Sevin Okyay (

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

, 1942) is a

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

literary critic,

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

, author, regular

columnist A columnist is a person who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs. They take the form of a short ess ...

and a prolific translator. Sevin had been a radio host and a teacher as well.

Biography

She is a graduate of the Arnavutköy American Girl's (High) School. During her youth she worked with Yıldız Moran, the first formally educated female photographer in Turkey. Okyay is best known for translating the

Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young wizard, Harry Potter, and his friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, all of whom are students a ...

books, and for her positive and appreciative criticism in ''Radikal'', a Turkish newspaper. Her son, Kutlukhan Kutlu, is also following his mother's footsteps and is accompanying her in translating the Harry Potter series. Okyay has been translating since 1963. She started working as a journalist in 1976. She writes mainly about cinema, literature, jazz and sports. She is hailed as a milestone of modern translation in Turkey. She used to have two cats who were twins, named after the Weasley twins. A serious jazz aficionado, she was the host of a radio show in Turkey, and her playlist included mainly jazz standards.

Selected bibliography

* ''Ilk Romanim'' (''My First Novel'') novel, 1996 * ''120 Filmde Seyriâlem'' (''A Cinema Tour in 120 Films'') selected movie critiques, 1996 * ''Çiçek Dürbünü'' (''Kaleidoscope'') collected essays, 1998

Selected translations

* Tales of the Early World, by

Ted Hughes Edward James "Ted" Hughes (17 August 1930 – 28 October 1998) was an English poet, translator, and children's writer. Critics frequently rank him as one of the best poets of his generation and one of the twentieth century's greatest wri ...

''Ilk Dünya Hikayeleri'' YKY, 1999, * Delights of Turkey, by Edouard Roditi ''Türkiye Tatlari'', YKY, 1999, *

Raise High the Roof-Beam, Carpenters ''Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction'' is a single volume featuring two novellas by J. D. Salinger, which were previously published in ''The New Yorker'': ''Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters'' (1955) and ''Seymo ...

and Seymour: An Introduction, by J.D. Salinger ''Yükseltin Tavan Kirisini, Ustalar ve Seymour - bir Giris'', with Coskun Yerli, YKY, 1999, *

Animal Farm ''Animal Farm'' is a beast fable, in the form of satirical allegorical novella, by George Orwell, first published in England on 17 August 1945. It tells the story of a group of farm animals who rebel against their human farmer, hoping to crea ...

, by

George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950), better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English novelist, essayist, journalist, and critic. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to totalita ...

''Hayvanlar Çiftliği'', YKY 2000 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, by J.K. Rowling ''Harry Potter ve Sirlar Odasi'', YKY 2001, * Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, by J.K. Rowling ''Harry Potter ve Azkaban Tutsagi'', with K. Kutlu, YKY 2001, *

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the fourth novel in the ''Harry Potter'' series. It follows Harry Potter, a wizard in his fourth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and ...

, by J.K. Rowling ''Harry Potter ve Ates Kadehi'', with K. Kutlu, YKY 2001, * Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them?, by J.K. Rowling ''Fantastik Canavlar Nelerdir, Nerelerde Bulunurlar?'', with Gül Sarioglu, YKY 2002, *

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'' is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the fifth novel in the ''Harry Potter'' series. It follows Harry Potter's struggles through his fifth year at Hogwarts School of Wi ...

, by J.K. Rowling ''Harry Potter ve Zümrüdüanka Yoldasligi'', with K. Kutlu, YKY 2003, *

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the sixth and penultimate novel in the ''Harry Potter'' series. Set during Harry Potter's sixth year at Hogwarts, the novel explores t ...

, by J.K. Rowling ''Harry Potter ve Melez Prens'', with K. Kutlu, YKY 2005,

External links

A collection of her critiques (in Turkish)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Okyay, Sevin 1942 births Living people Turkish translators Translators from English Translators to Turkish Harry Potter in translation Writers from Istanbul Turkish women writers