Åževket Aziz Kansu
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Şevket Aziz Kansu (1903, Edirne–1983, Ankara) was a Turkish
physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...
and academic. He specialised in
anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, society, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behav ...
and
archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...
and was the first rector of
Ankara University Ankara University () is a public university, public research university in Ankara, the capital of Turkey. It was the first higher education institution founded in Turkey after the History of the Republic of Turkey, formation of the Turkish republ ...
.


Education and academic career

Kansu was born in
Edirne Edirne (; ), historically known as Orestias, Adrianople, is a city in Turkey, in the northwestern part of the Edirne Province, province of Edirne in Eastern Thrace. Situated from the Greek and from the Bulgarian borders, Edirne was the second c ...
. He studied medicine at
Istanbul University Istanbul University, also known as University of Istanbul (), is a Public university, public research university located in Istanbul, Turkey. Founded by Mehmed II on May 30, 1453, a day after Fall of Constantinople, the conquest of Constantinop ...
, graduating in 1923. In 1927, after completing compulsory government service and working as a medical doctor for two years in
Bala, Ankara Bala (also: ''Balâ'') is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Ankara Province, Turkey. Its area is 1,851 km2, and its population is 20,521 (2022). It is 67 km south-east of the city of Ankara. Its elevation is . Bala stan ...
, he went to Paris to study
anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, society, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behav ...
. He received a diploma in anthropological sciences from the Sorbonne in 1929. Returning to Turkey, Kansu worked both as a physician and an associate professor of anthropology at Istanbul University. He was appointed a full professor in 1934. In 1935 he moved from Istanbul to
Ankara Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and List of national capitals by area, the largest capital by area in the world. Located in the Central Anatolia Region, central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5,290,822 in its urban center ( ...
at the request of Atatürk, taking up a position at the newly established School of Language and History - Geography (). He served as the dean of that institution between 1942 and 1944, and when
Ankara University Ankara University () is a public university, public research university in Ankara, the capital of Turkey. It was the first higher education institution founded in Turkey after the History of the Republic of Turkey, formation of the Turkish republ ...
was established in 1946, Kansu was elected as its first rector. He held this position between 22 June 1946 and 26 April 1948.


Other posts

Although primarily a physician, Kansu was active in other areas of interest, such as
archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...
. He took part in excavations in Etiyokuşu, Tuzla, and Yarımburgaz.Who's who page
/ref> He was a member of the Turkish Academy of Medicine, the
Turkish Language Association The Turkish Language Association (, TDK) is the List of language regulators, regulatory body for the Turkish language, founded on 12 July 1932 by the initiative of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and headquartered in Ankara, Turkey. The Institution acts as ...
, the
Society of Anthropology of Paris The Society of Anthropology of Paris () is a French learned society for anthropology founded by Paul Broca in 1859. Broca served as the Secrétaire-général of SAP, and in that capacity responded to a letter from James Hunt welcoming the news th ...
, the Society of Anthropology of Rome, the
German Archaeological Institute The German Archaeological Institute (, ''DAI'') is a research institute in the field of archaeology (and other related fields). The DAI is a "federal agency" under the Federal Foreign Office, Federal Foreign Office of Germany. Status, tasks and ...
, the Florence Society of Anthropology and the Turkish Society of Cancerology. Between 1962 and 1973, he was the president of
Turkish Historical Society The Turkish Historical Society (; TTK) is a research society studying the history of Turkey and the Turkish people, founded in 1931 by the initiative of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, with headquarters in Ankara, Turkey. It has been described as "the Ke ...
.Official page of the Ankara University
/ref> Kansu died on 10 April 1983, in Ankara.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kansu, Sevket Aziz 1903 births 1983 deaths People from Edirne Istanbul University Faculty of Medicine alumni Academic staff of Istanbul University Academic staff of Ankara University University of Paris alumni Rectors of Ankara University 20th-century Turkish physicians Turkish anthropologists 20th-century Turkish archaeologists 20th-century anthropologists