trkalkem

He spent the next decade pushing reforms to modernize the country. One of the last reforms centered on family names. In 1934 it was decreed by the General National Assembly (of which he was president) that every citizen must choose surnames. For centuries many people in Turkey were recognized by their given names because the unit of community was based on small villages and clans; the uniqueness of given names minimized the need for last names. Only one name was not allowed to be chosen and that was Ataturk. Mustafa Kemal selected the name Ataturk for his surname; Ataturk means, "Father of the Turks" or "Father of the Turkish Nation".

Ataturk died in 1938 and his presence is still felt across Turkey today.