Andrew Mango
Andrew Mango | |
|---|---|
 Mango in 2009 at a conference in Ankara, Turkey | |
| Born | 14 June 1926 Istanbul, Turkey |
| Died | 6 July 2014 (aged 88) London, United Kingdom |
| Occupation | Author |
| Language | English, Turkish |
| Nationality | British |
Andrew James Alexander Mango (14 June 1926 – 6 July 2014) was a British BBC employee and author.
Life
[edit]He was born in Istanbul, one of three sons of Alexander Mango, an Italian-Greek barrister and his White Russian wife Adelaide Damonov; the Byzantinist Cyril Mango was his younger brother. He was brought up in Istanbul and mastered a number of languages.[1]
While still young, Mango took a job as press officer in the British Embassy at Ankara. He moved to the United Kingdom in 1947 and lived in London until his death.[1] He held degrees from the University of London, including a doctorate on Persian literature.
Mango joined the BBC's Turkish section while a student and spent his entire career in the External Services, rising to be Turkish Programme Organiser and then Head of the South European Service. He retired in 1986.[2] He died at the age of 88 on 6 July 2014. His death was announced by Richard Moore, the British Ambassador to Turkey.[2][3]
Works
[edit]- Turkey (1968)
- Discovering Turkey (1971)
- Turkey: The Challenge of a New Role (1994)
- Atatürk: The Biography of the Founder of Modern Turkey (1999)
- The Turks Today (2004)
- Turkey and the War on Terrorism (2005)
- From the Sultan to Atatürk — Turkey (2009)
His background in Persian and Arabic studies allowed Mango to master Ottoman Turkish. He wrote his PhD thesis at the SOAS on Alexander the Great. Where he later throughout his career would also lecture as guest, and advise on modern Turkish studies.
Mango published his first book in 1968, while he was working for the BBC. After his retirement his productivity increased. His book on Kemal Atatürk, from 1999, established an international reputation.[4]
Notes
[edit]- ^ a b Fryer, Jonathan (21 July 2014). "Andrew Mango obituary". The Guardian.
- ^ a b "Atatürk biographer Andrew Mango dies". hurriyetdailynews.com. 7 July 2014.
- ^ Prominent scholar on Turkey Andrew Mango dies Archived July 14, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Andrew Mango - obituary". The Telegraph. 17 September 2014.
References
[edit]- Barchard, David, "The Brothers Mango", Cornucopia Magazine No 19, Winter 1999 (excerpt).
- Christopher de Bellaigue, Article about Mango, New York Review of Books
- Finkel, Caroline, Osman's Dream, (Basic Books, 2005), 57; "Istanbul was only adopted as the city's official name in 1930."
- Sanberk, Özdem, "Obituary for Andrew Mango (1926-2014)" Hürriyet Daily News 8 July 2014.
- 1926 births
- 2014 deaths
- British biographers
- British non-fiction writers
- Historians of Turkey
- Mass media people from Istanbul
- Alumni of the University of London
- Alumni of SOAS University of London
- British male writers
- British people of Greek descent
- British people of Russian descent
- British people of Italian descent
- Turkish people of Russian descent
- Turkish people of Italian descent
- Turkish people of Greek descent
- Turkish emigrants to the United Kingdom
- British male non-fiction writers
- Recipients of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Turkey