Feyyaz Berker (October 7, 1925 – August 22, 2017) was a Turkish businessmanTekfen Holding. He was one of the three co-founders and owners of the Tekfen Holding.

Biography

Born on October 7, 1925, in

Mersin Mersin (), also known as İçel, is a large city and a port on the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast of southern Turkey. It is the provincial capital of Mersin Province, Mersin (İçel) Province. It is made up of four municipalities and dis ...

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 ...

, Feeyaz was the son of Muhtar Berker, an

ophthalmologist Ophthalmology ( ) is a surgery, surgical subspecialty within medicine that deals with the diagnosis and treatment of eye disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Followin ...

based in Mersin, who was elected to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in 1939 as İçel deputy and remained in office until 1946. After completing his primary education in Mersin, Feyyaz enrolled in the American College in Tarsus, but after his family moved to

Ankara Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...

, he went to

Robert College The American Robert College of Istanbul ( tr, İstanbul Özel Amerikan Robert Lisesi or ), often shortened to Robert, or RC, is a Selective school, highly selective, Independent school, independent, mixed-sex education, co-educational Secondary ...

where received his diploma in

civil engineering Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewage ...

, subsequently he went to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

to earn a master's degree from the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. Then he returned to Turkey to finish his military service, and by 1950 he started working at the

Ministry of Public Works This list indicates government departments in various countries dedicated to public works or infrastructure. See also * Public works * Ministry or Board of Public Works, the imperial Chinese ministry overseeing public projects from the Tang ...

. After working as construction manager at

Ankara Esenboğa Airport Ankara Esenboğa Airport ( tr, Ankara Esenboğa Havalimanı) is the international airport of Ankara, the capital city of Turkey. It has been operating since 1955. In 2017, the airport has served more than 15 million passengers in total, 13 milli ...

, he became the Head of the Laboratory and Research Department of the Ministry of Public Works in 1954. Later, in 1956, he founded Tekfen Holding with Nihat Gökyiğit, his friend from Robert College, and Necati Akçağlılar, which became one of Turkey's leading holding companies. He also founded the Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen’s Association. Feyyaz Berker died on August 22, 2017, at the age of 92, and was buried in the

Aşiyan Asri Cemetery The Aşiyan Asri Cemetery ( tr, Aşiyan Asri Mezarlığı) is a burial ground situated on Aşiyan between the Bebek and Rumelihisarı neighborhoods of the European part of Istanbul, Turkey. Many renowned intellectuals, writers and artists rest i ...

Notes

References

* Berker,Feyyaz 2017 deaths 20th-century Turkish businesspeople Robert College alumni University of Michigan College of Engineering alumni Turkish expatriates in the United States Burials at Aşiyan Asri Cemetery People from Mersin {{Turkey-business-bio-stub