Samiha Ayverdi was born in İstanbul to Fatma Meliha Hanim and
İsmail Hakkı Bey, an Ottoman military official. She studied at Süleymaniye Kız Numune Mektebi and among other things, learned French and read about philosophy and Islamic mysticism. She became a follower and later official successor of Sufi thinker
Kenan Rıfai, who became a major influence in her work. She was the sister of architect and historian Ekrem Hakkı Ayverdi. In 1938, she published her
first novel titled
Aşk Budur and followed it with over 30 novels and short story collections. Ayverdi died on 22 March 1993 and is buried at the
Merkezefendi Cemetery in
Zeytinburnu, İstanbul. ==Works==