Nazim Hikmet

Nâzım Hikmet was one of the most important and influential figures in 20th-century Turkish literature. He was acclaimed for the "lyrical flow of his statements" and described as a "romantic communist" and a "romantic revolutionary". He was repeatedly arrested for his political beliefs and spent much of his adult life in prison or in exile. His poetry has been translated into more than 50 languages. He was also a prolific writer of plays, novels, memoirs, screenplays, and essays. He was a pioneer of modern Turkish poetry, breaking away from the traditional forms and themes and introducing free verse, colloquial language, and social realism. He was also a passionate advocate of internationalism, humanism, and peace. He influenced many Turkish and foreign poets with his innovative style and revolutionary ideas. He died of a heart attack in Moscow in 1963 and is still buried there, despite attempts to return his remains to Turkey. His final wish, which was never carried out, was to be buried under a plane tree in any village cemetery in Anatolia.