Kaytazzade Mehmet Nazım

Kaytazzade Mehmet Nazım (1857 – 1924) was one of the leading Turkish Cypriot poets of the nineteenth century.

Life

Mehmet Nazım was born in 1857 in Nicosia, Cyprus. After completing his education, he entered the public service in 1884 and served in various locations within the Ottoman Empire, including Chios Island, Adana, Istanbul, İzmir, and Bursa. He held positions of authority in these regions before resigning from his duties and returning to his native Cyprus in 1914.

Following a period of time spent in Istanbul, Nazım continued to live in Nicosia until his death in 1924.

Works

During his lifetime, Nazım published numerous works in local newspapers in Cyprus. These included gazel, songs, and other forms of poetry. One of his notable literary achievements is the novel "Yadigâr-ı Muhabbeti", which was serialized in a Cypriot newspaper between 1893 (or possibly 1894) and consisted of 39 episodes. This novel marked an important milestone in the development of Turkish literature in Cyprus, as it was the first novel written by a Turkish Cypriot author.

References

* Fedai, Harid (researcher who transcribed "Yadigâr-ı Muhabbeti" into Latin letters)

See Also

* 1857 births
* 1924 deaths
* People from Nicosia
* Poets of Cyprus