Ismail Gasprinsky

Author of novels «The French Letters» and «The African Letters»

Years of life 1851–1914.

A Crimean Tatar educator, writer, publisher, and reformer, and one of the most influential figures in the Turkic world at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. Influenced by European ideas, he developed a vision for the modernization of the Muslim world through education, enlightenment, and the printed word.

In 1883, in Bakhchysarai, Gasprinsky founded the first Crimean Tatar newspaper, «Tercüman» (The Translator), which had a tremendous impact and played a key role in spreading the ideas of Jadidism—a reformist movement among Muslims. In his publications, he promoted the ideals of enlightenment, the modernization of Muslim social life, the unity of Turkic peoples, and dialogue between East and West. He advocated for interethnic and interfaith understanding, women’s emancipation, and intercultural communication. His work contributed to the formation of a modern Crimean Tatar identity and had a significant influence on Muslim communities in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and the Volga region.