A critical consideration of nationalism, in conjunction with Islamism, in the case of Mehmet Akif Ersoy

This thesis analyzes the forms of nationalism ideology and its relation with religion on the ground of the Islamism ideology in the last century of the Ottoman Empire. After the Second Constitutional Monarchy Ottoman Empire experienced a social and religious awakening after the loss of the territorial lands. The effects of the imperial decline are obviously seen among Turkish intellectuals and writers during the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. As a result of the destructive effects of the war, ideological developments emerged among Ottoman Muslims in the wake of the salvation of the Ottoman Empire. Mehmet Akif Ersoy as a so-called national anthem writer considered a prominent name in the defense of national struggle mostly narrated within his epic vision and patriotic sense of his poems. In order to describe the situation of this era, the thesis focuses on the conceptualization of nation and Islam in the sense of national anthem writer Mehmet Akif Ersoy. However, Akif's consideration of nationalism observed changes in parallel to the socio-political experiences, his concept of nationalism and religion that meet in a synthesis needs explanations and clarifications around the debates of nationalism in the early years of the Turkish Republic. This thesis also suggests that Mehmet Akif as a name that has come to the fore with its national and religious identity should be questioned for his role in raising national awareness.