Korean diplomat's love for Turkish language inspired 7 books
Have you ever seen a foreign diplomat serving in Turkey who does not call Turkey their second homeland? Almost every foreign diplomat praises Turkish culture and people after returning to his or her own country.
They underline that they are leaving the country, which is deemed the cradle of civilizations, with good memories. Some explain the cultural and historic wealth of this country via their writings or the photographs that they take. They are deeply influenced by the nature, history and culture of Turkey and thus become voluntary ambassadors of Turkey. There are, however, a few foreign diplomats who cannot break their ties with Turkey because of their love for the country or the language. South Korean diplomat Dr. Heechul Lee is one such Turkey and Turkish lover.
Lee, 61, the chargé d'affaires at the South Korean Embassy in Ankara, has spent nearly a third of his life -- 18 years -- in Turkey. Lee came to Turkey in 1984 to obtain his master's degree in political science at Gazi University. In 1989, he took the diplomacy exam held by the South Korean Foreign Ministry before completing his Ph.D. in political science at the same university. After passing the exam, he was appointed to Ankara by the South Korean Foreign Ministry and was thus able to complete his Ph.D. In 1960, Lee completed his doctorate on Korean-Turkish relations and published his thesis as a book thanks to the encouragement of his professors Hasan Köni and Yüksel İnan. After serving in the South Korean Embassy in Ankara for four years, he returned home and worked in the South Korean Foreign Ministry for two years and in the South Korean Consulate General in Atlanta in the US for three years. When he was re-appointed to Turkey, he was very happy and felt as though he was returning to his own country.
“My love for Turkey was inherited from my family. My family was among the victims of the Korean War. My father, who was a soldier in the South Korean Army, fought alongside Turkish soldiers who came to the country in 1950 to offer their support. I learned about Turkish people from the stories of my grandfather and father. They used to tell me stories about the heroism and sacrifice of the Turkish soldiers. That was why I developed an interest in Turkey and Turkish people at an early age. I decided to study in the department of Turkology while at university and came to Turkey for my master's and Ph.D. degrees," he said.
Lee, who was born in Daejeon in central Korea in 1952, enrolled in the Hankuk foreign language school in Seoul after graduating from high school. In addition to Turkology, Lee chose international management as his minor. In 1980, he graduated from university and traveled across the country from east to west as he had planned during his university days. Then he decided to go to Ankara in order to both improve his Turkish and to obtain his master's degree. In a way, he had no choice but to come to Turkey because access to documents, books or periodicals in Turkish or about Turkey was very limited in Korea at the time.
"I came to Turkey in 1984. I rented a small home in Ankara's Aşağı Ayrancı neighborhood. Since studying for a master's degree required a high level of academic Turkish, I had difficulty understanding the lectures and reading articles in my first semester in Turkey. I used to borrow my classmates' notes which they took during lectures and studied them night and day. I made good friends in my department and thus quickly improved my Turkish," he said.
His Turkey adventure opened new doors that were beyond his imagination. He earned the titles of Turkologist, doctor and diplomat respectively. He became one of the most prominent South Korean diplomats with deep knowledge of Korea's sister country, Turkey. The South Korean Foreign Ministry effectively employed Lee's expertise by hardly appointing him outside of Turkey. And this situation helped Lee to write seven books about Turkey.
"I came up with the idea of writing a book about Turkey while doing my Ph.D. First, I published my thesis, titled ‘Turkey-Korea relations: 1950-1960' as a book. Then I published my other books titled ‘A Short History of Turkey' in 1998, ‘History of the Ottoman Empire and Turkey' in 2001, ‘Turkey: Sacred and Mythological Land where Islam Breathes' in 2002, ‘Istanbul, world history, a microcosm of human civilization and humankind's open-air museum' in 2004, ‘Hittites -- human history forgotten in cuneiform clay tablets' in 2005 and ‘Crossroads of civilization in Turkey today' in 2012. I always searched for interesting details which I noticed during my readings about Turkey. After reading each dimension of that specific detail, I did fieldwork, visited the places which I read about and then wrote these books in order to share the information that I learned and the cultural wealth with Koreans. When my books garnered much interest in Korea, it encouraged me to write new books. The idea that every book that I write helps to improve relations between the two countries increased my motivation. These books contributed greatly to the promotion of Turkey in Korea. Turkey has such a rich cultural and historical heritage that new details are revealed when you dig deeper. It always gives you great material to write about," he added.
Lee notes that he has always been welcomed by a new Turkey whenever he returns after working for four or five years in Korea as a requirement of his job. Noticing the transformation of cities, Lee's enthusiasm for conducting research about Turkey was heightened. "Last year, I visited Ayvalık. The last time I visited Ayvalık was 10 years ago. I was shocked by the level of development in Ayvalık. I could hardly recognize it."
The diplomat, who has published book after book on Turkey, attracted the attention of the Korean media as well. He was also asked about his opinions on hot developments in Turkey. His writings on Turkey, where there are plenty of Korean investors and which is considered a sister country, appeal to a wide audience. He believes that the strong friendly ties between Turks and Koreans are the result of similarities in their culture and language.
"Turks and Koreans descended from the same bloodline. Both of them lived together in the steppes of Central Asia for centuries. While Turks migrated west, the Korean people migrated east. We have remained separated from each other for centuries. Relations between the two countries were boosted when Turkish soldiers came to the country in 1950 to offer their support. During the FIFA 2002 World Cup, our people embraced each other. In a unique way, the Korean people supported the Turkish national team during all its games."
“Turkish schools in Korea have a historic mission. I visited the Turkish Rainbow International School in Seoul last year and was briefed about the school's curriculum and facilities by the school administrators. I was impressed by the quality of education provided at the school. The school has already proven itself. The children of foreign diplomats in Korea attend this school. This school reminded me of the Ankara School in Suwon opened by a Turkish soldier during the Korean War. I observed that Turkish schools bring us closer to each other. I believe that Turkish schools in Korea have a historic mission in improving relations between the two countries,” he said.
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