ATATÜRK DECLARES!
Culture
The foundation of The Republic of Türkiye is culture. I don’t need to explain
this expression here once more. This has been determined as the work done in the
schools of the Turkish Republic in each case.
Culture means to read, to comprehend, to be able to see, and to make sense of
what you see, to think and to educate the mind.
The Children of Republic of Türkiye are the bearers of culture. So they have
their own culture and they have been convinced of the need to disseminate their
culture to the Turkish nation. 1936 (Afet İNAN, About Atatürk H.B., Page 261-62)
We shall endeavor to exalt the Turkish culture as a main desire of Republic
of Türkiye in every epoch. 1932 (Atatürk’s S.D. I, Page 358)
We mean a Culture compatible with our national characteristics and history
when we are talking about National Education Erogram. (July, 1924)
I believe the education program followed up to now contains the main elements
of our nation’s regression. Therefore when I speak of a national training
program I mean a culture compatible with our national character and history free
of foreign ideas. These ideas are not connected with our nature. They are
constituted of the superstitions of the past. Our culture must also be
completely removed from the influences from west and east. Our national
development can be achieved with this kind of culture. An ordinary foreign
culture can be the cause of the repetition of the results of the culture which
has been persuade till now. Culture is susceptible to environment. This
environment is formed by the characteristics of the nation. (July 15, 1921)
Most importantly, we are under the obligation to take the first place in the
world with our culture and virtue. (3 August 1932)
If a nation possessing no art can be conceived of, one of its vital vessels
is cut off.
The great current ideas of the world that provided the independence of the
world’s principal nations are opposed to individuals who try to find
administrative solutions within rotten systems. (1923)
We don’t mean the uneducated by ignorant. We mean to know reality with the
help of science. We know that the most ignorant persons can appear among the
educated as well as that the wisest, able to recognize reality may be found
among the uneducated. (22 March 1923)
The work that we succeeded in since the last general assembly has drawn up
the national aspect of the Republic of Türkiye with definite lines. The civilized
Turkish society is the work of these last years with their new alphabet,
national history, native language, art, science, and music and with technical
institutions and with equal rights for both men and women.
The high capacity and virtue of the Turkish Nation will be known
internationally after the definition of its existence with strong and deep roots
in culture. Each of these reforms ensure that the natural aspect to the Turkish
Nation can be taken in to consideration as great feats of which we may be
throughout history. (1935)
We mean, in a summary, the work of a society in cultural life, economical
life and state life is civilization nothing else. (1929)