Pir Sultan Aptal

Pir Sultan Aptal is a legendary Sufi poet. The poet’s name means “The Saint Sultan Dervish.” He lived in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries in central Anatolia, where he wrote many of his verses. His subjects are several; he wrote on lyrical and pastoral themes, as well as devoutly religious verses. Most fatally, his work called out for rights and freedoms for the people governed by the cruel and rapacious Ottoman governors. One of those governors, Hizar Pasha, finally caught and hung Pir Sultan Aptal.