Biography
Fahriye Evcen is a Turkish actress and model whose story begins not in Istanbul but in Solingen, Germany, where she was born on June 4, 1986, to a family of Turkish and Circassian heritage. She is one of the most prominent actresses of her generation in Turkey, having built a career that crosses from intimate drama to grand historical epic.
Early life and education
Growing up in Germany, Fahriye Evcen initially enrolled in sociology at Heinrich Heine University in Düsseldorf. Her path changed when, during a holiday in Turkey, a chance encounter with television producer İbrahim Mertoğlu opened the door to a different life. At nineteen, she made the bold decision to move to Istanbul, where she enrolled in the History department at Boğaziçi University — one of Turkey’s most selective institutions — while simultaneously beginning her acting career. That combination of formal education and professional ambition set the tone for a career characterised by seriousness and discipline.
She married actor Burak Özçivit on June 29, 2017, and the couple have two sons, Karan (born 2019) and Kerem (born 2023). In 2021 she also launched her own clothing line, Ivy People.
Awards and recognition
Fahriye Evcen’s breakthrough came with the long-running family drama Yaprak Dökümü (2006–2010) as Necla, a role that ran for four years and gave her the platform to develop as an actress. She followed this with Çalıkuşu (2013–2014) as Feride, which became one of her most beloved roles among Turkish audiences. She also appeared in Kurt Seyit ve Şura (2014) and in Ölene Kadar (2017), handling dual roles with characteristic precision. Her most recent major television project was Alparslan: Büyük Selçuklu (2021–2022), in which she played the historically grounded character Akça Hatun with quiet authority. Her film work includes Aşk Tutulması (2008), Evim Sensin (2012) and Aşk Sana Benzer (2015). She has received multiple awards throughout her career and remains one of the most respected actresses in Turkish television.
