Tuba Çandar


Tuba Çandar is a Turkish journalist and author of biographies of three leading Turkish intellectuals. Her 700-page biography of the murdered Armenian journalist Hrant Dink's life "Hrant" is a best-seller in Turkey., for which she interviewed 125 people.

Early life

Born in 1948, Tuba Çandar attended the Austrian High School in Istanbul. She received an AFS Intercultural Programs scholarship and completed her studies in the USA. Çandar received her Bachelor's degree in political science and international relations at the Ankara University in 1979.

Publishing career

Çandar went to exile in Germany after the military coup of March 1971, and following the amnesty, she returned to Turkey where she became the editor-in-chief of "Bizim Almanca" magazine under the Turkish daily Cumhuriyet. She worked as an editor at Gergedan magazine and freelanced for various dailies including Yeni Yüzyıl, penning pieces on culture, arts and travel, and Gazete Pazar, where she started her "Portraits" column.
Her first book about the life of one of Turkey's first female architects Mualla Eyüboğlu Anhegger, "Hitit Güneşi" was published in 2003. She released "Murat Belge Bir Hayat" on the outspoken leftist Turkish intellectual and literary critic Murat Belge in 2007. Her latest book "Hrant" came out on the birthday of Hrant Dink on Sept. 15 in 2010.

Personal life

Çandar is married to journalist and columnist Cengiz Çandar, and they have one daughter.