The Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation
The Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation (WLICF) is the first and only women-centred library and archive in Turkey. It was founded in Istanbul by Aslı Davaz, Füsun Akatlı, Füsun Ertuğ, Jale Baysal, and Şirin Tekeli; and opened to the public on 14 April, 1990. At that time, the women’s movement in Turkey had already gathered a wealth of documents related to the struggle for women’s rights. These documents concerned issues such as equal pay for equal work, equality in civil rights, ending all kinds of violence against women and equal representation in parliament. The collections of the Women’s Library in Istanbul are organized in sixteen main sections: Women’s Private Papers, Women’s Oral History, Women’s Organizations, Ephemera, Women Writers, Women Artists, Visual Documents, Audio Material, Posters, Art Collections, Newspaper Clippings, Books, Periodicals, Rare Material, Thesis-Dissertations and Articles.
These documents are unique and cannot be found elsewhere. Because libraries and archives centres in general do not have an acquisition policy regarding the women’s movement documents in Turkey, large quantities of ephemeral material regarding the women’s movement is only kept by the Women’s Library. The institution frames and constitutes the memory of women and the women’s movement, and the growth of our collection is parallel to the development of the feminist consciousness in Turkey.
Since its foundation, the WLICF has acquired valuable primary sources, such as Ottoman women’s periodicals. These include, for instance, the valuable journal Hanımlara Mahsus Gazete (Newspaper for Ladies; 1895-1908) in its original bindings. Its 612 issues retrace many aspects of the life, the work and the aspirations of late Ottoman women in a total of 3672 pages. Among other important documents are the issues of Hay Gin (Armenian Women), an Armenian women’s periodical published from 1919 to 1933 by Armenian feminist writer and journalist, Hayganuş Mark (1885-1966). The art collection of the Women’s Library holds paintings and sculptures by Turkish women artists, such as Aliye Berger (1903-1974), Füreya Koral (1910-1994) and Gülsün Karamustafa, covering a period between 1951 and 2017. A rich collection of posters including a unique lithography from the period of the Turkish War of Independence (1919-1922), calling women to join the Liberation Army Corps, reflects many aspects of women’s history in Turkey.
A thesis entitled The World of Müeyyet Selim by Hanife Karasu from Bilgi University’s History Department is a good example of the use of the primary sources in our collection. The thesis focuses on the life and thought of Müeyyet Selim, an Albanian Muslim woman who migrated from Macedonia to Istanbul through the 1923 Population Exchange Treaty between Greece and Turkey. The research is based on Müeyyet Selim’s diaries, which are a part of her private papers, also preserved in the Foundation.
Interesting primary sources related to the history of the international women’s movement are also kept in our holdings. Among these, for example, is Kadınlar Dünyası (Women’s World; 1913-1921), an Ottoman feminist periodical with eight issues published entirely in French, partly to inform the foreign press of the situation, the struggle and the claims of Ottoman women, and partly to create a dialogue with their European counterparts. Türk Kadın Yolu (The Turkish Women’s Path; 1925-1927), the official journal of the Union of Turkish Women, the last women’s periodical published in Ottoman script, is the only journal of the first wave feminist movement in Turkey at that time. It also sheds light on the international relations of early republican feminists. A section of this journal entitled World Women’s Post published writings and correspondence between Turkish feminists and their Western counterparts.When defining the issues surrounding gender and archiving in the collections of the Women’s Library, we have to underline that the women’s archives movement is at the beginning of this historical process.
Although individual efforts to preserve the private papers of women and organizational documents started long ago, a systematic preservation movement started only twenty-eight years ago with the foundation of the Women’s Library in Istanbul.
It is important to keep in mind that the donation of private archives by women is rather a new concept in Turkey; and the donation of documents before passing away is particularly rare. The first woman who donated her private papers to the Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation was Hasene Ilgaz (1902-2000), former MP. Besides this, there are a number of archives which were obtained by the special efforts and demands of the archive department of the Women’s Library. One of the best examples is the comprehensive archive of Süreyya Ağaoğlu (1903-1989), one of the first woman jurists in Turkey.
The Library also has organized a considerable amount of cultural activities such as lectures, panel discussions, celebrations, concerts since its opening date. In addition to these activities, the Library has carried out many projects. Among these, Turkey’s European Women’s Thesaurus, the FRAGEN Project, and the “Ottoman Women’s Memories” Publication Series must be highlighted since they are very significant to expand the visibility of women both locally and internationally. Turkey’s European Women’s Thesaurus is a result of the 4 year collective study in which many experts and academics took part in order to provide a tool for indexing and retrieving women’s information in databases, on internet and in the collections of libraries and archives for researchers. As a result of the project, the newly translated 2687 terms have been adapted to Turkish language’s structure. In 20 different research areas such as politics, law, economy, education, religion, culture etc., many new terms are uniquely generated for Turkey. The FRAGEN Project is a European Union project that aims to bring the feminist movement’s important texts from the late 20th century into one unified platform. Along with 28 European countries, the Library has participated in the project as the representative of Turkey. Only for the project, the Library with the contributions from all over the country chose 10 texts out of all the books, the declarations, the periodicals, and the campaigns that represent the milestones of Turkey’s women’s movement from 1960 to these days. Furthermore, the Library has transliterated 8 women’s periodicals published between 1850 and 1928 for the 20th anniversary of its foundation.
