Türkiye braces for nationwide Republic Day festivities

ISTANBUL

As Türkiye prepares to celebrate the 102nd anniversary of the founding of the Republic on Oct. 29, festivities across the country are already in full swing, reflecting the enduring pride in the nation’s century-long journey of modernization and independence.

Founded in 1923 following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, the Republic of Türkiye introduced sweeping reforms under the leadership of its founder, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.

Every year, Republic Day is celebrated with great enthusiasm in cities large and small, honoring the country’s transformation and its unifying spirit.

This year, all of the country’s 81 provinces are once again set to host concerts, torchlight processions, parades and public gatherings to mark the day.

In the days leading up to the holiday, local governments already organized cultural and artistic programs to commemorate the milestone.

In Istanbul, panel discussions highlighted the evolution of Turkish music during the Republic era, while families in Çorum filled the skies with red-and-white kites at a community festival. Children across many cities celebrated in bright costumes, performing songs and dances symbolizing the nation’s founding.

For many, the day is also a moment of reflection. In Ankara, 88-year-old retired police officer Emine Nuran Özlük and 93-year-old former teacher Tahsin Kızılırmak, both residents of a local care home, shared their memories of growing up with the Republic.

Özlük recalled taking part in patriotic plays and collecting donations during national holidays as a child in the 1940s. “There’s nothing more beautiful than living under the Republic and carrying Atatürk’s ideals forward,” she said.

Kızılırmak described how his school would decorate classrooms with flags and poems in preparation for the Oct. 29 ceremonies. “We would decorate our school the day before the holiday. The people were so pleased because nothing like this had ever been done before,” he recalled.

Commemorations have also reached Türkiye’s highest peaks.

In several provinces, mountaineers marked the holiday by climbing to the summits of mountains, unfurling Turkish flags and singing the national anthem at altitudes of over 3,000 meters.