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The Politics of Turkish Language Reform
Ottoman History Podcast
English - January 05, 2017 01:48 - ★★★★★ - 199 ratingsPlaces & Travel Society & Culture History history middle east ottoman empire turkey islam Homepage Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Episode 290
with Emmanuel Szurek hosted by Chris Gratien and Aurélie Perrier featuring Seçil Yılmaz and Nir Shafir
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National language politics and the transformation of literacy have effected major changes in both spoken and written language over the course of the last century, but few languages have changed as dramatically as modern Turkish. The reform of the language from the 1920s onward, which not only replaced the Ottoman alphabet with a new Latin-based alphabet but also led to a radical transformation of the lexicon and grammar, has been described by Geoffrey Lewis as "catastrophic success" due to the extreme but unquestionably successful nature of this attempt to revolutionize language in Turkey. In this episode, we talk to Emmanuel Szurek about his research on the politics of the alphabet change, the language reforms, and the surname laws of the early Republican period. Our extended interview is followed by a brief conversation in French about the history of French Turcology.
Release Date: 4 January 2017« Click for More »