihsan the Tall"), which is in fact a reference to himself. Anar is a tall and imposing figure, with a height over six feet four.

Works

;Novels: * The Nasty Hero (''Galiz Kahraman'') (2014) * Seventh Day (''Yedinci Gün'') (2012) * Taciturns (''Suskunlar'') (2007) * Amat (''Amat'') (2005) * Tales of Afrasiab (''Efrasiyab`ın Hikayeleri'') (1998) - later adapted for stage * The Book of Devices (''Kitab-ül Hiyel'') (1996) * The Atlas of Misty Continents (''Puslu Kıtalar Atlası'') (1995) ;Illustrations for ''Kitab-ül Hiyel'': * has published articles in the former newspaper ''Yeni Binyıl'' * has published a story in the book ''1002 Gece Masalları'' ;Academic articles published in Turkish: * Anar, İ.O., ''Er Efsanesinin Muhtemel Kökenleri'', Seminar, 1993, P.30-44. * Anar, İ.O., ''Sokrates Sorunu'', Seminar. 1990. pp. 1–9.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Anar, Ihsan Oktay Turkish non-fiction writers Turkish philosophers Turkish writers Ege University faculty 1960 births Living people