Hıfzı Topuz (born 25 January 1923) is a Turkish journalist,

travel writer The genre of travel literature encompasses outdoor literature, guide books, nature writing, and travel memoirs. One early travel memoirist in Western literature was Pausanias, a Greek geographer of the 2nd century CE. In the early modern period ...

and novelist. He also served as a lecturer on journalism at several universities.

Early life

Hıfzı Topuz was born 1923 in

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

. After finishing his secondary education at the

Galatasaray High School Galatasaray High School ( tr, Galatasaray Lisesi, french: Lycée de Galatasaray), established in what was then Constantinople and is now Istanbul, in 1481, is the oldest high school in Turkey. It is also the second-oldest Turkish educational in ...

in 1942, he studied law at

Istanbul University , image = Istanbul_University_logo.svg , image_size = 200px , latin_name = Universitas Istanbulensis , motto = tr, Tarihten Geleceğe Bilim Köprüsü , mottoeng = Science Bridge from Past to the Future , established = 1453 1846 1933 ...

, graduating in 1948. Later, he went to France, where he attended

University of Strasbourg The University of Strasbourg (french: Université de Strasbourg, Unistra) is a public research university located in Strasbourg, Alsace, France, with over 52,000 students and 3,300 researchers. The French university traces its history to the ea ...

to conduct further studies in

international law International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...

and

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (profes ...

between 1957 and 1959. In 1960, he earned a

doctoral degree A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''li ...

in journalism from the same university.

Professional career

After graduating from Istanbul University, Hıfzı Topuz entered journalism, and was employed between 1948 and 1957 at the daily newspaper ''

Akşam ''Akşam'' (''Evening'') is a Turkish newspaper founded in 1918, owned by Zeki Yeşildağ's Türk Medya Grup (T Medya Yatırım San. ve Tic. AŞ.) since 2013. In 2013 it had a circulation of around 100,000. History ''Akşams founders in 1918 incl ...

'', where he worked as a reporter and later as an editor. He co-founded Istanbul Journalists' Union, and served as its leader. During his time in France, he applied for a vacant post at the headquarters of

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. He worked as a travelling reporter for the organization between 1959 and 1983. He was responsible for projects like professional coordination between international organizations of journalism,

journalism ethics and standards Journalistic ethics and standards comprise principles of ethics and good practice applicable to journalists. This subset of media ethics is known as journalism's professional "code of ethics" and the "canons of journalism". The basic codes and c ...

journalism education A journalism school is a school or department, usually part of an established university, where journalists are trained. 'J-School' is an increasingly used term for a journalism department at a school or college. Journalists in most parts of th ...

and security of journalists. Topuz conducted seminars on journalism education in African countries, India and the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. He developed

rural area In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are descri ...

journalism project in

Black Africa Sub-Saharan Africa is, geographically, the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lies south of the Sahara. These include West Africa, East Africa, Central Africa, and Southern Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the African co ...

. While in Paris, Topuz interviewed for the Turkish daily newspapers notable people like painter

Fikret Mualla Fikret is a given name and may refer to: * Fikret Abdić (born 1939), Bosnian politician and businessman * Fikret Alić, Bosniak survivor of the 1992 Keraterm and Trnopolje concentration camps * Fikret Amirov (1922-1984),Azerbaijani composer * Fi ...

(1903–1967), poet

Nazım Hikmet A nazim is the coordinator of a city or town in Pakistan. Nazim or variant spellings may also refer to: *Nazim (given name), including a list of people with the given name *Nazim (surname), including a list of people with the surname See also *N ...

(1902–1963), journalist

Zekeriya Sertel Zekeriya Sertel, also known as Mehmet Zekeriya Sertel, (1890–1980) was a Turkish journalist. He is the first director of state press department and founder and editor of various periodicals. From 1950 to 1980 Sertel lived in exile. Early life ...

(1890–1980), painter

Abidin Dino Abidin Dino (23 March 1913 – 7 December 1993) was a Turkish artist and a well-known painter. Early years Dino was born on 23 March 1913 in Istanbul into an art-loving family. He was grandchild of Abedin Dino, Albanian descended Ottoman dipl ...

(1913–1993)), painter

Nejat Devrim Nejat (and its variants Necat and Nedžad) is a male name of Turkish origin. Nejat might be derived from the German word "Naja" meaning "well" or "Nadja" meaning "hope". The name might be derived from the Persian word "Nezhad" meaning "race and ...