The Library also publishes an annual thematic calendar. In addition to its visual content and many functions, the calendars are crucial for promoting the Library and the inspiring women of Turkey; they are also a fundamental source of income for the Library. The bibliographies, the catalogues, the annotated catalogues, the women’s private papers’ catalogues, and Turkey’s European Women’s Thesaurus are some of the publications of the Library.
The Library is open on weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. You can also support the Library by sending your donations to Vakıflar Bankası, Etiler, account number 2009197, IBAN: TR44 0001 5001 5800 7286 1371 75. Moreover, we also need assistance of persons who will voluntarily work at the Library in their spare time.
EVENTS
“Leman Şenalp”- Commemoration Meeting / June 14, 2019
Event for the 36th Foundations Week – “Women’s Events during Ramadan in the Ottoman Period” – Panel 8 / May 8, 2019
Feminist, Suffragist, Poet, Pianist and Painter Hortense Wood and her Archives – Conference / April 24, 2019
Authors of the Ayizi Publishing House Discuss Their Books – Panel / April 17, 2019
29th Anniversary Festival of the Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation / April 13, 2019
Event for the 55th Library Week “On the 10th Anniversary of Her Departure – Jale Baysal” Memorial Meeting / March 27, 2019
“Istanbul Scented Kitchens”, 32 Great Women, Different Cuisines, Different Lives – Book Launch / March 6, 2019
The Sin of Being a Woman – Documentary Screening / February 8, 2019
Private Archives Conference Series: “Taha Toros Archives”/February 6, 2019
Private Archives Conference Series: “Personal Archives”/January 23, 2019
Private Archives Conference Series: “Studies in Corporate Identity”/January 9, 2019
Private Archives Conference Series: “Organizing Private Archives: A Road Map”/ December 26, 2018
Private Archives Conference Series: “Ephemera: The Problem of Identification and Examples of Practical Cases”
Private Archives Conference Series: “The Institutionalization of Women’s Private Archives”/November 28, 2018
Private Archives Conference Series: “Private Archives and the Memoirs and Observations of a Secondhand Bookdealer/November 14, 2018
Private Archives Conference Series: “Making Private Archives Visible and Accessible”/October 31, 2018
Private Archives Conference Series: “What the Archives of Authors Can Tell Us” / October 17, 2018
Friends of the Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation Support Exhibition / 4 – 23 June 2018
Event for 35th Foundations Week – “Foundations Established by Women at the Start of the 21st Century” – Panel in Memory of Şirin Tekeli / June 13, 2018
Oral History Training Program & Certificate: “Learning from Women: The Transfer of Knowledge Between Generations and Classes of Women” – Session 5 / May 27, 2018
Oral History Training Program & Certificate: The Narratives of Women of Notable Families – Session 4 / May 26 2018
“The Big Spring Auction” in Support of The Women’s Library / May 20, 2018
Oral History Training Program & Certificate: “The Gender of Remembering: Memory, Experience and Narrative” – Session 3 / May 19, 2018
Oral History Training Program & Certificate “Examples of Oral History Studies in Universities at the Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree Levels” – Session 2 / May 12, 2018
“Women Architects and Their Works of the 20th Century” – Conference / May 8, 2018
Oral History Training Program & Certificate: “The Place, Importance, Method and Examples of Oral History Studies in Feminist History Writing” – Session 1 / May 5, 2018
Text Analysis with Maxqda – Workshop / May 3, 2018
Presentation Meeting for the Digitization Project of the Müfide İlhan Archive / May 2, 2018
“Discovering the World of Müeyyet Selim” – Talk / April 28, 2018
“Kaktüsler Susuz da Yaşar” Why Should We Not Forget? – Book Launch / April 28, 2018
Women’s Archives at the Social History Research Foundation of Turkey (TÜSTAV) – Conference / April 20, 2018
28th Anniversary Festival of the Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation / April 14, 2018
Text Analysis with Maxqda – Workshop / April 13, 2018
Event for the 54th Library Week “Effects of a Women Centered Book Collection on Cultural Change” – Talk / March 29, 2018
“Feminist Criticism in Literature 2” – Seminar / March 25, 2018
FeMINAMING WRITING Sweden-Turkey Literature Meeting: “Forum: Love and Sexuality in Literature” / March 16, 2018
FeMINAMING WRITING Sweden-Turkey Literature Meeting: “Forum: Publishing” / March 16, 2018
FeMINAMING WRITING Sweden-Turkey Literature Meeting: “Reading and Conversation on “The Boys” / March 16, 2018
FeMINAMING WRITING Sweden-Turkey Literature Meeting: “Female Characters in Graphic Novels” / March 14, 2018
FeMINAMING WRITING Sweden-Turkey Literature Meeting: “Roundtable: Motherhood in Literature” / March 13, 2018
FeMINAMING WRITING Sweden-Turkey Literature Meeting: “Panel and Reading: Poetry, Language and Gender” / March 11, 2018
FeMINAMING WRITING Sweden-Turkey Literature Meeting: “Roundtable: Form and Language in Storytelling” / March 11, 2018
8th March Event “Women’s Thesaurus in Turkey: Practical Uses” – Panel and Workshop / March 10, 2018
“The History of the Institutionalization of Gender and Women’s Studies in Turkey” – Conference / March 9, 2018
Women’s Struggle for Equality from the Ottoman Period to Today – Conference / March 9, 2018
“The World if History Was Written by Women” – Talk / March 7, 2018
“Feminist Criticism in Literature 1” – Seminar / March 3, 2018
“Women Were Always Here: Portraits of Women from Turkey’s Justify” – Panel / February 17, 2018
Antique Good Market and Launch / 20-21 January 2018
Baroque Music Concert / November 9, 2017
“Our Memories of Şirin” – Memorial / June 17, 2017
Auctions for Secondhand Goods / May 24, 2017 / December 19, 2017
PROJECTS
Since the establishment of the Women’s Library in 1990, the foundation has organized a wide range of activites and events in line with its mission, and has enriched its archives and collections with the acquisition of new works. With the generous support of other institutions and individuals, the foundation has also launched projects with the aim of facilitating research and access to the library’s resources, such as the production of new publications and the creation of new sources from continuing studies of oral history.
