Mehmed Âkif Ersoy

The fact that Mehmed Âkif took Arabic lessons from his father, Tahir Efendi, who was a teacher in Fatih, at a young age is important as it shows the sources from which he was nourished. While he was studying at the high school of the Mülkiye School, his literature teacher, Muallim Naci, formed the basis of his poetry. During this period, he had the opportunity to get to know both Eastern and Western literature closely and was influenced by Sa’dî and Hâfız. In addition to Muallim Naci, he is influenced by metaphysical poems of Abdülhak Hamid Tarhan and the descriptions of nature by Recaizâde Mahmud Ekrem. Âkif, who successfully applied the aruz to Turkish, generally used a dialogue style in his poems. He takes inspiration from the Qur’an and hadiths by placing social issues at the center of his poetry. According to him, the salvation of Islamic societies is possible through hard work.