Remziye Hisar (1902 – 13 June 1992) was a Turkish chemist and academic. Hisar was Türkiye’s first female chemist and the first Turkish woman to earn a doctorate from the Sorbonne University. Throughout her academic career, she held positions at various universities in Istanbul and Ankara, conducting research primarily on metaphosphates.

Early Life and Education

Remziye Hisar was born in the city of Üsküp, then part of the Ottoman Empire. Her father was Salih Hulusi Bey, a Lieutenant Colonel in the Military Engineering Corps, and her mother was Ayşe Refia Hanım. The family moved to Istanbul in 1909 following the Second Constitutional Era.

Hisar completed her primary education at the Mekteb-i İptidai in Davutpaşa, finishing the three-year program in just one year. She then studied at the İttihat ve Terakki Mektebi and the Emirgan İnas Rüştiyesi. She transferred to the İstanbul Darülmuallimatı and graduated first in her class in 1919. That same year, she enrolled in the Chemistry Department of İstanbul Darülfünunu, where she stood out as one of only three female students.

Years in Baku and Family Life

In 1919, Hisar set out with friends to take up a teaching position at a school planned to open in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. While teaching there, she met the military physician Reşit Süreyya Bey, and they married on 20 April 1920. The marriage produced two children: Feza (born 1921) and Deha (born 1924).

Higher Education and Doctorate in France

After the proclamation of the Republic, Hisar moved to Paris with her husband to begin her chemistry studies at the Sorbonne University. She became a student of leading scientists including Marie Curie and Paul Langevin and earned a biochemistry certificate from the Pasteur Institute. However, due to the termination of her scholarship, she returned to Türkiye before completing her doctorate.

In 1930, she returned to Paris on a scholarship from the Ministry of National Education and completed her doctorate in 1933 under the supervision of Paul Pascal. Thus, she became the first Turkish woman to earn a doctorate from the Sorbonne University.

Academic Career in Türkiye

After returning to Türkiye, she taught chemistry and physicochemistry at Istanbul University from 1933 to 1936. In 1936, she worked as a chemistry specialist in the Pharmacodynamics Division of the Hıfzıssıhha Müessesesi in Ankara. From 1942 to 1947, she served at the Istanbul University School of Pharmacy. In 1947, she was appointed to the Chemistry Chair of the Faculty of Mines at Istanbul Technical University. She was promoted to professor in 1959 and retired in 1973.

Scientific Contributions and Publications

Remziye Hisar conducted scientific research on various inorganic compounds and Turkish plants, with a primary focus on metaphosphates. She worked on the determination of vitamin C in fruits and vegetables, the analysis of mahlep oil, and the toxicological properties of the burçak plant. Sixteen of her scientific papers were published in the French journal Bulletin de la Société Chimique de France. She authored five textbooks, four of which were translations. Additionally, Hisar, who had a keen interest in literature, had her poems collected in a book titled Bir Kadın Sesi.

Awards and Later Years

In 1955, she was awarded the French honor of “Officier d’Académie,” and in 1991, she received the TÜBİTAK Service Award. She spent her retirement years in the family mansion in Anadoluhisarı Otağtepe, Istanbul. She passed away in Istanbul on 13 June 1992, shortly after the death of her son Feza Gürsey.