Nihal Atsız

Hüseyin Nihâl Atsız (January 12, 1905 – December 11, 1975) was a prominent Turkish ultranationalist writer, novelist, and poet. Atsız self-identified as a racist, Pan-Turkist and Turanist. He later became a critic of Islam, calling it "a religion created by Arabs, for Arabs". He is the ideologue of Atsızism. He was the author of over 30 books and numerous articles and was in strong opposition to the government of İsmet İnönü, which he criticized for co-operating with the communists. He was accused of being a sympathizer of Nazi Germany and plotting to overthrow the Turkish government.

He opposed atheism, condemned communism, defended the existence of God and said that morality was very important for society. Despite his criticisms of religion, Atsız had a turbulent relationship with Islam. Atsız defined Islam as the national religion of the Turks. He said that it should be respected and said that religion was an indispensable part of a nation. He also harshly criticized the practices of Kemalism that disturbed religious Turks. When asked about one of his favorite poets, Mehmet Akif Ersoy, who defended the ideology of "Islamism", he praised Islamism and said that it was the national ideal of the Ottoman Turks. When Atsız died, his coffin was brought to the mosque and a religious ceremony was held and funeral prayers were performed.