Career
When he was an assistant teaching staff of the Ottoman Military Academy, he used to order "Sağdan birinci manga, kop ta gel!" ("First squad from the right, separate (from line) and come!"), "Birinci mangadan sağdan itibaren beş kişi kop da gel!" ("First squad of five person from the right, separate (from line) and come!"). His students gave him a nickname "Kop ta gel". After the 1934 Surname Law, Mustafa Kemal gave him a surname "Koptagel".