Who We Are

Rooted in the long arc of Turkish cultural and intellectual history, the Kenan Center for Turkish Cultural Studies is a research and cultural platform dedicated to reimagining Turkey's heritage as a living, evolving tradition.

The Center approaches culture as an organic continuum—one that draws strength from literature and philosophy, flourishes through music and the arts, and evolves through memory, imagination, and the ethical concerns of each era.

Our Perspective

In a time when surface narratives and utilitarian agendas tend to obscure the more subtle dimensions of cultural life, the Center offers a different lens—one that foregrounds aesthetic experience, ethical inquiry, and the power of shared meaning. Turkish culture, in this view, becomes a space of encounter—a generative tradition capable of engaging the global public through its richness, contradictions, and expressive force.

Our Work

The Center's work is animated by a commitment to making visible the layered continuities and creative transformations of Turkish cultural expression—from oral epics and classical poetry to modern visual arts and diasporic literature. Its initiatives include research projects, translation series, educational programs, and public events designed to bridge academic rigor with artistic vitality.

Particular attention is given to the literary and philosophical traditions that have shaped Turkish thought, including the interpretive legacies of Sufi aesthetics and ethics, which have long informed artistic production, spiritual reflection, and everyday practices in the Turkish-speaking world.

Looking Forward

While embracing the historical depth of Turkish civilization, the Center is also oriented toward the future. Its mission includes cultivating new modes of critical engagement, training a new generation of scholars, artists, and translators, and supporting transnational dialogues that connect Turkey's cultural landscape with global currents.

The focus extends to questions of gender, translation, intellectual history, and the evolving meanings of Turkish identity—especially as refracted through diasporic communities and intercultural exchange.

Our Approach

The Kenan Center seeks to foster a public-facing, accessible model of cultural scholarship—one that moves beyond disciplinary silos and reclaims the humanities as a space for reflection, encounter, and imagination. Through collaborations with universities, cultural institutions, and grassroots initiatives, the Center offers a platform where historical inquiry and contemporary creativity inform one another.