Women’s Memory – Series 2 (2017 – 2020)
A second phase of the Women’s Memory project was initiated in July 2017, for the 30th anniversary of the Women’s Library. Another 32 periodicals, previously not translated, and dating from 1869-1926 were transliterated from Ottoman Turkish with the support of voluntary translators.
Transliterated Periodicals:
Terakki (Progress) 1869 – 1870
Ayine (Mirror) 1875 – 1876
Hanımlar (Ladies) 1882
Vakit Yahut Mürebbi-i Muhadderat (Time or the Training of Women) 1875
İnsaniyet (Humanity) 1882 – 1883
Mürüvvet (Benevolence) 1887
Parça Bohçası (Bundle of Pieces) 1889
Şükufezar (Flower Garden) 1887
Hanımlara Mahsus Gazete (Newspaper for Ladies) 1895 – 1908
Hanımlara Mahsus Malumat (Information Special to Ladies) 1895 – 1896
Alem-i Nisvan (World of Women) 1906
Demet (Bouquet) 1908
Kadın Selanik (Woman – Thessaloniki) 1908 – 1909
Mahasin (Things Beautiful) 1908 – 1909
Kadın İstanbul (Woman Istanbul) 1911 – 1912
Musavver Kadın (Imagined Woman) 1911
Kadınlar Dünyası (Women’s World) 1913 – 1921
Kadınlık Hayatı (Life of Womanhood) 1913
Erkekler Dünyası (Men’s World) 1913
Hanımlar Alemi (Ladies’ World) 1914 – 1918
Kadınlar Alemi (The World of Women) 1914
Kadınlık (Womanhood) 1914
Seyyâle (Stream) 1914
Siyanet (Safekeeping) 1914
Bilgi Yurdu Işığı (The Light of the Homeland of Knowledge) 1917 – 1918
İnci / Yeni İnci (Pearl/ New Pearl) 1919 – 1922
Diyane (Our Mother / Mother of the Nation) 1920
Ev Hocası (Housekeeper) 1923
Süs (Ornament) 1923 – 1924
Firuze 1924
Asar-ı Nisvan (Works of Women) 1925
Çalıkuşu (Wren) 1926
Project Coordinator: Aslı Davaz, Birsen Talay Keşoğlu
Sönmez Taner Private Archive Digitization Project (22 June – 15 August 2018)
In 2018 The Taner Sönmez Private Archives from the Private Archives Collection of the Women’s Library were made digitally accessible through the scanning of 863 documents and entry to the digital catalogue. The documents were reviewed by Sönmez Taner in December 2018 before online access to the archive was made available on the library’s website.
Project Sponsor: Sönmez Taner
Project Coordinator: Hülya Hayatseven
Project Manager: Gizem Yıldız
Nazan Moroğlu Private Archive Digitization Project (1 March – 6 June 2018)
Within the scope of the library digitization project, 1194 documents belonging to Nazan Moroğlu’s Private Archives from the Foundation’s Private Archives Collection were scanned and digitized and catalogue entries were made. Approval was obtained from Nazan Moroğlu for online access to the archive to be made available via our website.
Project Sponsor: Nazan Moroğlu
Project Coordinator: Hülya Hayatseven
Project Manager: Gizem Yıldız
Müfide İlhan Private Archive Digitization Project (1 January – 1 April 2018)
1010 documents belonging to the Müfide İlhan Private Archives found in the Private Archives Collection of the Foundation were scanned, entered to the catalogue and made digitally available. The identification of the photographs found in the archive was carried out with Simla İlhan, the daughter of Müfide İlhan, and consent was obtained from the family prior to making online access to the archive available on our website.
