İbrahim Kalın is a Turkish academic, bureaucrat, and diplomat. He was born in Istanbul on September 15, 1971, as the son of a family from Erzurum's İspir district. He completed his undergraduate education at Istanbul University, his master's degree at the International Islamic University of Malaysia, and his doctoral education at George Washington University. In his academic career, he focused particularly on Islamic philosophy, inter-civilizational relations, and epistemology, and taught courses at various universities in Türkiye and the USA. He ranked 23rd in the list of the 500 most influential Muslims in the world, published by the Royal Islamic Strategic Research Center, in 2025. In public service, he undertook critical roles such as Chief Advisor to the Prime Ministry, Presidential Spokesperson, and Head of the National Intelligence Organization. Kalın, who has also authored numerous academic works and translations, stands out as an important figure in Türkiye's domestic and foreign policy.

Education and Academic Career

Undergraduate Education: He graduated from the Department of History, Faculty of Letters, Istanbul University in 1992.​

Master's Education: He pursued his master's degree at the International Islamic University of Malaysia to delve deeper into Islamic thought and philosophy. Here, he completed his master's degree in 1994 with his thesis titled "Mulla Sadra’s Theory of Trans-substantial Motion." ​

Doctoral Education: He continued his academic studies in the United States, earning his doctorate in humanities and comparative philosophy at George Washington University. In 2002, he received his doctoral title with his thesis titled "Mulla Sadra's Theory of Knowledge and the Possibility of an Anti-Subjectivist Epistemology."

Academic Positions:

• Researcher at the Turkish Religious Foundation Centre for Islamic Studies (İSAM): Conducted academic research on Islamic thought.
• Faculty Member at College of the Holy Cross (2002-2005): Served as a faculty member at the College of the Holy Cross in Massachusetts, USA, and taught courses on Islamic philosophy. ​
• Faculty Member at Georgetown University: Taught courses on Islamic thought and Islamic-Western relations at Georgetown University.
• Faculty Member at Bilkent University: Taught courses on Islamic thought and Islamic-Western relations at Bilkent University.
• Founding President of the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA) (2005-2009): Founded the SETA Foundation in 2005 and served as its president until 2009. ​
• Member of the Board of Trustees of Ahmet Yesevi University (2011): Appointed as a Member of the Board of Trustees of Ahmet Yesevi University in 2011.
• Faculty Member at Ibn Haldun University (2019-2023): Taught courses to postgraduate students in the field of Islamic philosophy at Ibn Haldun University. ​
• Professor Title (2020): Received the title of professor on May 29, 2020. ​

Academic Interests

• Islamic philosophy and thought
• Relations between Western and Islamic civilizations
• History of civilizations and comparative philosophy
• Epistemology and theories of knowledge

Public Service Roles

• Chief Advisor to the Prime Minister for Foreign Policy (2009-2012): Appointed as the Chief Advisor to then Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for Foreign Policy. This role played a significant part in Türkiye's international relations.
• Prime Ministry Public Diplomacy Coordinator (2010-2012): Appointed as the first coordinator of the Prime Ministry Public Diplomacy Coordination Office, established in January 2010, and managed Türkiye's public diplomacy activities. ​
• Undersecretary of the Prime Ministry (2012-2014): Appointed as the Undersecretary of the Prime Ministry responsible for Foreign Relations and Public Diplomacy. ​
• Deputy Secretary General and Spokesperson of the Presidency (2014-2023): In 2014, he was appointed to the positions of Deputy Secretary General of the Presidency and Presidential Spokesperson. During this period, he served as the official spokesperson for President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
• Deputy Chairman and Chief Advisor to the Presidential Security and Foreign Policy Council (2018-2023): In 2018, he was appointed as the Deputy Chairman of the Presidential Security and Foreign Policy Council and Chief Advisor to the Presidency, responsible for Security and Foreign Policy.
• Head of the National Intelligence Organization (2023-): On June 5, 2023, he was appointed as the Head of the National Intelligence Organization (MİT) by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and continues to serve in this position.

Personal Life

İbrahim Kalın married Neriman Kalın in 1992, and the couple has three daughters. In addition to his academic work, he is also interested in music, playing the bağlama and ney. He is known for his interest in Turkish folk music and has participated in various music projects. His interest in music began in middle school, during which he learned to play the guitar and bağlama. Kalın has composed multiple pieces due to his interest in Turkish folk music, including the folk songs "Seni Mene Vermez İse" and "Elif Bacı". Furthermore, İbrahim Kalın knows English, Arabic, Persian, and French. ​

Research and Publications

BOOKS

Kalın, İbrahim. Islam and the West. Istanbul: İSAM, 2007.

