Only a Turk Can Answer This!!

BTW anykind of assimilation is B A D... Ottoman culture was a hybrid-mutated culture that threw the people at the edge of a serious identity crisis.

If Turks of Turkey suffer from anything related to culture,it is mostly the fault of the Ottomans.

Most of the people can be muslim,thats fine,but taking Islam as a kind of culture(instead of a religion) makes an identity clash(and it did and is still doing,thanks to ottomans) 

In my opinion,which is not so humble for me,Turks should left their ottoman identity away,and be real "Turks"

To have a better view about the alphabet revolution of Turkey, we should consider the developments before the act of Latin Script usage.

* To change the alphabet was also considered and tried by the ruling Ittihat-Terakki Firka temporarily in 1917. But, because of the concerns of war communication, vulnerabilities, and primary war needs, that idea was dropped after that short trial. Samples of new first Latin alphabet-using texts can be found in some books.  

* Before the Turkish Latin Alphabet acceptance, another similar Latin alphabet was also accepted in Azerbaijan. So, the alphabet reform in Azerbaijan must have sympathized to the reforming rulers of Turkey then. But, after the Turkish alphabet reform, Azerbejican Latin alphabet was changed (in mid 1930s) again to distance those Turkic speaking people's literature by Stalin. 

These are not answers to �ok ge�'s questions, but these factors should be considered revealing secondary evidences in the way to the change of Arabic script in favor of Latin script. 

------------------------

So, far in our prevalent Turkish school curriculum, alphabet reform are presented and substantiated with grounds as:

- Arabic script do not fit the needs of Turkish language. (Some writers says, there had been some attempts (by 1900s)  to modify the Arabic script by adding some vowels to satisfy the needs of Turkish language. But, it was said that, those attempts were not supported, so not succeeded to a Arabic script better fitting to Turkish language)

- It would be the ultimate rational and scientific decision to get rid of an alphabet (Arabic) that is backward and preventing development.  So, to adopt the Latin alphabet of the modern world will prevail a quite better and easier learning process to exterminate the illiteracy and ignorance of Turkish public. (Frankly, no alphabet is backward and some of these reasons are superficially used to back up reforms by explaining them in a reasonable manner to the new generations. Obviously, no revolutionary reform would be wooed by common public, understandably a ruling elite in power did so for common good on behalf of public. It is reported that the illiteracy ratio were reduced substantially, thanks to that alphabet reform and mobilization campaigns for education. To be fair, it was not only the alphabet reform contributed that human development, also the reform zeal must have been a big contributer to develop.)

If I elaborate my opinions:

- It (Latin Alphabet reform) had been decided after long process, a vital step in the Turkish modernization and Westernization process. Turkish republic of today reflects the results and achievements of Atat�rk and his companions, some of the reforms succeeded quite well, however we have democracy today, so any reform have to earn public approval first.  

- Turkey is a secular country, accordingly, that alphabet reform served very well to ingrain the secularism. Also, the new Turkish republic denied many remnants of the former Ottoman empire which was predominantly Islamic. The language reform also gave the signal that the religious education, piety, and Ottoman script would no longer have any merit to be accepted and ascended in the government positions. In other words, alphabet reform, deliberately, intentionally and successfully to a certain degree distanced the Turkish people and culture from the past. Say it religion, Arabic alphabet or any other thing. Someone in Turkey sometimes claims that there is something sacred in Arabic script since it is used in Quran. I don't think they are correct, because the Arabic script has been used before the prophets' age; also, it (Arabic script)was originally derived from previous alphabets of the Middle East region.

-  The Arabic alphabet, along with religious world interpretation, was also considered a symbol of the decayed past. It was regarded similar to wearing fez, so served to distinguish who are for the reforms and who are against. Not democratically, but that was the interim period of the new republic. Arabic alphabet was an evidence to a westerner, once entering in Turkey, they were in the Orient. So, one of the eastern originated ingredients of identity was changed to a western one, which is the modern western world norm. Our Turkish identity gained a pillar of western tendency. Although these supposed aims of reforms were, fairly achieved, there were expenses of the alphabet reform which were detrimental. But, no revolutionary reform can be done without thornssss.

