Sadettin Dilbilgen was a philatelist who was born in Ottoman Macedonia. He was the childhood friend of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was an Ottoman and Turkish army officer, revolutionary statesman, writer, and the first President of Turkey. He is credited with being the founder of the Republic of Turkey....

.

Early life

Dilbilgen was born to a Macedonian–Turkish family and lived close to the Marko's Monastery

Marko's Monastery

Marko's Monastery is a monastery located in the village of Markova Sušica, from central Skopje in the Republic of Macedonia. The monastery bears the name of the Prince Marko who reigned at the time of its completion.-Description:...

 located in the village of Markova Sušica

Markova Sušica

Markova Sušica is a village in the Studeničani Municipality of Skopje, Macedonia. The village is home to Marko's Monastery....

. At a young age he moved to France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, where he was educated and stayed for 16 years. After the Turkish War of Independence

Turkish War of Independence

The Turkish War of Independence was a war of independence waged by Turkish nationalists against the Allies, after the country was partitioned by the Allies following the Ottoman Empire's defeat in World War I...

, the majority of his family moved to Izmir

Izmir

Izmir is a large metropolis in the western extremity of Anatolia. The metropolitan area in the entire Izmir Province had a population of 3.35 million as of 2010, making the city third most populous in Turkey...

, Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

. In Izmir he worked as a French teacher and then began stamp-collecting during his spare time. He was to become one of Turkey's most important collectors.