The “Third Inter-University Kamil Özay Poetry Competition” is being organized in collaboration with the Near East University Turkish Language Teaching Department, the Cyprus Studies Center and the Cyprus Turkish Writers Union to encourage, promote and discover new writers. Applications for the competition, which can be attended by anyone studying at TRNC universities, can be made to the Near East University Faculty of Arts and Sciences secretariat until April 14, 2025.

The selection committee of the competition, of which results will be announced on April 16, 2025 after the evaluation process, consists of Prof. Dr. Şevket Öznur, Prof. Dr. Mustafa Yeniasır, Prof. Dr. Burak Gökbulut, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Elza Demirdağ, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Turgay Akalın, Assist. Prof. Dr. Tülay Kaya Tekman, poets Mehmet Kansu and Altay Burağan, and Ayten Özay.

The competition, which aims to discover young people interested in poetry, aims to keep alive the memory of poet and writer Kamil Özay, who made significant contributions to Turkish Cypriot literature and passed away in 2021. The competition, organized with the vision of strengthening Turkish Cypriot culture and literature, aims to introduce students to the world of literature by introducing them to the subtleties of art.

Winners will be awarded!

The award ceremony to be held on April 18, 2025 will host various programs together with April 15 World Art Day events. Winners of the competition will be awarded 4000 TL for first place, 3000 TL for second place, and 2000 TL for third place. In addition, plaques of appreciation will be presented to the winners to crown their success.

Prof. Dr. Şevket Öznur: “We invite all young people who are devoted to poetry to participate in this meaningful competition…”

Prof. Dr. Şevket Öznur stated that the competition provided a great opportunity to introduce new talents to the literary world, and said, “We want to encourage young people to write and introduce new names to Turkish Cypriot literature.” Expressing that they wanted to commemorate the master writer of Turkish Cypriot literature, Kamil Özay, and keep his understanding of art alive, Prof. Dr. Öznur said, “We invite all young people who are devoted to poetry to participate in this meaningful competition. We hope that they will let their pens express their emotions and thoughts freely through poetry, and thus bring new breaths to our literature.”