Sevan Nişanyan
Sevan Nişanyan | |
|---|---|
| Սեւան Նշանեան | |
Nişanyan in 2018 | |
| Born | Sevan Bedros Nişanyan 21 December 1956 (age 68) Istanbul, Turkey |
| Nationality | Armenian |
| Citizenship | Turkey, Armenia |
| Education | Robert College, Yale University, Columbia University |
| Occupation(s) | Journalist, writer, linguist |
| Notable work | Yanlış Cumhuriyet (The Wrong Republic); Nişanyan Sözlük (Etymological Dictionary of Contemporary Turkish), Index Anatolicus |
| Criminal charges | prison sentence of 16 years and 7 months for "building infractions" by Turkish court |
| Spouse | Ira Tzourou |
| Awards | Ayşe Nur Zarakolu Liberty Award of the Turkish Human Rights Association, 2004 |
Sevan Nişanyan (Western Armenian: Սեւան Նշանեան; born 21 December 1956) is a Turkish-Armenian writer, fugitive and lexicographer. Author of a number of books, Nişanyan was awarded the Ayşe Nur Zarakolu Liberty Award of the Turkish Human Rights Association in 2004 for his contributions to greater freedom of speech. He is also known for his work to restore Şirince, a semi-derelict village near Turkey's Aegean coast.
Sevan Nişanyan was given a cumulative prison sentence of 16 years and 7 months for building infractions, and for allegedy insulting the Islamic prophet Muhammad in a blog entry in September 2012. He escaped from the prison in July 2017 and moved to Athens, where he intended to apply for political asylum, as stated in his interview to the Belgian daily La Libre Belgique. He subsequently went to live in exile in Samos, stating that he is "grateful to the providence that the goatfuckers who run Turkey gave him, unintentionally, this splendid opportunity."