Mihri Hatun

Mihri Hatun (also known as Lady Mihri and Mihri Khatun, Ottoman Turkish: مهری خاتون; "sun/light"; 1456/1460- 1506), was an Ottoman poet. She was the daughter of a kadi (an Ottoman judge) and was born in Amasya. According to sources, she spent most of her life in or near Amasya, in Anatolia. Documentation places her as a member of the literary circle of Şehzade Ahmed, the son of Sultan Bayezid II. She is referred to as the "Sappho of the Ottomans".

Poetry Mihrî Hatun first gained attention with her poetry, attracting the notice and favor of Şehzade Bayezid II, and became part of the circle of poets around him. She achieved her main fame within the literary environment of Bayezid II.

“At one glance

I love you

With a thousand hearts

Let the zealots think

Loving is sinful

Never mind

Let me burn in the hellfire

Of that sin.”

Another is:

“My heart burns in flames of sorrow

Sparks and smoke rise turning to the sky

Within me the heart has taken fire like a candle

My body, whirling, is a lantern illuminated by your image.”