Zehra Say

Biography

Zehra Say was born on February 18, 1906, in Ankara, then part of the Ottoman Empire. She became the first Turkish woman to marry under the secular family law enacted in 1926, rather than following religious customs, which had been the usual practice until then. Through this act and her views on women's equality, she emerged as a symbol of the Atatürk reform era. Zehra Say was an artist best known for her paintings depicting nature, flowers, and fruits. She was the mother of artist Emel Say and the grandmother of pianist Fazıl Say. Zehra Say passed away on December 16, 1990, in Istanbul, Turkey.