Yusuf Halaçoğlu (born 10 May 1949, in Kozan,

Adana Adana is a large city in southern Turkey. The city is situated on the Seyhan River, inland from the northeastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea. It is the administrative seat of the Adana Province, Adana province, and has a population of 1 81 ...

) is a

Turkish Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The w ...

historian and politician. He is a former president of the

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 ...

and was a member of the

Turkish Parliament The Grand National Assembly of Turkey ( ), usually referred to simply as the GNAT or TBMM, also referred to as , in Turkish, is the unicameral Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by the Turkish Consti ...

from 2011 to 2017 representing the electoral district of

Kayseri Kayseri () is a large List of cities in Turkey, city in Central Anatolia, Turkey, and the capital of Kayseri Province, Kayseri province. Historically known as Caesarea (Mazaca), Caesarea, it has been the historical capital of Cappadocia since anc ...

for the

Nationalist Movement Party The Nationalist Movement Party, or alternatively translated as Nationalist Action Party (, MHP), is a Turkish Far-right politics, far-right, ultranationalism, ultranationalist Political parties in Turkey, political party. The group is often de ...

(MHP) and from 2017 for the

Good Party The Good Party (Turkish language, Turkish: ''İYİ Parti'') is a Turkish nationalism, nationalist, Kemalism, Kemalist and Conservatism, conservative List of political parties in Turkey, political party in Turkey, established on 25 October 2017 b ...

. As of 2024 he is

Leader Leadership, is defined as the ability of an individual, group, or organization to "", influence, or guide other individuals, teams, or organizations. "Leadership" is a contested term. Specialist literature debates various viewpoints on the co ...

of the Blessed Party (Kutlu Parti). He studied history 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 ...

and pursued an academic career at the same university after graduating in 1974. In 1983, he became an assistant professor. Halaçoğlu entered

Marmara University Marmara University (Turkish language, Turkish: ''Marmara Üniversitesi'') is a Public university, public research university in Istanbul, Turkey. The university, named after the Sea of Marmara, was founded as a university in 1982. However, its ...

in 1986, and in 1989 he was appointed a professor. After serving in leading positions at the Turkish State Archives, he returned to the university in 1992. From 1993 on, he served as the chairman of the

until his dismissal in 2008. He then returned to his chair at

Gazi University Gazi University () is a Public university, public research university located primarily in Ankara, Turkey. It was founded in 1926 by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk originally as the Gazi Education Institute (Turkish language, Turkish: ''Gazi Eğitim Ens ...

. In the 2011 general election, Halaçoğlu was elected into parliament, and was reelected in

June June is the sixth and current month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars—the latter the most widely used calendar in the world. Its length is 30 days. June succeeds May and precedes July. This month marks the start of su ...

and November 2015. In November 2015, the MHP nominated him for Parliamentary Speaker, where he finished on fourth place. In 2017 he left the MHP to be a founding member of a new party, the Good Party. He was deselected as a candidate for the 2018 Election After the 2018 elections, he resigned from the Good Party.

Views

Halaçoğlu is a well-known researcher on Armenian genocide and has authored several works that mitigate the suffering the Armenians underwent during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. He also preferred the term relocation to deportation, as the displacement had taken place within the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. He places the number of deaths during the deportations, which he calls "forced relocations", at no higher than 9,000-10,000 (as opposed to the 600,000 to 1,500,000 that is widely stated by those who acknowledge the genocide).See, for example, Yusuf Halaçoğlu, "Realities Behind Relocation," in ''Armenians in the Late Ottoman Period'', ed. Türkkaya Ataöv. Ankara: Turkish Historical Society, 2001, pp. 109-42, figure on p. 140. His views are parallel to the official Turkish state thesis according to which the massacres and death marches did not constitute genocide. He compared it to the relocations the USA undertook with the

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. His research has been criticized by such scholars as

Taner Akçam Altuğ Taner Akçam (born 1953) is a Turkish-German historian and sociologist. During the 1990s, he was the first Turkish scholar to acknowledge the Armenian genocide, and has written several books on the genocide, such as '' A Shameful Act'' ...

. In 2008 Halaçoğlu was dismissed from his post as the head of the Turkish Historical Society for his controversial claims about Armenians and Kurds. In regards to Kurds he denied the Kurd referred to an own ethnicity in Ottoman times, but that this was used as a general denomination for the nomads. In the year 2004 he was prosecuted in

Winterthur Winterthur (; ) is a city in the canton of Zurich in northern Switzerland. With over 120,000 residents, it is the country's List of cities in Switzerland, sixth-largest city by population, as well as its ninth-largest agglomeration with about 14 ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

after he denied the

Armenian genocide The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenians, Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was implemented primarily t ...

in a speech he held at the Turkish Association in Winterthur. In 2007, Halaçoğlu claimed that he had a list of

crypto-Armenians Hidden Armenians (; ) or crypto-Armenians () is an umbrella term to describe Turkey, Turkish citizens hiding their full or partial Armenians, Armenian ancestry from the larger Turkish society. They are mostly descendants of Ottoman Armenians who, ...

living in Turkey and threatened to publish it. He also claimed that the Dersim

Alevis Alevism (; ; ) is a syncretic heterodox Islamic tradition, whose adherents follow the mystical Islamic teachings of Haji Bektash Veli, who taught the teachings of the Twelve Imams, whilst incorporating some traditions from shamanism. Differing ...

are Armenian.

References

External links

Tribes of Anatolia, about the author (in Turkish)

Grand National Assembly of Turkey, list of deputies (in Turkish)
* https://twitter.com/yusufhalacoglu {{DEFAULTSORT:Halacoglu, Yusuf 1949 births Living people People from Kozan, Adana Ethnic Afshar people Deniers of the Armenian genocide 20th-century Turkish historians 21st-century Turkish historians Deputies of Kayseri Nationalist Movement Party politicians Istanbul University alumni Academic staff of Marmara University Academic staff of Gazi University Members of the 25th Parliament of Turkey Members of the 24th Parliament of Turkey Members of the 26th Parliament of Turkey Former Good Party politicians