Kadir Has was born in Kayseri in 1921 as the son of Nuri and Zekiye Hasoğlu. He graduated from Boğaziçi High School in 1942. In the same year, he married Rezan Has, the daughter of Mehmet and Şehime Germirli, one of Kayseri’s prominent families. His father, Nuri Hasoğlu, through his tireless hard work, determination, and fortitude, established numerous factories and commercial enterprises in Adana starting from scratch, becoming one of the country’s wealthiest individuals and among the founders of Akbank. After his marriage, Kadir Has entered the business world; thanks to his entrepreneurial mindset, industriousness, and perseverance—alongside the wealth and traits inherited from his family—he quickly became one of Adana’s leading businessmen in a career that began with truck and tractor marketing and primarily focused on the automotive trade.

Settling in Istanbul in 1960, Kadir Has operated in various fields, particularly the automotive industry; due to his honesty, determination, and reliable character, he became one of the few wealthy and prominent business figures there as well. He participated in the establishment of the Mercedes Bus and Truck Factory, where he served as Chairman and a member of the Board of Directors for many years. He founded the first Coca-Cola factory in Turkey and was among the partners of the Peugeot minibus factory named “Karsan” in Bursa, alongside the Koç family. Furthermore, he undertook the Turkish distributorship of Michelin tires and engaged in various commercial ventures. Kadir Has became one of the largest founding shareholders of Akbank after the Sabancı Family. Through his resolute management in all the commercial enterprises he founded and developed, he achieved great success, continued his work without falling into any disputes, and emerged from every endeavor with honor.

Due to his significant contributions to education and training, and his efforts to ensure future generations are raised under the best conditions, he was awarded various honorary titles. By the decision of the Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University Senate dated April 16, 1998, he was granted an Honorary Doctorate Degree in the field of Educational Administration, Planning, and Economics within the Department of Educational Sciences of the Faculty of Education on June 1, 1998. Additionally, by the decision of the Marmara University Senate dated July 8, 1997, he was honored with an Honorary Doctorate Degree on June 30, 1998, for his material and moral contributions to the Atatürk Faculty of Education.

Kadir Has and Rezan Has engaged in significant philanthropic activities for the development of the country, primarily in education and health, through the “Kadir Has Foundation for Turkish Education (HASVAK)” which they established in 1991. Furthermore, in accordance with their wills, they donated their entire fortune to this foundation. In other words, they believed that giving back what they earned from the country to the country was the greatest honor and a debt of loyalty. Seeing the commencement of education and the development of Kadir Has University, which bears his name, was one of Kadir Has’s greatest passions.

Rezan Has was born in Istanbul in 1927 to a mother from Istanbul and a father from Kayseri. Her mother was Şehime Hanım of the Yağcızâde Family, one of Istanbul’s distinguished families in Kanlıca district, while her father was Mehmet Bey of the renowned Germirli Family of Kayseri. Şehime Hanım’s grandfather, Yağcızâde Şefik Bey, founded the Naval Society in 1909 by donating the income he earned through trade at Balkapanı Han, making major contributions to the Ottoman Navy. In recognition of this important support to both the Ottoman Navy and the Naval Society, which was dissolved in 1919, Şefik Bey was awarded a medal by Sultan Reşad. He also served for seven years at the Chamber of Commerce and for three years on the board of Ziraat Bank. Mehmet Bey’s father, İmamzâde Ali Efendi Ağa, was among the most charitable and generous figures of Kayseri.

Rezan Germirli spent her childhood between Istanbul’s Kanlıca district and Germir, located just outside the center of Kayseri. The second of five children in the Germirli Family, she completed her primary education in Kayseri and later attended Kandilli Girls’ High School in Istanbul as a boarding student.

Ms. Rezan’s childhood coincided with the formative years of the newly established Republic of Türkiye. On May 20 of that same year, the Ankara–Kayseri railway line was inaugurated. As the first railway financed by the Republic and a turning point in Turkish railway history, this line would also become one of the milestones in Kayseri’s development.

In 1942, Rezan Germirli met Kadir Has, the son of the prominent Has Family of Kayseri. Choosing to marry in a modest ceremony, the couple donated the funds planned for their wedding expenses to the Turkish Aeronautical Association. This act became the first example of the charitable initiatives that would later become institutionalized and earn admiration throughout Türkiye.

Between 1942 and 1960, Rezan and Kadir Has lived in Adana. In the postwar years, private enterprise and industrial activity began to expand as the young Republic of Türkiye developed and opened itself to the world. The Development Plan established in 1947 focused on agriculture, energy, mining, and industry. During this period, Ms. Rezan became her husband, Kadir Has’s, greatest supporter as he embarked on his commercial career.

The Has family moved to Istanbul in 1960. As one of Türkiye’s leading families, Rezan and Kadir Has shared a deep sense of social responsibility and foresight. Viewing their success as “a debt owed to the homeland,” they were determined to give back what they considered an entrusted legacy. This vision led them to establish a foundation in 1991.

Through the Kadir Has Foundation, Rezan Has touched countless lives by supporting schools, dormitories, sports halls, cultural centers, and healthcare institutions established across Türkiye, from Kayseri to Ağrı and from Bitlis to Muş. The generations shaped by these institutions would make invaluable contributions to Türkiye’s modern face.

Seventy years after her birth, together with her lifelong companion Kadir Has, she became part of the transformation of one of Türkiye’s most important industrial heritage sites, the Cibali Tobacco Factory, into one of the country’s leading educational institutions.

With the establishment of Kadir Has University on the grounds of the Cibali Tobacco Factory in 1997, the Has Family realized the educational project they had most desired. Ten years after the university’s founding, a museum bearing Ms. Rezan’s name was established within the campus. Since its opening, the Rezan Has Museum has become one of Türkiye’s distinguished private museums, particularly through its dedication to the history, culture, and traditions of Anatolia, reflecting Ms. Rezan’s philanthropic support for all branches of art with curiosity, care, and affection.

In addition to her active involvement in education, culture, and charitable initiatives, Ms. Rezan always maintained a prominent place in the country’s social life. As one of the distinguished women of the first generation raised by the Republic, she became an important role model not only for her own generation but also for the women who followed, through the value she placed on family life and the work she carried out.

With her refined taste, humility in sharing what she had earned, and unwavering belief in her family and in the youth of this country, Ms. Rezan represented the shining face of the modern Turkish woman.

Through this exhibition presented to our visitors at the museum dedicated to her name, we take great pride in sharing only a small part of her belief in music, painting, and education.

With our deepest respect and gratitude to Rezan Has.