Feridun Zaimoğlu

Feridun Zaimoğlu — Biography

Feridun Zaimoğlu was born on 4 December 1964 in Bolu, Turkey, and later moved to Germany, where he studied at Kiel University. A German author of Turkish descent, he writes across many forms including novels, short stories, essays, plays and screenplays, and has been recognized as one of the leading voices in contemporary German literature since the 1995 publication of his debut book, Kafa Örtüsü. He is also active as a visual artist, and the problems facing the second and third generations of Turkish immigrants in Germany recur as a central theme throughout his work.

Over his career Zaimoğlu has received numerous literary honors, including the Adelbert von Chamisso Prize and the Grimmelshausen Prize, along with several nominations for the German Book Prize, and in 2023 he held the Brothers Grimm professorship. He has also worked as a journalist and as a screenwriter for film.