As of this Thursday (2/6), Turkey’s name will be Turkey in English instead of Turkey. But why?
As of this Thursday (2/6), Turkey’s name will be Turkey in English instead of Turkey.
The United Nations this week accepted an official request by the Turkish government for a name change on the international scene.
Other international organizations will also be asked to adopt the new English name as part of an awareness campaign. rebranding It was launched by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the end of last year.
“Turkey is the best representation and expression of the culture, civilization and values of the Turkish people,” Erdogan said in December. Said.
Why is the name changing?
Most Turks already call their country Turkey.
However, the Anglo-Saxon form of “Turkey”, meaning turkey in English, is widely used.
State broadcaster TRT immediately accepted the change as soon as it was announced last year, explaining that among the reasons was Turkey’s association with the bird traditionally associated with Christmas, New Year’s Day or Thanksgiving.
Image: Getty Images
He also cited another Cambridge English Dictionary definition as one of the reasons for the change, as the word meant “something seriously wrong” or “a stupid or stupid person”.
as part of rebranding“Made in Turkey” will be included in all exported products and a tourism campaign was launched in January with the slogan “Hello Turkey”.
The decision led to differences of opinion on social media.
While there are those who approve of the change, including government officials, others say it’s an act by the current president to distract the public – Erdogan is preparing for elections next year amid a deepening economic crisis.
It is not uncommon for countries to change their names.
In 2020 the Netherlands changed its name to Netherlands and before that Macedonia changed its name to North Macedonia due to a geopolitical dispute with Greece. The Czech Republic is now called Czechia. Swaziland became Eswatini in 2018, to name a few.
Image: EPA
analysis
Onur Erem, BBC Turkish service
Ü can be misleading to most international audiences who do not have this letter in their alphabet.
For an English speaker, simply changing the first vowel of Turkey to a Ü and adding an E to the end is all it takes to pronounce the new name perfectly.
But why was this necessary?
President Erdogan has been pushing for this change for years, arguing that the country will be better represented by its Turkish name rather than being called by the same name as a bird in English.
“Turkey”, meaning the bird, is known as “pavo” in Spanish, “peru” in Portuguese, or “turkey” in Turkish.
While many users on social media described the Turkish government’s move as nonsense, others agreed it was a necessary brand change.
We have to wait and see if people around the world will accept Turkey instead of Turkey.
*This text was originally published on BBC News Brazil..
source: Noticias
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