Celadet Bedir Khan portrait

Celadet Bedir Khan

Quick Facts

  • Region: Istanbul and Damascus
  • Born: 1893, Istanbul
  • Died: 1951, Damascus
  • Known for: Hawar alphabet and Kurdish linguistics

Overview

Celadet Bedir Khan was a Kurdish linguist, writer, and intellectual who helped standardize Kurdish writing. He is best known for developing the Hawar alphabet, which became central to Kurmanji Kurdish publications.

His work connected Kurdish cultural revival to modern linguistic standards and print culture.

Life and Work

Bedir Khan founded the journal “Hawar” and produced grammar and language studies that shaped Kurdish education. He worked across several countries in exile, building institutions for Kurdish cultural life.

Legacy

He is widely recognized as one of the most influential Kurdish linguists of the 20th century.

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