It might be inspired by domestic politics, as is likely the case with Türkiye, or it could represent a shift in regional or global power dynamics. The change is less like Rhodesia becoming Zimbabwe in 1980 and more akin to what would happen if the country known in English as Germany asked that the world refer to it as Deutschland, which is the way the Germans say it.īut Erdogan’s request – and the U.N.’s decision to follow suit – does raise the question of why countries seek to change their names.Īs Julie Tetel Andresen and I explain in our book “ Languages in the World: How History, Culture, and Politics Shape Language,” the answer almost always has to do with politics and power. State Department also agreed to adopt the requested change in its written communications.Ī number of news outlets have reported that Turkey has changed its name, but that’s not really true – Turks have called their country Türkiye since 1923, when Turkey became the successor state to the Ottoman Empire. In June 2022, the United Nations agreed to change the spelling of the country known in the English-speaking world as Turkey to Türkiye, heeding a request by the government of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Is Turkey’s recent spelling change about being more authentically Turkish? Or is there more to the story?
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