TEHRAN- Turkish Ambassador to Iran Hicabi Kırlangıç has been named an honorary member of the Academy of Persian Language and Literature in recognition of his longstanding scholarly contributions to Persian language and literature and his efforts to promote cultural ties between Iran and Türkiye.

The honorary membership decree was presented to Kırlangıç on Sunday during a meeting with Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel, head of the Academy of Persian Language and Literature, in Tehran.

Haddad-Adel praised the Turkish ambassador’s valuable efforts to strengthen relations between Iran and Türkiye, particularly his academic contributions to Persian language and literature and his translations of classical and contemporary Persian works.

He highlighted Kırlangıç’s Turkish translations of major works of Persian literature, including Molana Jalal ad-Din Rumi's masterpiece Masnavi-ye Manavi and Saadi’s Bustan and Gulistan, as well as his complete translation of the Divan of Hafez into Istanbul Turkish.

“These translations have helped introduce Persian literature to a wider audience in Türkiye,” Haddad-Adel said, adding that the academy had selected Kırlangıç as an honorary member in recognition of his scholarly work in teaching and researching Persian language and literature and translating Iran’s classical and contemporary literary works.

Haddad-Adel also said that the Iranian Embassy in Türkiye had been asked to organize a scholarly gathering attended by Persian language scholars and enthusiasts to formally present the honorary membership decree and convey the appreciation of Iran’s academic and literary community for Kırlangıç’s lasting contributions.

Kırlangıç expressed his gratitude for being admitted as an honorary member of the Academy of Persian Language and Literature, describing the distinction as a source of great pride.

Referring to the conclusion of his tenure as Türkiye’s ambassador to Iran, Kırlangıç said that upon returning to Türkiye, he would serve as “an ambassador of Iranian literature and culture.”

The Turkish diplomat also referred to his ongoing scholarly activities, saying he has been working for several years on translating Rumi’s Divan-e Shams into Istanbul Turkish.

“I hope that I can complete this scholarly service to the Persian and Turkish languages as soon as possible,” he said.

Born in 1966, Kırlangıç is a professor of Persian language and literature at Ankara University, as well as a poet and translator. In addition to teaching Persian and training numerous students in the field, he has translated several major Persian literary works into Istanbul Turkish, including Jami’s Subhat al-Abrar, and “One Hundred Years of Fiction Writing in Iran”.

SAB/