Was the author of the Turkish anthem Uzbek?

The national anthem of the modern Republic of Turkey “Istiklâl Marşı” was approved in 1921 and its founder was Mehmet Akif Ersoy.

Mehmet Akif Ersoy was born on December 20, 1873 in Istanbul, the capital of the Ottoman Empire. He was one of the most famous Turkish writers and poets of the republican period. Today, his “Istiklâl Marşı” is the official anthem of the Republic of Turkey and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

Was Mehmet Akif Ersoy’s ethnicity really Uzbek? Mehmet Akif’s father, Ipekli Tahir efendi, was born in Albania and was of Albanian descent. The poet’s mother, Emine Sherife, was of Uzbek descent from Bukhara. The poet’s mother’s ancestors moved from Bukhara to Istanbul and began to live there.

This means that Mehmet Akif Ersoy’s parents were of Albanian and Uzbek descent.