Rıza Nur

Rıza Nur (1879 – 1942) was a Turkish surgeon, politician, writer, and intellectual. He is known for his involvement in the Turkish War of Independence and his subsequent career in politics and literature, though he remains a controversial figure due to his often provocative and nationalistic views.

Nur served as a member of the Turkish Grand National Assembly during the early years of the Republic of Turkey, holding the position of Minister of Education. He played a significant role in shaping early Turkish educational policies and institutions. Later, he served as a Turkish envoy to Paris.

His writings cover a wide range of topics, including history, politics, literature, and medicine. He is the author of "Hayat ve Hatıratım" (My Life and Memoirs), a multi-volume autobiography that offers insights into his life and the political landscape of the late Ottoman and early Republican periods. His historical works, while containing valuable information, are often criticized for their strongly biased and sometimes unsubstantiated claims. His views on race and language, particularly his theories about the origins of the Turkish language and identity, are considered by many scholars to be pseudoscientific and racially motivated.

His later life was marked by exile and a self-imposed isolation in France, where he continued to write and express his often controversial opinions. He died in Istanbul in 1942.