Bülbül, Kudret, Bekir Berat Özipek and İbrahim Kalın, ed. Society's Perception of the West in Türkiye: Between Love and Hate. Ankara: SETA, 2008.

Kalın, İbrahim. Knowledge in Later Islamic Philosophy: Mulla Sandra on Existence, Intellect and Intuition. New York: Oxford University Press, 2010.

Kalın, İbrahim. Reason and Virtue. Istanbul: Küre Yayınları, 2013.

M. Ghazi bin Muhammad, İbrahim Kalın and M. Hashim Kamali, ed. War, Peace in Islam: The Uses and Abuses of Jihad. Amman: MABDA, 2013.

Kalın, İbrahim, ed. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Science, and Technology in Islam. New York: Oxford University Press, 2014.

Sadra, Mulla. The Book of Metaphysical Penetrations, A Parallel English-Arabic Text of Kitab al-Masha’ir. Ed. İbrahim Kalın. Utah: Brigham Young University Press, 2014.

Kalın, İbrahim. Being and Perception: Mulla Sadra’s Conception of Knowledge. Trans. Nurullah Koltaş. Istanbul: Klasik Yayınları, 2015.

Kalın, İbrahim. I, The Other, and Beyond: An Introduction to the History of Islam-West Relations. Istanbul: İnsan Yayınları, 2016.

Kalın, İbrahim. Barbarian, Modern, Civilized: Notes on Civilization. Istanbul: İnsan Yayınları, 2018.

Kalın, İbrahim. Veil and Meaning: An Analysis of Reason. Istanbul: İnsan Yayınları, 2020.

Kalın, İbrahim. Open Horizon: On Thinking Good, True, and Beautiful. Istanbul: İnsan Yayınları,

2021.

Kalın, İbrahim. Under the Sky Dome. Istanbul: Mecra Kitap, 2022.

Kalın, İbrahim. Journey to the Essence. Istanbul: İnsan Yayınları, 2023.

Kalın, İbrahim. Islam, Enlightenment, and the Future: İnsan Yayınları, 2024.

BOOK CHAPTERS

Kalın, İbrahim. “The Sacred Versus the Secular: Nasr on Science.” Library of Living Philosophers: Seyyed Hossein Nasr. Ed. L. E. Hahn, R. E. Auxier, and L. W. Stone. Chicago: Open Court Press, 2001, 445-462.

Kalın, İbrahim. “Three Views of Science in the Islamic World.” God, Life, and the Cosmos: Christian and Islamic Perspectives. Ed. Ted Peters, Muzaffar Iqbal, and Syed Nomanul Haq. Oxford: Routledge, 2002, 19-53.

Kalın, İbrahim. “Roots of Misconception: Euro-American Perceptions of Islam Before and After September 11.” Islam, Fundamentalism, and the Betrayal of Tradition. Ed. Joseph E. B. Lumbard. Indiana: World Wisdom, 2009: 143-187.

Kalın, İbrahim. “Islamophobia and the Limits of Multiculturalism.” Islamophobia and the Challenges of Pluralism in the 21st Century, Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2011, 50-61.

Kalın, İbrahim. “The AK Party in Türkiye.” The Oxford Handbook of Islam and Politics. Ed. John L. Esposito and Emad El-Din Shahin. New York: Oxford University Press, 2013, 423-439.

ARTICLES

Kalın, İbrahim. “An Annotated Bibliography of the Works of Mullâ Sadrâ with a Brief Account of His Life.” Islamic Studies. 42/1 (2003): 21-62.

Kalın, İbrahim. “Islam and Peace: A Survey of the Sources of Peace in the Islamic Tradition.” Islamic Studies. 44/3 (2005): 327-362.

Kalın, İbrahim. “Debating Türkiye in the Middle East: the Dawn of a New Geo-Political Imagination?” Insight Türkiye. (2009): 83-96.

Kalın, İbrahim. “A Sage Tracing Traditional Islam in the Modern World: Seyyed Hossein Nasr.” İş Ahlakı Dergisi. 2/3 (2009): 135-142.

Kalın, İbrahim. “US-Turkish Relations under Obama: Promise, Challenge and Opportunity in the 21st Century.” Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies. 12/1 (2010): 93-108.

Kalın, İbrahim. “Soft Power and Public Diplomacy in Türkiye.” Perceptions: Journal of International Affairs. 16/3 (2011): 5-23.

Kalın, İbrahim. “Turkish Foreign Policy: Framework, Values, and Mechanisms.” International Journal. 67/1 (2012): 7-21.

Kalın, İbrahim. “After the Coup Attempt, Türkiye’s Success Story Continues.” Insight Türkiye. 18/3 (2016): 11-17.

Kalın, İbrahim. “Hodja Ahmed Yesevi, Judgment and Wisdom.” Bilig. 80 (2017): 1-14.