THE BLUE ANATOLIA THOUGHT: THE COLOR OF ANATOLIA, THE SPIRIT OF KEMALISM

This study aims to examine the Mavi Anadolu (Blue Anatolia) thought as a culturally grounded and locally rooted alternative within Turkiye’s modernization process. Initiated by Halikarnas Balıkçısı, Sabahattin Eyüboğlu, and Azra Erhat, this intellectual orientation positioned Anatolia as a cradle of civilizations and traced the roots of Western civilization back to these lands. It redefined modernity through principles of people-centered enlightenment and secularism. The article analyzes the theoretical foundations of this movement within the frameworks of identity theory, collective memory, and cultural nationalism, and functionally interprets the life stories of its key figures. The Mavi Anadolu movement, by synthesizing an Ionian-centered reading of Anatolian history with a popular enlightenment vision and Kemalist modernization, offers a culturally continuous and unique perspective that can be termed “Blue Kemalism.” Ultimately, it reveals the possibilities of imagining a vernacular and humanist modernity in the Turkish context.