Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (pronounced [mustäˈfä ceˈmäl äˈtäˌtyɾc]; 19 May 1881 (conventional) – 10 November 1938) was a
Turkish army officer, reformist
statesman, and the first
President of Turkey. He is credited with being the founder of the
Republic of Turkey. His surname, Atatürk (meaning "Father of the Turks"), was granted to him in 1934 and forbidden to any other person by the Turkish parliament.
Atatürk was a military officer during
World War I. Following the defeat of the
Ottoman Empire in World War I, he led the
Turkish National Movement in the
Turkish War of Independence. Having established a provisional government in Ankara, he defeated the forces sent by the Allies. His military campaigns led to victory in the Turkish War of Independence. Atatürk then embarked upon a program of political, economic, and cultural reforms, seeking to transform the former Ottoman Empire into a modern and secular nation-state. Under his leadership, thousands of new schools were built, primary education was made free and compulsory, and women were given equal civil and political rights, while the burden of taxation on peasants was reduced. His government also carried out an extensive policy of Turkification. The principles of
Atatürk's reforms, upon which modern Turkey was established, are referred to as
Kemalism.
Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mustafa_Kemal_Atat%C3%BCrk