Project Sponsors: the friends and family of Müfide İlhan: Simla İlhan, Gül Önür, Nimla Heplevent, Ayla Börekçi, Leyla Alkan, Turgut İlhan, Çağatay Önür, Sabri Soydan, Sebla Bora, Selçuk Börekçi, Doruk Börekçi, Burak Heplevent, Muna İlhan, Cengiz İlhan, Hakan İlhan, Faruk Heplevent
Project Coordinator: Hülya Hayatseven
Project Manager: Gizem Yıldız
Project Consultant: Özkan Güner
“Institutionalization of the Women’s Movement in Turkey – Oral History Project” (2017 – 2018)
Launched in 2017, this project aimed to put forth the history of the Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation, an organization that strives to be a resource for research on women’s history. Interviews with individuals, volunteers and members of the foundation who have witnessed and been invovled with the growth of the organization shared insight into the establishment of the foundation, the goals and activities, the administrative structure, and the difficulties encountered concerning the foundations status as a non-governmental organization.
Project Manager: Nazlıcan Bayraktar
Dinarsu Women’s Football Team – Oral History Project (2016)
An Oral History meeting was held with four team members from the Dinarsu Women’s Football team (Çiğdem Kayhan, Handan Kasapoğlu, Aysun Boyacı and Füsun Ocal) under the direction of the Deputy Coordinator of the library, Nazlıcan Bayraktar. The project aimed to shed light on the difficulties encountered by women footballers in the context of sports and gender relations.
Project Manager: Nazlıcan Bayraktar
Violence against Women in East / West, War / Peace (29 – 30 November 2015)
In collaboration with Boğaziçi University and the Swedish Consulate General in Istanbul, the Women’s Library and Information Centre organized an international symposium entitled “Violence against Women in East / West, War / Peace” as part of the event program designed on the occasion of the Foundation’s 25th anniversary.
The symposium took place on November 29, 2015 and consisted of three sessions: “Global, Regional and Local Forms of Violence”, “Policies and Practices of Violence” and “Violence Against Differences”, in which speakers from various countries (including lawyers, legislators, politicians, and civil activists) addressed violence against women in war and peace-time and women of different sexual orientation.
Writing Women’s Lives: Auto/Biography, Life Narratives, Myths and Historiography (19 – 20 April 2014)
On 19 – 20 April 2014 The Women’s Library and Information Centre, in collaboration wth Yeditepe University’s History Department and the Information Center Foundation (KEKBMV) organized an international symposium entitled “Writing Women’s Lives: Auto/Biography, Life Narratives, Myths and Historiography”. Over 200 researchers from 5 continents took part in the symposium and discussed their work in the field of “Writing Women’s Lives”, sharing insight into the women they shed new light on in their writing as well as their own life experiences. This was the first international symposium held in Turkey on this topic with attendance from so many different countries.
The symposium presented papers from a very broad and multidisciplinary range of work on writing women’s lives, including: writing historical female characters in literary, artistic and scientific texts; feminist/female auto/biographical writing; theory and method in writing women’s history; ethical issues in historical writing and life narratives; female-centered mythologies on global, regional and local scales; specific challenges faced in writing life narratives; social memory; gender relations and feminist/female auto/biographical writing; writing men in feminist/female memoirs.
Digitization Project (2012 – 2013)
Within the scope of this project carried out between 2012 and 2013 various works from the Poster Collection and Rare Books Collection, visuals from the Süreyya Ağaoğlu Collection of the Private Archives Collection, and 2200 prints from the Visual Archive were digitized. Prior to and during the digitization operation, the selected materials were checked, worn envelopes were replaced and cleaned materials were stored and labelled. Moreover, it was ensured that rare works and archival documents were protected from unsuitable copying methods and were preserved correctly.
The Fragen Project (2010)
FRAGEN (FRAmes on GENder) is a European Union funded project supported by the QUING Project (Quality in Gender + Equality Politics), that aims to gather core feminist texts from the second wave of feminism in Europe and make them available to researchers in an easily accessible online database. The Women’s Library and Information Centre was the only participant from Turkey to the project.
From among the widespread participation across the country, 10 works were selected including books, articles, periodicals and pamphlets dating from 1960 to 2010 that constitute the turning point of the women’s movement in Turkey. These materials, alongside a selection of documents from 29 countries that were influential in the development of feminist ideas during the second half of the 20th century were digitized and made available online.
https://institute-genderequality.org/frames-on-gender/
Women’s Memory – Series 1 (2009 – 2011)
On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation, the Women’s Memory Series Transliteration Project was launched with the support of the Finnish Embassy, in order to make Ottoman Women’s Periodicals available and accessible for researchers who do not read Ottoman Turkish. Within the scope of this project, the following periodicals were transliterated:
Türk Kadın Yolu (Turkish Women’s Path) 1925 – 1927
Hanımlara Mahsus Gazete (Newspaper for Ladies) 1895 – 1908
Kadınlar Dünyası (Women’s World) 1913 – 1921
Kadın (Woman) 1908 – 1909
Türk Kadını (Turkish Women) 1918 – 1919
Genç Kadın (Young Woman) 1919
Aile (Family) 1880
Hanım (Lady) 1921
The project hence shed light on the women of the Ottoman period, including their problems, their search for solutions, their thinking on themselves and society, their struggle for rights, their associations, their efforts to participate in work life, and their thinking and writing activites.