(1923–1995) and General

Nikolaos Trikoupis Nikolaos Trikoupis ( el, Νικόλαος Τρικούπης; 1868–1956) was a Greek general and politician, most notable for his service in the Greco-Turkish War of 1919–1922, where he was taken as a prisoner of war. He also participate ...

(1869–1956), who commanded Greek troops during the

Turkish War of Independence The Turkish War of Independence "War of Liberation", also known figuratively as ''İstiklâl Harbi'' "Independence War" or ''Millî Mücadele'' "National Struggle" (19 May 1919 – 24 July 1923) was a series of military campaigns waged by th ...

and became a prisoner of war. Topuz planned in 1962 at the headquarters of UNESCO a project to establish the "College of Communications" (as its title then tr, Basın-Yayın Yüksek Okulu) at the

University of Ankara Ankara University ( tr, Ankara Üniversitesi) is a public university in Ankara, the capital city of Turkey. It was the first higher education institution founded in Turkey after the formation of the republic in 1923. The university has 40 vocati ...

. Invited by

İsmail Cem İpekçi Ishmael ''Ismaḗl''; Classical/Qur'anic Arabic: إِسْمَٰعِيْل; Modern Standard Arabic: إِسْمَاعِيْل ''ʾIsmāʿīl''; la, Ismael was the first son of Abraham, the common patriarch of the Abrahamic religions; and is cons ...

, the newly appointed head of the state-owned

Turkish Radio and Television Corporation The Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT; Turkish : ) is the national public broadcaster of Turkey, founded in 1964. TRT was for many years the only television and radio provider in Turkey. Before the introduction of commercial radio i ...

(TRT), he returned in 1974 to Turkey to lead the radio channels of TRT until 1975. He founded in 1986 the "İletişim Araştırmaları Derneği" (İLAD) (literally: Communications Research Association), whose president he still is. Topuz wrote for the daily newspapers ''

Vatan ''Vatan'' ("Homeland" or "Motherland") is a Turkish daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers ...

'', ''

Milliyet ''Milliyet'' ( Turkish for "''nationality''") is a Turkish daily newspaper published in Istanbul, Turkey. History and profile ''Milliyet'' came to publishing life at the Nuri Akça press in Babıali, Istanbul as a daily private newspaper on 3 ...

'' and ''

Cumhuriyet ''Cumhuriyet'' (; English: " Republic") is the oldest up-market Turkish daily newspaper. It has been described as "the most important independent public interest newspaper in contemporary Turkey". The newspaper was awarded the ''Freedom of Pres ...

'' and some magazines. He taught lectures on press, history of radio-television, international communication and political communication at the communications faculties of

Anadolu University Anadolu University ( tr, Anadolu Üniversitesi) is a public university in Eskişehir, Turkey. The university is known for its success in verbal fields such as history and communication. Its Faculty of Communication Sciences is sometimes considered ...

Galatasaray University Galatasaray University ( tr, Galatasaray Üniversitesi, french: Université Galatasaray) is a Turkish university established in İstanbul, Turkey in 1992, following an agreement signed in the presence of President François Mitterrand of France ...

and

Writer

Hıfzı Topuz wrote non-fiction on communications in addition to biographies, travel books and novels. He opened a new field in the

Turkish literature Turkish literature ( tr, Türk edebiyatı) comprises oral compositions and written texts in Turkic languages. The Ottoman and Azerbaijani forms of Turkish, which forms the basis of much of the written corpus, were highly influenced by Persian la ...

by choosing the subject matters of his novels from history or historical figures.

Awards

Hıfzı Topuz was honored in 1998 with the "Sertel Demokrasi Ödülü" (Sertel Democracy Award). He received in 2007 the "

Orhan Kemal Orhan Kemal (15 September 1914 – 2 June 1970) is the pen name of Turkish novelist Mehmet Raşit Öğütçü. He is known for his realist novels that describe the life of the poor in Turkey. Biography Orhan Kemal was born in Ceyhan, Adana, ...

Roman Armağanı" (Orhan Kemal Novel Prize) for his work ''Başın Öne Eğilmesin''. The "Afrika Diplomatik Akademisi" (ADA) (Africa Diplomatic Academy) awarded him in 2008 with its "Peace and Friendship Prize". In 2009, the "Çağdaş Gazetecier Derneği" (Association of Contemporary Journalists) awarded him with its "Honor Prize".

