- Greek Publishing Returns to Istanbul
A group of seven Greeks and Turks decided to start a Greek publishing house in Istanbul, after 50 years of no Greek publications in the city. ISTOS publishing house aims to publish bilingual books about Istanbul's Greek community, its cultural heritage and impact on the city.This initiative is the first to be undertaken by the Greek community of Istanbul in 50 years, as the last book published in Greek in Istanbul was released in the 1950s, before a large part of the Greek community had to move to Greece. In the last few years, translations from Greek to Turkish have often been made through English or French.
ISTOS aims to change this through the publication of Greek language books, which would also support the growing demand for Greek language learning in Turkey. The first book written by an Istanbul Greek, to be published by ISTOS is a novel by the Orthodox Patriarchate spokesman, Dositheos Anagnostopoulos, which relates the problems the Greeks of Turkey had to face upon their arrival in Greece, in the 60s.
- Stay tuned for The Voice of the City!
The Greek community in Istanbul has always wanted its own radio station, a vital tool to inform its members and entertain them with Greek songs, new and old alike. The Voice of the City Newspaper, celebrating its 35 anniversary, decided to launch an internet radio station by the same name (Iho tis Polis- just like the print version) with a varied programme, including news broadcasts, music, interviews and special guests. Evanthia Reboutsika, the renowned Greek musician and composer, was the first radio presenter of the station’s new programme- the radio station’s signature tune comes from the soundtrack she composed for the award -winning film A Touch of Spice.
Andreas Rombopoulos, the station’s founder and chief executive expressed his satisfaction over its internet success: "We were targeting the 2,500-strong Greek community in Turkey, and we have received more than 5,000 clicks within two weeks." The radio station broadcasts 24 hours a day and is run exclusively by volunteers.
Official webpage: Iho tis Polis (in Greek and in Turkish)
