National Sovereignty and Children's Day ( tr, Ulusal Egemenlik ve Çocuk Bayramı) is a

public holiday A public holiday, national holiday, or legal holiday is a holiday generally established by law and is usually a non-working day during the year. Sovereign nations and territories observe holidays based on events of significance to their history ...

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

commemorating the foundation of the

Grand National Assembly of Turkey The Grand National Assembly of Turkey ( tr, ), usually referred to simply as the TBMM or Parliament ( tr, or ''Parlamento''), is the unicameral Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by the Turkish Const ...

, on 23 April 1920. It is also observed by Northern Cyprus.

Background

23 April is the day that the

was founded in 1920. The national council denounced the government of the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed VI and announced a temporary constitution. During the

War of Independence This is a list of wars of independence (also called liberation wars). These wars may or may not have been successful in achieving a goal of independence. List See also * Lists of active separatist movements * List of civil wars * List o ...

, Grand National Assembly met in

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 ...

and laid down the foundations of a new, independent, secular and modern republic from the ashes of 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) ...

. Following the defeat of the Allied invasion forces on September 9, 1922 and the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne on July 24, 1923, the Turkish Government started the task of establishing the institutions of a state. 23 April was declared "National Sovereignty Day" on May 2, 1921. Since 1927, the holiday has also been celebrated as a children's day. Thus, Turkey became the first country to officially declare children's day a national holiday. In 1981, the holiday was officially named "National Sovereignty and Children's Day."

Customs

Every year, the children in Turkey celebrate National Sovereignty and Children's Day as a national holiday. Similar to other April events, Children's Day celebrations often take place outdoors. Schools participate in week-long ceremonies marked by performances in all fields in large stadiums watched by the entire nation. Students decorate their classrooms with flags, balloons and handmade ornaments. Anıtkabir is visited by children and politicians every year. Among the activities on this day, the children send their representatives to replace state officials and high ranking civil servants in their offices. The

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

, the cabinet ministers, provincial governors, and mayors all turn over their positions to children's representatives in a purely

ceremonial A ceremony (, ) is a unified ritualistic event with a purpose, usually consisting of a number of artistic components, performed on a special occasion. The word may be of Etruscan origin, via the Latin '' caerimonia''. Church and civil (secular ...

exercise. On this day, children also replace the parliamentarians in the Grand National Assembly and hold a ceremonial special session to discuss matters concerning children's issues. After

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 ...

proclaimed 1979 as the

International Year of the Child UNESCO proclaimed 1979 as the International Year of the Child.

, the

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 ...

(TRT) organized the first

TRT International April 23 Children's Festival TRT International April 23 Children's Festival is celebrated on April 23 each year in Turkey. This festival is gathering the children from all over the world under the motto of "Love, Friendship and Peace". The festival is organized by Turkish ...

. Five countries participated in this first holiday. Over the years, this number grew steadily, resulting in children from about 50 countries coming to Turkey in an official ceremony every year to participate in the festival. During the time, children stay with Turkish families and interact with the Turkish children and learn about each other's countries and cultures. The foreign children groups also participate in the ceremonial session of the Grand National Assembly.

Celebration gallery

File:Ataturk-23-4-1929-celebrations.jpg, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (mid) in

on the "Day of National Sovereignty", present-day the "National Sovereignty and Children's Day" (1929) File:Murat Boz Antalya2008.jpg,

Murat Boz Murat Boz (born 7 March 1980) is a Turkish singer, songwriter and actor. Boz began his solo career by releasing his first single, " Aşkı Bulamam Ben", in 2006. In the following year his first studio album titled ''Maximum'' (2007) was releas ...

performing on stage as part of the

(2008) File:Children'sDay07.JPG, Children from

North Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Yugoslavia. It ...

performing folk dance on the street in Istanbul (2014)

References

External links

* * https://www.matekostum.com.tr/yoresel-kiyafetler/ (Traditional clothing examples that are used in 23'rd April ceremonies in Turkey.) {{Public holidays in Turkey Public holidays in Turkey April observances Children's Day Spring (season) events in Turkey