- Although they are obvious, I want to review the negative and positive effects of the alphabet reform. Since the interim period for the Latin alphabet was short (3 month I think), they say many of the %5 literate people, before learning the new Latin script, felt alienated to this reform and went on using the Arabic script in their writings. But the new generation, especially teachers, who were only educated with the new alphabet happened to be genuine and zealous pioneers of new republic.   Since the new generation, having learned only the Latin alphabet, in their interest, defended the modernization reforms of the republic [ to ascend to the state of modern civilizations]. 

On the other hand, it is sad not to be able read the literature before the Latin alphabet. Even if a turk now knows the Ottoman script, it is very difficult to understand the literature in 1920s-30s  or before.

We are proud and grateful that Atat�rk did show the determination for those reforms, because obviously everyone enjoy the fruits of those cultural reforms.

The Osmanli alhpabet did have special sounds that wer change from the arabic alp. for the, ch, sh, etc. sounds

that was definately not the reason for changing it to latin coz our osmanli (not arabic) alphabet was sufficient in the sounds feild, as it was sufficient for many centuries.

since many guys are saying that it was mainly to be more western then, hehe, this possibility lightens up:

Ok, thank you for sharing your view on this. However, it does not matter again. I posted a whole page in question not to dispute if I care about it or not. I posted those questions to get an answer about what process of discussion and conclusion that made Turks change their alphabet.

Again, read it clear Miller: Even if Arabs cut themselves in pieces, it did not effect the decision of changing the alphabets to Latin.

If you want your answer Miller, let us say for the sake of argument that "All 250 million Arabs care about it and they are so outraged and cannot sleep their nights for the change of Alphabets and for Arab nationalism in their blood", if Turkey changed their alphabets without considering if Arabs cared or not, then it DOES NOT MATTER. My question wasn't in concern bout If I or any Arab care about it or not. The question was why did they do it? reasons?

Basically, imagine if German met a Turk in 1938 and asked him: Why did you change your alphabets to Latin? 

That answer of the Turk  is the answer im looking for. I hope it sunk this time.

Well, not Turks of Anatolia though, they were just ignored and kept uneducated, but maybe Ottomans were some sort of dumb. They were using the alphabet of one of their subjects. And it wasnt even fitting our language, so Ottomans decided to make our language fit into that subject's alphabet!

We didnt. In fact we recreated it with Ataturk. Arabization did destroy it. Just like it did to the Persians, Sogdians or Libyans. Similar to what Greeks did to Romans, or the Byzanthine Empire did to Anatolians. Assimilation. But thanks God, noone could totally assimilate us...

The real question maybe why would Arabs care if Turks use Arabic or Latin script. If you can answer that question I bet you may get some answers to your original question

Something related to the subject, from today's radikal newspaper (in Turkish):

http://www.radikal.com.tr/haber.php?haberno=168292

No I am not saying we should return our glorified past, It was not much beauty, but we should built our link with our past. We need to cut it for Ataturk time, but now we should built it again. Specialy cultural link should be built. I dont want to be only a muslim European, we were ottomans, and now we are turk. What make us Turk is, our past, ottomans.

The culture evolved.

It should be, but we cant say Ataturk revolution is an evolving. It banned and forced ottoman culture to diminish.

I am not saying we should live like ottomans, It should be another forced changing.

But we need a soft changing, It is already becoming, but need some govermental support.

All of our culture changed.

language, we know It is changed, our grandfather and us use different words, and alphabet changed. So we cannot say our langauge is same with ottomans.

history, Changed too. Infact half of our history is propoganda.

sports, changed, yes there is still yagl� p�nar but It is a rare event.

culture absolutely changed. Religion It is somewhat changed too.