Istanbul Women – Women Istanbul (2009 – 2010)
An eighteen month project entitled “Istanbul Women – Women Istanbul” was launched by the Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation with the support of the 2010 European Capitol of Culture Agency. The goals of the project were established as: to make visible women and women’s history in Istanbul; to bring to light forgotten and ongoing folkloric values; to reveal the roles of women in the cultural history of Istanbul; to examine historical homes that were built for or lived in by women of Istanbul from a female perspective, and to visit these places with a guided tour and create awareness.
The Problem of Sources in Forming Women’s Memory from the Ottoman Period to the Present Day (17 – 19 April 2009)
On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation, the symposium entitled “The Problem of Sources in Forming Women’s Memory from the Ottoman Period to the Present Day” was organized with Kadir Has University between 17 – 19 April 2009. Among the many goals of the symposium was the intention to go beyond classical archival methods and use different approaches when classifying women’s documents and facilitate access to such documents for researchers working on women’s history, as well as to create and spread awareness of women’s private archives and documents.
“Women’s Thesaurus Turkey: An Index of Terms Related to Women” (2005 – 2009)
The Women’s Thesaurus Turkey was the result of 4 years of collective work, and aims to provide a standardization of terms used in reserach on women in Europe and the international field. It also aims to facilitate searches on common concepts using the available resources, and thus acheive a common standard with the European Union
Symposium: Women of the Century in Turkey (12 – 14 April 2000)
The Women’s Library and Information Centre organized an international symposium entitled “Women of the Century in Turkey” with Boğaziçi University’s Western Languages and Literature department between 12 – 14 April 2000, on the occassion of the foundations 10th anniversary. The symposium addressed topics such as the re-questioning of history, the use of gender categories, the search and uncovering of women in a variety of different sources, women’s history and the agendas of women’s struggles, and new research topics and methods targeted by women researchers.
A National Bibliogpraphy of Women’s Documents in Turkey Series (2000)
In 2000, a project to prepare a national bibliography of all of the resources available on women was initiated with the support of the Ministry of Culture under the title of “A National Bibliography of Women’s Documents in Turkey”. Up until this date, the Women’s Library previously published the following three bibliographies: “Bibliography of Women’s Periodicals in Ottoman Turkish in Istanbul Libraries (1869 – 1927)”, “Bibliography of Women’s Periodicals From “Hanımlar Alemi to Roza” (1928 – 1996)”, and “Women’s Writing: Bibliography of Women’s Literature, Writing and Theses on Women (1955 – 1990)”.
(See the Publications section of the website to browse these bibliographies.)
Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation Oral History Project with Women Parliamentarians (1999-2000)
With the support of the British Council, a one year oral history project was initiated in 1999. Ten women MP’s from the political parties CHP, MHP, DYP and the Fazilet (Virtue) Party were interviewed, including Gönül Saray, Işılay Saygın, Melek Denli Karaca, Nazlı Ilıcak, Nesrin Nas and Oya Akgönenç. Talks were conducted by Firdevs Hoşer, Narınç Ataman, İmren Sipahi, and Nevval Sevindi on behalf of the Foundation.
Women of the 75th Year of the Republic in the Women’s Library Collection
An exhibition project titled “Women of the 75th Year of the Republic” was organized by the Women’s Library and Information Centre with the support of the Governorship of Istanbul in celebration of the 75th anniversary of the proclamation of the republic. The opening cocktail reception for the exhibition was held at the foundation building on Saturday, October 17. The one month long exhibition aimed to illuminate the multidimensional accumulations of women and their traces in the history of the republic.
Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation Women’s Oral History Pilot Project (1994 – 1995)
Within the scope of the first oral history study of the Foundation, interviews were held with 14 women of different professions who were born before 1923, including Araksi Orakyan, Esma Deniz, Gültekin Ağaoğlu, Hayrünnisa Köni, İclal Balkan, Liza Eskenazi, Lütfiye Arıbal, Müfide İlhan, Neşet Eren, Nimet Özgüc, Peride Celal, Sare Okçu, Seniye Fenmen, and Zeynep Fırat Menemenci.
Bibliography of Women’s Literature, Writing on Women, and Theses 1955 – 1990 (1993)
A project titled “Bibliography on Women’s Literature, Writing on Women and Theses” was undertaken between 1993 and 1994 by the Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation with the support of the General Directorate on the Status and Problems of Women and the Heinrich Böll Foundation. The publication resulting from the project was prepared based on the 1955-1990 Turkey National Bibliography, and contains 5631 bibliographic definitions including works of women’s literature, women’s articles and theses. The sources compiled in the bibliography are categorized under 18 main headings: General reference works, Literary works, Writing on Litertaure or on Individual Authors, Culture, Art and Women, Historical Development, Law, Education, Religious Beliefs and Women, Politics and Public Administration, Working Life and Economy, Health, Sexuality and Family, Daily Life, Women’s Movements, Women and Sports, Men, Pornography. This project was undertaken by the Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation together with the Economic and Social History Foundation of Turkey and was published in June 2000.
