He was born either in 1238 or 1240 and probably lived in the Karaman area of Anatolia.

He was so loved by the common people of his land that the inhabitants of several villages claimed that Emre was born amongst them. Understandably, the details of his life and death are sketchy and, in fact, sometimes contradictory. Emre’s poetry covered subjects such as the love of divinity and human destiny, written in the traditional style of Anatolian folk-poetry. Sufis were Muslim mystics and he has also been described as a Sufi Dervish, meaning that he practiced frenzied, very energetic dancing, probably whipping himself, and all those present, up into a state of highly religious fervour. He made a point of writing, singing and speaking in the true Turkish language of the day rather than adopting the Persian or Arabic speech that was prevalent in his own country, particularly amongst the sophisticated.

Yunus Emre was a simple, devoutly religious Turkish poet and Sufi mystic whose life spanned both the 13 th and 14 th centuries.

Heybet poem yunus emre