Hamit Zübeyr Koşay (1897-1984)

The construction of the Republican era occurred with the presence of hardworking, determined and idealist people. In the framework of Atatürk's ideas, the development of this situation gained speed in a short time. While evaluating the Republican period, it is possible not only to address the issue from a socio-political point of view, but also to illuminate the period with the lives of the people who have taken part in that period. Many intellectuals were called back on Turkey Republican period or had to come on their own demands. But the general characteristics of these intellectuals were that they completed their education in different countries. Therefore, they came to the Republic of Turkey after years of their youth. Unlike them, Hamit Zübeyr Koşay, who we will take into consideration, came to Istanbul at the age of nine, which can be counted as a young age, and continued his education there. Although this situation differentiates him from most of his counterparts, it causes him to regard these lands as his homeland. Hamit Zübeyr Koşay, who left his homeland at an early age and came to İstanbul for education, spent his life with effort, sacrifice and devotion, and the process he experienced created a calm and inward character. On the other hand, this situation did not cause an obstacle for him to shine like light through the work he did in the newly established Republic of Turkey. Koşay, who continued his education alone in İstanbul, completed his education and worked as a physical education teacher for a year, but he always pursued the desire to learn. While he was doing this task, he also took some Hungarian lessons. With the aim of studying higher education, he went to Hungary in 1917 and completed his doctorate on "Turkish Weapons Names". He spent his time in Hungary efficiently and had the opportunity to visit many countries such as Germany. Koşay, who received a higher education in the field of Philology, won the first place with his work Izgü Mescid in the competition named "What should be the duty of Turkish Youth?" and organized by Lausanne Türk Yurdu in 1922. Although Koşay, whose education in Hungary finished, wanted to return to his country, he could not go because of the tough conditions at those times. Thus, he returned to Turkey in 1925. He took part in various positions affiliated to the National Education. Hamit Zübeyr, who had a desire to work even during his retirement years, was one of the intellectuals from abroad, who worked in the fields of librarianship, archiving, history, philology, archaeology, ethnography, and literature. Keywords: archaeology, archive, Atatürk, Republic Era, ethnography, philology, Hamit Zübeyr Koşay, library.