(For the related publication, see http://kadineserleri.org/bibliographies/)
Symposium on Traditional Businesses for Supporting Women’s Economic Independence
The Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation organized a symposium entitled “Supporting Traditional Businesses for Women’s Economic Independence” between the dates of 9-10 October 1992 in cooperation with the Netherlands Consulate General and the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. The purpose of the collaboration between Holland and Turkey on this project was in order to establish a comparitive framework with a country currently more advanced than Turkey in which concrete examples and policies could be examined with respect to women entering non-traditional business areas, and how the state and society can encourage this.
Newsletter (1991-2002 / 2004-2006)
The Foundation’s newsletter, which was published between 1991-2002, was published initially as four pages, and then later eight pages, and an average of 1000 copies were printed (during the 8 March period, this number reached up to 2000). The newsletter was posted to individuals and other foundations that closely follow the work of the Women’s Library and Information Centre, and was also distributed to readers and researchers who visited the library. The newsletter served three purposes: to announce events organized by the foundation; to introduce and provide information about the journals, books, ephemera and archive documents available in the library; and to share the requirements and the difficulties encountered by the foundation with readers.
International Women’s Library Information and Documentation Centers Symposiums 1 (8-10 October 1991)
The Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation held its first international event at the Foundation Building between 8-10 October 1991. Opening speeches for the event, starting October 8, were made by Jale Baysal on behalf of the Women’s Library and Information Centre, by Hasan Keseroğlu on behalf of the Turkish Librarians Association, and by Hilmi Yavuz for The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. During the two day conference, insights were shared into women’s libraries and developments in the field of women’s research in their respective countries over the past decade by: David Doughan from the Fawcett Library in London; Annie Dizier, Director of the Marguerite Durand Library in Paris; Patricia Miller King, Director of the Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library in Boston; Johanna Kootz, Head of the Women’s Research Center at the University of Berlin; and Marieke Kramer, Head of the International Women’s Movements Archive in Amsterdam.
PUBLICATIONS
BIBLIOGRAPHIES
In addition to the collection and preservation of information and documents about women, the facilitation of accessibility and research through the compilation of bibliographies is an important part of the mission of the Women’s Library and Information Centre. Towards this aim, the library has to date published the four following bibliographies:
- Bibliography of Turkish Women’s Periodicals in Ottoman Turkish (1869 – 1927)
- Bibliography of Women’s Periodicals (1928 – 1996), from “Hanımlar Alemi to Roza”
- Women’s Writing: Bibliography of Women’s Literature, Writing and Theses on Women (1955 – 1990)
- Bibliography of Books on Women (1729 – 2002)
Bibliography of Women’s Periodicals in Ottoman Turkish (1869 – 1927)
This study was limited to women’s periodicals belonging to the collections of libraries in Istanbul; however, also includes the photocopies of some missing periodicals issues that are found in collections outside of Istanbul. The women’s periodicals published up until the language reform of 1928, identified through criteria such as a title consisting of the term “women” and a publisher or writing staff consisting of a majority of women, are numbered at 38. The bibliography contains the title of every article that appears in every available issue of these periodicals. Women’s periodicals from this period are a significant source of material on women’s history for field researchers, and shed light on a diverse range of topics, such as education, music, fashion, food, caricatures, the history of medicine and the history of urbanism.
Bibliography of Women’s Periodicals (1928 – 1996), from “Hanımlar Alemi to Roza”
This bibliography is a guide to 195 women’s periodicals that were published from the language reform in 1928 up until 1996. The bibliography was compiled in order to provide a source of the relevant newspapers, periodicals, and bulletins published by and for women between 1928-1996 for researchers who wish to work in this field. As the study includes collections found in Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir libraries, it may be considered as a first step towards a nation-wide guide.
Women’s Writing: Bibliography of Women’s Literature, Writing and Theses on Women (1955 – 1990)
This study was prepared based on the 1955-1990 National Bibliography of Turkey, and includes 5631 bibliographic entries on women’s literature, writing on women and theses. The sources compiled in the bibliography are categorized under 18 main headings: General Reference works, Works of Literature, Writing on Literature or Writers, Culture, Art and Women, Historical Development, Law, Education, Religious Beliefs and Women, Politics and Public Administration, Working Life and Economy, Health, Sexuality and Family, Daily life, Women’s Movements, Women and Sports, Men, and Pornography.
