İstanbul Ansiklopedisi İstanbul Encyclopedia Archive (SALT / Kadir Has University)

Overview

The Istanbul Encyclopedia Archive (Turkish: İstanbul Ansiklopedisi Arşivi) is a digital archive and research project dedicated to preserving and making accessible the unfinished encyclopedic work of historian and novelist Reşad Ekrem Koçu (1905–1975). The archive is jointly administered by SALT Research and Kadir Has University in Istanbul, with the digital platform hosted at istanbulansiklopedisi.org.

History and Founding

Reşad Ekrem Koçu began compiling his encyclopedic work on Istanbul in 1944, aiming to create a comprehensive record of the city's history, culture, and inhabitants. The work was published in fascicles between 1944 and 1973, reaching eleven volumes before stopping at the letter G. Koçu passed away in 1975 without completing the project. His archive was subsequently preserved by Emine Gönel and Elif Birdoğan before being transferred to Kadir Has University in 2018.

In 2018, SALT Research and Kadir Has University launched a joint archival and research project. The digital platform istanbulansiklopedisi.org was publicly launched in late 2024 following an exhibition titled No Further Records: Reşad Ekrem Koçu and Istanbul Encyclopedia Archive, held at Salt Galata from May to October 2023.

Collections and Holdings

The archive contains over 40,000 digitized items, including the printed volumes of the encyclopedia (covering entries from A through G), drafts and notes for unpublished entries covering letters G through Z, photographs, hand-drawn illustrations, correspondence with prominent researchers, newspaper clippings, and collages. The archive also holds personal and professional papers of Koçu, including letters from scholars such as Franz Babinger and Sedad Hakkı Eldem.

Notable Materials

The encyclopedia and archive document Istanbul's social history from the Ottoman period through the mid-twentieth century, covering subjects from architecture and geography to lesser-known inhabitants of the city. It is notable for its inclusion of individuals and stories outside official historical narratives. The archive has been described as a significant resource for urban history and media archaeology, offering insight into how a large-scale multi-authored publication was produced in the second half of the twentieth century.

Access and Usage

The digitized archive is freely accessible online at istanbulansiklopedisi.org. Users can search entries from the printed volumes, browse archival documents, and explore visual and textual connections between materials. Physical access to the collection is available through Kadir Has University's Information Center and SALT Research in Istanbul.