Halkevleri (Turkish: ''Halkevi'' literally meaning "people's houses", also translatable as "community centres") is a Turkish community enlightenment project. They were founded in 1932 and entirely abolished in 1951. Halkevleri logo

Background

The Turkish Republic was proclaimed in 1923 after a series of costly wars involving the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. The human loss was great, especially among intellectuals. The most profitable agricultural land had been lost and the country was economically bankrupt. After the republic was proclaimed, measures were taken to raise the low literacy rate and to improve the economy. However, the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

was another blow to the new republic. A second problem of the new republic was the reaction of the conservatives against the reforms, especially the secularist practices of the republic. The Halkevleri can be seen as the successors of the Turkish Hearths, a Turkish social institution that was disestablished before the founding of the Halkevleri in 1932.

The scope of the project

Halkevleri was an enlightenment project aimed towards city dwellers to gain support for reforms. It was planned by

Kemal Atatürk Kemal may refer to: ;People * Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, a Turkish politician and the first president of Turkey * Kemal (name), a Turkish name ;Places * Kemalpaşa, İzmir Province, Turkey * Mustafakemalpaşa, Bursa Province, Turkey ;See also *"Kema ...

, the founder of modern Turkey. On February 17, 1932, branches of Halkevleri were opened in 17 cities. (

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Bolu Bolu is a city in northern Turkey, and administrative center of the Bolu Province and of Bolu District,Bursa Bursa () is a city in northwestern Turkey and the administrative center of Bursa Province. The fourth-most populous city in Turkey and second-most populous in the Marmara Region, Bursa is one of the industrial centers of the country. Most of ...

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Diyarbakır Diyarbakır is the largest Kurdish-majority city in Turkey. It is the administrative center of Diyarbakır Province. Situated around a high plateau by the banks of the Tigris river on which stands the historic Diyarbakır Fortress, it is ...

Eskişehir Eskişehir ( , ; from 'old' and 'city') is a city in northwestern Turkey and the capital of the Eskişehir Province. The urban population of the city is 821 315 (Odunpazari + Tebebasi), with a metropolitan population of 921 630. The city is l ...

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

İzmir İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...

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Malatya Malatya (; ; Syriac language, Syriac ܡܠܝܛܝܢܐ Malīṭīná; ; Ancient Greek: Μελιτηνή) is a city in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey and the capital of Malatya Province. The city has been a human settlement for thousands of y ...

, and

Samsun Samsun is a List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, city on the north coast of Turkey and a major Black Sea port. The urban area recorded a population of 738,692 in 2022. The city is the capital of Samsun Province which has a population of ...

.) But soon the number increased to 478. Towards 1940, the villages were also included in the project. The sub branches in villages were called Halkodaları () Towards 1950, the total number of these subsections exceeded 4,000.

The activities

The purpose of the project was to enlighten the people and to decrease the influence of the conservative circles. Free courses were offered on the topics of literature, drama, music, fine arts, speaking, and writing as well as handicrafts and tailoring. Folk say and folksongs were surveyed. Halkevleri also had 761 libraries and reading rooms. Halkevleri operated as a state organization from 1932 till 1951. During the multiparty period (after 1945), Halkevleri were severely criticized on the ground that this project was a supporter of the governing

Republican People's Party The Republican People's Party (RPP; , CHP ) is a Kemalism, Kemalist and Social democracy, social democratic political party in Turkey. It is the oldest List of political parties in Turkey, political party in Turkey, founded by Mustafa Kemal ...

. The opposing Democrat Party won the 1950 elections. On 8 August 1951, Halkevleri were closed.

Publications

Halkevleri published nearly seventy-five periodicals, including '' Ülkü'' which was published from February 1933 and August 1950.

References

{{Authority control 1932 establishments in Turkey 1951 disestablishments in Turkey Politics of Turkey Education in Turkey Educational institutions established in 1932 Educational institutions disestablished in 1951 Kemalism