The Activities of the Turkish Women's Union between 1929 & 1935 and its Contribution to the Formation of "modern Woman" in Türkiye Türk Kadın Birliği’nin 1929-1935 Yılları Arasındaki Faaliyetleri ve Türkiye’de “Modern Kadının” Oluşumuna Katkıları
Journal of Modern Turkish History, cilt.22, sa.44, ss.287-319, 2026 (ESCI, Scopus)
- Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
- Cilt numarası: 22 Sayı: 44
- Basım Tarihi: 2026
- Dergi Adı: Journal of Modern Turkish History
- Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI), Scopus
- Sayfa Sayıları: ss.287-319
- Anahtar Kelimeler: Modernisation, Modernisation of Woman, Turkish Woman, Turkish Women’s Union
- Atatürk Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet
Özet
Founded in 1924 in Istanbul, the Turkish Women's Union (TWU) became active with the purpose of making the patriotic Turkish women an integral part of society as modern individuals with social and political rights. Accordingly, it carried out many activities to help young girls to become good mothers, to help orphaned women, to support the education of girls, and to provide women with equal status with men in business life. Among the main activities of TWU, which provided services to women even in medical and legal matters, were conferences, courses and counselling activities. In particular, counselling (irşat) activities raised consciousness among rural women about many social and political issues. Under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the TWU also made significant contributions to granting Turkish women the right to vote and be elected in municipal elections in 1930, in mukhtar elections in 1933, and in parliamentary elections in late 1934. This study analyses the activities of the TWU, which were initiated comprehensively in 1929 and continued until 1935 when it dissolved itself, contributing to the modernisation process of Turkish women in the republican period, using an analytical method. Although there are many academic works on the TWU and the political rights granted to Turkish women, the activities of the Union that contributed to the modernisation of Turkish women in the republican period are examined here. The aim of this study is to make a small contribution to the existing studies in this field and to fill the gaps in these studies.