Measuring over sixty thousand skulls in Anatolia defined the career of Afet İnan, an academic effort intended to provide empirical evidence for the Turkish History Thesis. Her work spanned the disciplines of history and sociology, reflecting a broader attempt to codify the national identity of the Republic of Turkey through systematic research and historical investigation.
Early Life and Education
Born in 1908 in the Salonica vilayet, İnan experienced significant upheaval during her youth, including emigration to Adapazarı following the Balkan Wars. After the death of her mother in 1915, she pursued a teaching qualification to secure her independence. By 1925, she had graduated from the Bursa Teachers College for Girls and began working as an educator in İzmir. Later, she attended the Lycée Notre Dame de Sion Istanbul before traveling to Switzerland to study under Eugène Pittard at the University of Geneva. She earned her PhD in sociology there in 1939.
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İnan established herself as a significant figure in Turkish academia, serving as a professor at Ankara University starting in 1950. Her research interests were diverse, covering topics from the life of the admiral Piri Reis to the history of ancient Egypt. Central to her institutional impact was her role as a co-founder and leading member of the Turkish Historical Society, an organization dedicated to the rigorous study of the nation's past and the dissemination of historical findings through various publications.
Historical Contributions and Legacy
Throughout her life, İnan authored numerous works, including 'Medeni bilgiler ve M. Kemal Atatürk'ün el yazıları' and 'L'émancipation de la Femme Turque'. Her investigations into the anthropological characteristics of the Turkish population, published in 1939 as 'Recherches Sur les Caractéres Anthropologiques des Population de la Turquie', remain linked to her promotion of the Turkish History Thesis. She died in 1985 in Ankara and is buried at the Cebeci Asri Cemetery. Her memory is preserved through the biennial Afet İnan Historical Studies Award.
Fast facts
- Born: 1908, Salonica vilayet
- Died: 8 June 1985, Ankara
- Education: University of Geneva, Lycée Notre Dame de Sion Istanbul
- Occupation: Sociologist, historian, professor
- Academic affiliation: Ankara University
- Burial site: Cebeci Asri Cemetery
- Languages: Turkish
Questions readers ask
What was the purpose of Afet İnan's skull measurements?
She measured over sixty thousand skulls in Anatolia to support the Turkish History Thesis.
Where is Afet İnan buried?
She is buried at the Cebeci Asri Cemetery in Ankara.
Achievements
- Held posts at Ankara University
- Fields: history
