İDEALKENT

Yazarlar: Ahmet ÖZCAN

Konular:-

Anahtar Kelimeler:Secon hand booksellers (sahafs),Bibliophiles,Old boks,Ankara,Denizciler Street,Kızılay

Özet: This essay aims to provide information on second hand booksellers bibliophiles, and old books in Ankara. In Turkey, second hand booksellers are called sahaf. Since the Ottoman times, the sahafs have played an important role in the cultural life of the Turkish cities. Yet, we cannot say that sahafs have been the subjects of academic studies. Therefore, we have to rely on some oral sources and a small number of written documents. Before the Republican era, Ankara was a small city. The city did not have any bookstores, publishers, libraries. There had not been a literate population in the city either, however this changed quickly after Ankara became the capital city. The newly emergent intellectual residents of Ankara needed cultural institutions. From the 1940s, many cultural institutions, including universities emerged. During these years the first second-hand booksellers started to appear in Ankara around Ulus at the Denizciler Street. Then, Ulus was still the centre of the city. Over time, the city’s centre has moved southwards, towards Yenişehir, which aptly means “New City” in Turkish. The sahafs followed suit and moved to the Kocabeyoglu Bazaar in Kızılay. Since then, Kızılay continues to be the centre of sahafs in Ankara.

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