By Manal Abdel Fattah
The Turkish ambassador to Cairo, Salih Mutlu Şen, said, “Egypt was and still is a favorite destination for the Turks, as is the case with the Egyptians for Turkey. In the early twentieth century, many families used to travel to Egypt in the summer for the purpose of tourism, and some of them preferred to reside in Egypt for various reasons, and this What prompted the nationalist poet, Muhammad Akef Arsoy, to come to Egypt and reside in its capital, Cairo.
Mutlu Shen added, “We will never forget the virtue of Egypt, which hosted our national poet, Muhammad Akif Arsoy, and embraced him under the patronage of Abbas Halim Pasha.”
This came during an event held by the Yunus Emre Institute in Cairo (the Turkish Cultural Center), yesterday evening, Wednesday, on the eighty-seventh anniversary of the death of the Turkish poet and author of the Independence Anthem (the Turkish national anthem), Mehmet Akif Ersoy.
For his part, the director of the Yunus Emre Institute in Cairo, Amin Poyraz, confirmed in a speech he delivered during the event that “Akef lived many years of his life in Egypt and considered it his second country. He also taught the Turkish language at the Egyptian University (currently Cairo University), which adds importance.” Especially for our event here today.”
The event included playing the Turkish and Egyptian national anthems, mourning the souls of the martyrs, praying for them, and reciting verses from the Holy Quran.
This was followed by a presentation by the Educational Advisor at the Turkish Embassy, Prof. Dr. Ibrahim Aslan, in which he talked about the poet Muhammad Akef, his intellectual and literary personality, and his most important poems and poems. A selection of poems by the Turkish poet was recited by the institute’s students.
On December 27 of each year, various events are held in Turkey and its representations abroad, to commemorate the death of the nationalist poet “Mehmet Akif Ersoy,” who with his poetry renewed hope in the souls of the Turkish people and inflamed their patriotic feelings during the War of Independence that began after the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I.