- Scouting and Guiding Federation of Turkey
Infobox WorldScouting
type=organization
name=Türkiye İzcilik Federasyonu
caption=Scouting and Guiding Federation of Turkey
country=Turkey
f-date=1909/1992
founder=Ahmet Robenson, Abdurrahman Robenson, Nafi Arif Kansu, Ethem Nejat
members=19,098
chiefscouttitle=President
chiefscout=Hasan Dinçer Subaşı
website=http://www.tif.org.tr
affiliation=World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts ,World Organization of the Scout Movement Türkiye İzcilik Federasyonu ("Scouting and Guiding Federation of Turkey", TİF) is the national
Scouting and Guiding federation ofTurkey . It serves 13,713 Scouts and 5,385 Guides (as of 2003). The federation is a member of theWorld Organization of the Scout Movement since 1950, and theWorld Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts since 1987.History
The start of Scouting in Turkey is attributed to the brothers Ahmet and
Abdurrahman Robenson , who weresports teacher s at the Galatasaray and Kabataşhigh school s inİstanbul in 1909, [Rıza Bediz, "İzcilik ve İzci Kampları" (1955)] and toNafi Arif Kansu andEthem Nejat , with first units organized at Darüşşafaka, Galatasaray, and İstanbul high schools, during the late Ottoman period. [B. Sami Karayel, "İzci Rehberi" (1914)]During this same period, Scouting was created independently in outlying areas of the Ottoman Empire, most notably Lebanon and Syria.
The Scouting efforts were put to a halt during the
Balkan Wars andWorld War I , and again gained momentum after the foundation of the Republic of Turkey in 1923, following the fall of the Ottoman Empire. In 1926, Scouting activities began to be organized nationwide in schools.Ahmet Han , the Director of Scouting, andMuhittin Akdik , the Director of Education in İstanbul, visitedFrance , theUnited Kingdom andSwitzerland in 1946 to study Scouting and itsadministration , and returned determined to build up the movement on fundamental and modern lines.Sıtkı Sanoplu was responsible for starting theCub Scout program in 1950. Cub packs existed in the coeducationalprimary school s, and were themselves coed, but boys and girls were placed in separate "sixes", or dens. Practically all the Cubmasters werewomen .J. S. Wilson , Director of the Boy Scouts International Bureau, began his 1952 tour ofAsia visiting Cub Scout packs, Scout troops and Girl Guide companies in İstanbul andAnkara .With the 1991 breakup of the
Soviet Union , it was suggested that the Turkish Scouting and Guiding Federation should assist in the creation of Scout movements in the TurkicCentral Asia n republics of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, but it is uncertain if this plan ever materialized.The current Scouting and Guiding Federation of Turkey was legally organized in 1992 as administratively bound to the
General Directorate of Youth and Sport . In February 2007, the federation gained autonomous status.Northern Cyprus Turkish Scouts
The
Northern Cyprus Turkish Scouts (Turkish: "Kuzey Kıbrıs Türk İzcileri") is a Scouting federation active in the "de facto" independentTurkish Republic of Northern Cyprus , and has strong ties to the Scouting and Guiding Federation of Turkey.Program
There is an annual week called "The Scout - The Helper", which gives all members of the Scouting and Guiding Federation an opportunity to participate in community service projects, where they help for a week in
hospital s, at theRed Crescent association, and in similar organizations. Scouts planttree s invillage s in cooperation with theMinistry of Agriculture .In Turkey,
the Battle Hymn of the Republic is sung as a Scout camp song with Turkish lyrics, by both Boy Scouts and Girl Guides.Program sections
*
Cub Scouts - ages 8 to 11
* Scouts - ages 12 to 15
* Venturer Scouts - ages 16 to 20Only the Cub packs are open to boys and girls, the older sections operate in single-gender groups.
cout Motto
The
Scout Motto is "Daima Hazır", "Always Prepared" in Turkish.cout Oath
Turkish: "Tanrıya, vatanıma karşı görevlerimi yerine getireceğime, izcilik türesine uyacağıma; Başkalarına her zaman yardımda bulunacağıma; Kendimi bedence sağlam, fikirce uyanık, ve ahlakça dürüst tutmak için elimden geleni yapacağıma; Şerefim üzerine söz veririm."
Translation: On my honour, I promise to do my duty to God and my country, to obey the Scouting Laws, to help other people at all times, to be physically strong, mentally awake and morally strong.
Emblem
The membership badge of the Scouting and Guiding Federation of Turkey incorporates elements of the coat of arms as well as the
flag of Turkey . Thetrefoil represents the Girl Guides and thefleur-de-lis the Boy Scouts.References
*"Scouting 'Round the World", John S. Wilson, first edition, Blandford Press 1959.
External links
* [http://www.tif.org.tr Official website] tr icon en icon
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