Bibliography

;Non-fiction: *''Basin sözlüğü: Fransızcadan Türkçeye Fransızcaya, İngilizce karşılıklı'' (1968) Yenilik Basımevi, 111pp *''100 soruda Türk basın tarihi'' (1973) Gerc̦ek Yayınev, 270pp *''Seçim savaşları: televizyon, radyo, basın ve afişle'' (1977) Milliyet, 134pp *''Uluslararası İletişim'' (1984) Anadolu Üniversitesi, 243pp *''Cumhuriyetʹin beş dönemeci'' (with Hüsamettin Ünsal) (1984) Sergi Yayınevi, 199pp *''İletişimde karikatür ve toplum'' (1986) Anadolu Üniversitesi, 109pp *''Basında tekelleşmeler'' (1989) İLAD, 111pp *''Yarının radyo ve televizyon düzeni: özgür, özerk ve çoğulcu bir alternatif'' (1990) İLAD, 191pp *''Türkiye'de sec̦im kampanyaları'' (1991) Türkiye Sosyal Ekonomik Siyasal Araștırmalar Vakfı, 85pp *''Siyasal reklamcılık: dünyadan ve Türkiye'den örneklerle'' (1991) Cem Yayınevi, 248pp , *''Seçimlerde iletişim politikaları'' (1991) TüSES, 230pp *''Kara Afrika sanatı'' (1992) Ant, 96pp *''Türk Basın Tarihi: II. Mahmut'tan holdinglere'' (1996) Remzi Kitabevi, 470pp *''Başlangıcından Bugüne Dünya Karikatürü'' (1997) İnkılâp Kitabevi, 264pp *''Dünyada ve Türkiye'de kültür politikaları'' (1998) Adam, 86pp ;Biographies: *''Konuklar geçiyor: TV'de "Her hafta bir konuk" programındaki konuşmalar, anılar'' (1975) Çağdaş Yayınları, 237pp *''Lumumba: Kara Afrikd̓a işkenceyle öldürülen ilk Başbakan'' (1987) Yön Yayıncılık, 199pp *''Paris'te son Osmanlılar: Mediha Sultan ve Damat Ferit'' (1999) Remzi Kitabevi (reprint 2005), 302pp , *''Hatice Sultan'' (2001) Remzi Kitabevi, 246pp , *''Nâzïm Hikmet: vivre comme un arbre, seul et libre, vivre en frères comme les arbres d'une forêt'' (2002) Turquoise, 335pp *''Gazi ve Fikriye'' (2006) Edition Orient, 286pp , *''Fikret Muallâ: anılar, resimler, fotoğraflar'' (2005) Everest Yayınları, 359pp , *''Abidin Dino: İkinci kitap, 1942-1952'' (2008) Kitap Yayınevi *''Abdülmecit: İmparatorluk Çökerken Sarayda 22 Yıl'' (2009) Remzi Kitabevi, 205pp *''Bana Atatürk'ü anlattılar'' (2010) Remzi Kitabevi, 167pp , ;Travel books: *''Kara Afrika'' (1971) Milliyet yayınları, 348pp *''Parisli yıllar'' (1994) Bilgi Yayinevi, 302pp *''Elveda Afrika-Hoşça Kal Paris'' (2005) Remzi Kitabevi, 462pp *''Nişantaşı Anıları'' (2009) Heyamola Yayınları, 134pp , ;Novels: *''Taif’te Ölüm'' (2000) Remzi Kitabevi, 255pp , *''Meyyâle'' (1998) Remzi Kitabevi (reprint 2001), 224pp , *''Eski Dostlar'' (2000) Remzi Kitabevi, 270pp *''Milli Mücadele'de Çamlıca'nın üç gülü'' (2002) Remzi Kitabevi, 287pp , *''Devrim yılları'' (2004) Remzi kitabevi, 287pp ISBN *''Tavcan: savaş yıllarında kültür devrimi roman'' (2005) Remzi Kitabevi, 221pp *''Başın Öne Eğilmesin: Sabahattin Ali'nin romanı'' (2006) Remzi Kitabevi, 264pp *''Özgürlüğe Kurşun'' (2007) Edition Orient, 254pp , *''Kara çığlık: Afrika'da başkaldırı ve aşk'' (2008) Remzi Kitabevi, 228pp ,

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Topuz, Hifzi 1923 births Galatasaray High School alumni Istanbul University Faculty of Law alumni University of Strasbourg alumni Turkish journalists UNICEF people Turkish civil servants 20th-century travel writers Turkish travel writers Turkish novelists Turkish non-fiction writers Turkish biographers Academic staff of Anadolu University Academic staff of Galatasaray University Academic staff of Istanbul University Living people Turkish officials of the United Nations Turkish expatriates in France Turkish centenarians Men centenarians