Bibliography of Books on Women (1729 – 2002)
This bibliography includes works on women published between 1729, when Ottoman Turks first began to use the printing press, up until the year 2002. The bibliography consists of 3014 books, gathered through a lengthy research and study process, which are listed under 23 main topics: General Subjects, Historical Development, Law, Education, Theology and Women, Politics and Public Administration, Working Life and Economy, Culture and Communications, Health and Psychology, Sexuality, Family Life and Marriage Relations, the Concept of Violence and Violence Against Women, Art and Women, Women in Social and Daily Life, Feminism, Women’s Movement, the Status of Women in Different Countries, Conference-Congress-Seminar-Symposium, Women and Sport, Science and Women, Philosophy and Women, Men.
WOMEN’S MEMORY SERIES PUBLICATIONS
On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation, the Women’s Memory Series was launched with the support of the Finnish Embassy in order to promote the periodicals of the Ottoman period for researchers without working knowledge of Ottoman Turkish. Within the scope of the project, transliteration was completed for the following periodicals: Women’s World (1913 – 1921), Newspaper for Ladies 1895 – 1908, Women’s Path/Turkish Women’s Path (1925 – 1927), Woman (1908 – 1909), Turkish Woman (1918 – 1919), Young Woman (1918), Family (1980), and Lady (1921). The project made it possible to see and further understand the problems of women of this period, their search for solutions, their thoughts on themselves and society, their struggle for their rights, their associations, their efforts to participate in working life and their thinking and writing activities.
1. Kadın Yolu/Türk Kadın Yolu (Women’s Path/Turkish Women’s Path) 1925 – 1927
Published: 2009
Prepared by: Nevin Yurdsever Ateş
Sponsor: Finnish Embassy
ISBN: 978-975-8081-15-8
2. Hanımlara Mahsus Gazete (Newspaper for Ladies) – A Selection 1895 – 1908
Published: 2009
Prepared by: Mustafa Çiçekler, Fatih Andı
Sponsor: Finnish Embassy
ISBN: 9789758081240
3. Kadınlar Dünyası (Women’s World) 1913 – 1921
Published: 2009
Prepared by: Fatma Büyükkarcı Yılmaz, Tülay Gençtürk Demircioğlu
Sponsor: Finnish Embassy
ISBN: 978-975-8081-25-7
4. Kadın (Woman): A Young Turk Periodical in the Second Constitutional Era 1908 – 1909
Published: 2010
Prepared by: Fatma Kılıç Denman
Sponsor: Finnish Embassy
ISBN: 978-975-8081-29-5
5. Türk Kadını (Turkish Woman) 1918 – 1919
Published: 2010
Prepared by: Birsen Talay Keşoğlu, Mustafa Keşoğlu
Sponsor: Finnish Embassy
ISBN: 978-975-8081-29-5
6. Genç Kadın (Young Woman) January – May 1919
Published: 2010
Prepared by: Çiçek İlengiz
Sponsor: Finnish Embassy
ISBN: 9789944702614
7. Aile (Family) 1880 & Hanım (Lady) 1921
Published: 2011
Prepared by: Oğuz İcimsoy
Sponsor: Finnish Embassy
ISBN: 9789944702614
Private Archives Catalogue Series
The Women’s Library and Information Centre Foundation has produced a series of catalogues in order to share, promote and raise awareness of the content and scope of the materials of the Private Archives Collection with the aim of contributing to the field of the study of women’s history. Also within the objectives of the foundation is the production of publications on these archives, with the support of other institutions and individuals. To date, two catalogues on the archives of Süreyya Ağaoğlu and Zerrin Bölükbaşı have been published. The catalogue of Necile Tevfik Archive will be the third catalogue of this series and be published in 2019.
Private Archives Catalogue Series – Publications
1. The Archive Catalogue of Lawyer Süreyya Ağaoğlu / 1898 – 1992
Published: 2010
Catalogue Consultant: Bekir Kemal Ataman
Prepared by: Yusuf Altan Altınok, Mehmet Sadık Kişi, İlknur Şener
Sponsor: Ağaoğlu family
ISBN: 978-605-5614-61-4
2. The “Senfoni” Archive Catalogue of Sculptor Zerrin Bölükbaşı / 1919 – 2010
Published: 2011
Prepared by: Mehmet Sadık Kişi
Sponsor: Ahmet Bölükbaşı
DIRECTORY OF TERMS ON WOMEN
Women’s Thesaurus Turkey – Directory of Terms on Women
The Women’s Thesaurus of Turkey is an adaptation and translation of the European Women’s Thesaurus, a structured list of descriptors for indexing and retrieving information in the field of the position of women and women’s studies.
