Biography
Nazım Hikmet Ran is widely regarded as the most famous Turkish poet in the West. He was born in 1902, in Selanik, Ottoman Empire (Now Thessaloniki, in Greece). He was a communist and because of this, he exiled from Turkey and he lived most of his life in Moscow until his death in 1963. The poem which was written for the poor people of USSR; “Açların Gözbebekleri” (Pupils of The Hungry) and “Kız Çocuğu” (Little Maid), written for the children died in Hiroshima are the best known poems of him.
Nazım Hikmet began writing when he was very young. When he wrote first poem “Feryad-ı Vatan” (Cry Of Homeland), Ottoman Empire was on the verge of perish and this sensitive poem helped him to meet Yahya Kemal (Beyatlı); another famous Turkish poet whom he learned very much. His parents divorced when he was young and because of pneumonia he left Naval Academy of Istanbul; these incidents affected him badly. After all these, he began to publish his poems on Yeni Mecmua on 1918 and he won a prize with the poem “Hala Servilerde Ağlıyorlar mı?” (Are They Still Crying near Cypresses?).
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He began to write nationalist poems when Istanbul occupied by English. He wanted to fight against Allied Forces but army assigned him as a teacher and sent to a village in Anatolia. Then he moved to Moscow and studied on economics and politics in Eastern University. He returned İstanbul in 1924 and wrote for the journal Aydınlık for four years. Because of the poems he wrote in this time, he was charged with being a communist. He went back to Moscow and came back when amnesty law takes effect in 1928. In 1933, one more time, he was charged with several crimes including acting against regime, Nazım Hikmet was sentenced to 35 years imprisonment. He released in 1951, because of state of health.
After prison, Nazım Hikmet couldn’t find any job in newspapers or journals. In 1952, he called by army to serve military service in spite of suffering from pneumonia. In view of the circumstances, he decided to leave Turkey. He left his country last time and went to Moscow. After his escape, he was expatriated. He died in Moscow, in 1963.
Nazım Hikmet, mixed traditional and modern writing in his poems. He was the first poet who did not use rhyme and harmony depending on syllable. He wrote his poems for freedom. His poems encouraged his people and helped them to gain their freedom, but he lived a harsh life because of same poems.
Releases:
835 Satır (835 Lines) - 1929
Jokond ile Si-Ya-U (Gioconda and Si-Ya-U) - 1930
Varan 3 (This is 3rd) - 1930
1+1=1 - 1930
Sesini Kaybeden Şehir (The City Lost Its Voice) - 1931
Benerci Kendini Niçin Öldürdü? (Why Did Benerci Killed Himself?) - 1932
Gece Gelen Telgraf (The Telegram Came At Night) - 1932
Taranta Babu'ya Mektuplar (Letters To Taranta Babu) - 1935
Simavne Kadısı Oğlu Şeyh Bedreddin Destanı (The Saga Of Sheikh Bedreddin Son Of The Judge Of Simavne) - 1937
Saat 21-22 Şiirleri (21-22 O'clock Poems) - 1965
Memleketimden İnsan Manzaraları (Human Landscapes From My Homeland) - 1966
Rubailer - 1966
Yeni Şiirler (New Poems) - 1966
Kuvayi Milliye Destanı (The Saga Of The War Of Independence) - 1968
Son Şiirleri (Last Poems Of His) - 1970
Biography text from Last.fm, available under CC BY-SA.