Jak Deleon was born in Istanbul in 1951. He studied English literature at Bosporus University and completed his Ph.D. at Istanbul University in 1979. Deleon became a professor in 1997. He taught a wide array of subjects, including advanced English, ballet history, and “Visual Istanbul Studies” at Bosporus University as well as at Istanbul Bilgi University.

A crucial determinant of Deleon’s work and personality was his endless enthusiasm for the city of Istanbul, its history and its culture. Deleon authored more than thirty books, the majority of them on Istanbul, concentr…