Published: 2009
Prepared by: Aslı Davaz, Ercan Güngöroğlu, Sönmez Taner, Şeyda Talu
Translation: Sönmez Taner, Zelal Ayman
Translation editors: Fatmagül Berktay, Füsun Akatlı, Şirin Tekeli, Yüksel Selek
Turkish adaptation: Aslı Davaz, Ayça Kurtoğlu, Ayşe Gündüz Hoşgör, Ayşegül Yaraman, Berrin Yanıkkaya, Canan Arın, Fatmagül Berktay, Gamze Karadağ, Gökçe Bayrakçeken Tüzel, Mahan Doğrusöz, Meryem Turan, Metin Yeğenoğlu, Mine Tan, Necla Akgökçe, Nevval Sevindi, Özden Sözalan, Selma Atabek, Serpil Çakır, Simten Coşar, Sönmez Taner, Şeyda Talu, Şirin Tekeli, Yasemin Öz, Yıldız Ecevit, Yüksel Selek, Zeynep Direk
ISBN: 978-975-7051-64-0
About the Publication:
The Women’s Thesaurus Turkey: Directory of Terms on Women was the result of four years of collective work, and creates a common standard with the European Union, through the standardization of the terms used in research on women in the international field and Europe, and by allowing searches on common concepts while accessing sources. The publication is an attempt to create a common directory of concepts in the field of women’s studies in order to provide easier access to more accurate information with regards to gender relations, violence against women, feminist policies, women’s organizations, women’s movements and women.
SYMPOSIUM PROCEEDINGS
1. Women’s Memory International Women’s Libraries Symposium Proceedings, 8-10 October 1991, Istanbul
Published: 1992
Sponsors/ Translation: Laleper Aytek, Şirin Tekeli
Publication Sponsors: Annie Dizier, David Doughan, Patricia Miller King, Marieke Kramer, Joanna Kootz, Jan Jonker Roelants (Consulate General of Holland)
Prepared by: Yusuf Altan Altınok, Mehmet Sadık Kişi, İlknur Şener
ISBN: 975-342-016-1
2. The Institutionalization of the Women’s Movement – Opportunities and Risks
Published: 1994
Translation: Meral Akkent
Publication Sponsors: Frauen-Antistiftung
3. The Problem of Sources in Compiling Women’s Memory (17-19 April 2009)
Published: 2009
Prepared by: Birsen Talay Keşoğlu, Fatma Türe
ISBN: 978-975-8919-44-4
4. Writing Women’s Lives Auto/Biography, Life Narratives, Myths and History Writing International Symposium
Published: 2016
Editors: Birsen Talay Keşoğlu, Leyla Şimşek Rathke
Composition: Filiz Kocaboğa, Aykut Kar
ISBN: 978-975-92378-1-3
AGENDAS
Since 1991, the Foundation has published yearly agendas with a different theme within the framework of women and women’s studies. These agendas have not only become a tradition of the Foundation, but also serve as important reference sources.
1991 / Women Painters
1992 / Women Photographers
1993 / Women Filmmakers
1994 / Women Ceramicists
1995 / Highlights from the Library’s Collections
1996 / Istanbul and Women
1997 / Women and Clothing from the Ottoman Empire to the Republic
1998 / Women and Education from the Ottoman Empire to the Republic
1999 / Women Sculptors
2000 / A Century of the Women’s Movement
2001 / Women and Sports
2002 / Advertisements, News, and Announcements from Ottoman Women’s Periodicals
2003 / Women Writers
2004 / Women Pioneers Firsts in Their Careers
2005 / Women and Water: the Fountains of Ottoman Istanbul Built By Women
2006 / Nobel Prize Winner Women
2007 / Women and Humour: Women Cartoonists
2008 / Spectacles and Women
2009 / Women Travellers
2010 / Ottoman Women’s Periodicals
2011 / Women’s Periodicals in the Turkish Republic
2012 / Women Jewelry Designers
2016 / 25th Anniversary Agenda
2017 / Writing Women’s Lives Auto/Biography, Life Narratives
2018 / Writing Women’s History
2019 / Women’s Institutions and Organizations 1923 – 2018
NEWSLETTER
The Foundation’s newsletter, which was published between 1991-2002, was published initially as four pages, and then later eight pages, and an average of 1000 copies were printed (during the 8 March period, this number reached up to 2000). The newsletter was posted to individuals and other foundations that closely follow the work of the Women’s Library and Information Centre, and was also distributed to readers and researchers who visited the library. The newsletter served three purposes: to announce events organized by the foundation; to introduce and provide information about the journals, books, ephemera and archive documents available in the library; and to share the requirements and the difficulties encountered by the foundation with readers.
OTHER PUBLICATIONS
1. Women Writers in Contemporary Turkish Literature
In the 1970’s a remarkable explosion of women writers appeared on the literary scene, providing many valuable new authors, especially in narrative writing, to Turkish literature. In addition to including writers who have already made their mark on recent Turkish literature, this publication introduces younger authors whose work is just beginning to gain a following. Through the biographies of 30 authors, alongside some of their own works which they have each selected to be included, this book aims to offer a concise overview of the names and works of recent Turkish Literature.
2. The Leading Woman in Law, Lawyer Süreyya Ağaoğlu
This book has been published by the Istanbul Bar Association based on the documents of the Süreyya Ağaoğlu Archive found in the Private Archives Collection of the Women’s Library. The publication consists of three sections, including Süreyya Ağaoğlu’s speeches and articles, her autobiographical works and finally her photographs.
3. Istanbul Women – Women Istanbul Project Book
This book presents a selection of the speeches and panels organized by the foundation which took place within the scope of the 18 month long “Istanbul Women – Women Istanbul” project that was organized with the support of the Istanbul 2010 European Capital of Culture Agency.