Journal of the History of Ideas

The ideological impact of Émile Durkheim on Turkish political and social thought has long been analyzed within the framework of Ziya Gökalp’s nationalist thought. This article seeks to show that there were also liberal followers of Durkheim as seen in the works of particularly Ahmet Ağaoğlu. Ağaoğlu’s social liberalism carried Durkheimian motifs as we see in his constant emphasis on division of labor and functional differentiation as integral elements of the modern liberal mentalité, and in the importance he imputed to intermediary groups to protect the rights of the individual.