Prof. Dr. Ioanna Kuçuradi, head of the Turkish Philosophical Society and honorary president of the World Federation of Philosophical Organizations, died at Maltepe University Faculty of Medicine Training and Research Hospital, where she was receiving treatment.
A ceremony for Kuçuradi will be held on Oct. 4 at the Mimar Vedat Çakırca Conference Hall at Maltepe University. She will be buried at the Şişli Greek Orthodox Cemetery following the ceremony.
A ceremony was held for Kuçuradi at Maltepe University on Oct. 4. Her body was then taken to the Şişli Greek Orthodox Cemetery and laid to rest after a service at the cemetery church attended by Fener Greek Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew.
Academic career
Born in Istanbul on Oct. 4, 1936, Kuçuradi graduated from Zapyon Girls' High School in 1954 and from the Department of Philosophy at Istanbul University in 1959. She received her doctoral degree in 1965.
Kuçuradi worked at Erzurum Atatürk University from 1965 to 1968. She became an associate professor in 1970 and a professor in 1978.
Kuçuradi founded Hacettepe University's Department of Philosophy in 1969 and served as its head until 2003. Beginning in 1997, she also directed Hacettepe University's Research and Application Center for Human Rights and Philosophy and chaired the UNESCO Chair established within the center.
Work in philosophy and human rights
Kuçuradi, who led the Turkish Philosophical Society, held various positions in the International Federation of Philosophical Societies and served as its president.
Kuçuradi worked in the fields of philosophy, ethics, human rights and values. Her works include “Nietzsche and the Human,” “Schopenhauer and the Human,” “The Human and Their Values,” “Ethics,” “Looking at Art Through Philosophy” and “Amid the Events of the Age.”
Kuçuradi received the Goethe Medal, the Turkish Academy of Sciences Award, the Turkish Journalists' Association Press Freedom Award and various international honorary awards for her work.
Condolence messages
In a condolence message following Kuçuradi's death, Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş said that she had made important contributions to human rights through her philosophical approach centered on human value and dignity. Kurtulmuş said Kuçuradi had left a profound mark in Türkiye and around the world through her work, and offered his condolences to her family, loved ones and students.
Presidential Communications Director Burhanettin Duran also said that Kuçuradi held an important place in Türkiye's intellectual life through her work in philosophy and human rights. Duran said Kuçuradi had left a lasting legacy through her works and the students she mentored.
Ömer Çelik, deputy chairman and spokesperson of the Justice and Development (AK) Party, described Kuçuradi as a “teacher of teachers.” Çelik said Kuçuradi presented philosophy as “the art of being human” and taught people to protect human dignity.
