The Turkish Historical Society (TTK) is expanding its digital infrastructure to provide free online access to a vast collection of academic resources, including approximately 50,000 electronic books, the institution has announced.
The institution’s head, Yüksel Özgen, said the initiative is part of its broader digitalization efforts aimed at making library and archival materials more accessible to researchers and the general public.
The project includes the digitization of rare printed works, manuscripts, photographic archives and both domestic and international electronic books and databases, all of which will be made available through the TTK’s library portal via remote access.
Özgen noted that around 20,000 foreign-language electronic books and resources had previously been opened to users, with an additional 27,000 titles scheduled to be added this year.
“With these additions, we will be offering nearly 50,000 electronic books free of charge to all our readers,” he said.
Highlighting the institution’s extensive archival holdings, Özgen said the digitization of photographic albums is proceeding in stages. To date, approximately 15,000 photographs have been made accessible online, with the pace of work expected to accelerate in 2026.
He added that rare works and manuscripts held exclusively by the TTK library are also being transferred to digital formats.
As part of the initiative, the TTK has launched a trial period allowing free and remote access to the subscription-based Müteferriqa database — specializing in Ottoman and Turkish studies, which runs until Feb. 25.
