Bilgi [2019 Kış ], 21 [2]: 210-231 Evolution of Traditional Philanthropy to Corporate Social Responsibility: The Overview of the Context and Practices in Turkey Sevgi Dönmez - Maç 1 Semih Okutan 2 Onur Metin 3 Şule Aydın -Turan 4 Abstract: This study aims to trace the evolution of philanthropy towards CSR and to reach an elucidating scheme about the cur- rent context and contemporary practices in Turkey. The evolution of the philanthropy concept is evaluated regarding the period of the Ottoman Empire, the Republic of Turkey, the development of the private sector, and finally the influence of globalization. Ac- cordingly, the paper concluded that the historical evolution of phi- lanthropy in Turkey brings about a scheme in which CSR per- spective has been emerging. The contemporary practices such as awarding, CSR reporting and following of CSR standards are claimed to be reflections of CSR perspective. On the other side, philanthropy carries on to be influential to some extent in a corpo- rate character, in the practices of the companies. Key Words: Traditional Philanthropy, Corporate Philanthropy, Corporate Social Responsibility, Turkey 1. Dr. Öğretim Üyesi, Sakarya Üniversitesi, İşletme Fakültesi, İnsan Kaynakları Yönetimi Bölümü. 2. Dr. Öğretim Üyesi, Sakarya Üniversitesi, İşletme Fakültesi, İşletme Bölümü. 3. Dr. Öğretim Üyesi, Sakarya Üniversitesi, Siyasal Bilgiler Fakültesi, Çalışma Ekonomisi ve Endüstri İlişkileri Bölümü. 4. Dr. Öğretim Üyesi, Sakarya Üniversitesi, İşletme Fakültesi, İnsan Kaynakları Yönetimi Bölümü.