Ukraine Approves New Spelling for Crimean Tatar Language in Latin Alphabet

The Ukrainian government has approved a new spelling of the Crimean Tatar language based on the Latin alphabet. This officially completed the transition of the Crimean Tatar language from the Cyrillic alphabet to the Latin alphabet.

This was reported by the Representative Office of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.

The spelling is based on the alphabet adopted in 2021 and corresponds to both modern language norms and the historical tradition of the Crimean Tatar language. It was developed by leading scholars, linguists, representatives of the Crimean Tatar people, as well as government institutions, including the Ministry of Education and Science, the Potebnya Institute of Linguistics, the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, and the Mejlis.

The document covers the rules of spelling, use of the language in education, media, literature, and place names. It is recommended for use by all government agencies, including administrations in the temporarily occupied territories of Crimea and Sevastopol.

The Representative Office of the President of Ukraine in the AR of Crimea noted that this is not only a step towards preserving cultural identity, but also a gesture of support for the rights of the indigenous people and intercultural dialogue.

The Crimean Tatar language was translated into Cyrillic during the Soviet Union. After Ukraine gained its independence, Crimean Tatar experts started talking about the need to change the spelling to Latin, as it better takes into account the phonetic features of the language.

Last year , Google expanded the list of languages on its translation service, and Crimean Tatar is among 110 new languages added to the translator. The update was due to the introduction of a large language model - PaLM 2 artificial intelligence.

Earlier it was reported that on June 26, Ukraine annually celebrates the Day of the Crimean Tatar Flag. In 2014, the Crimean Tatar flag became a symbol of indestructibility and struggle for rights and freedom for many people around the world. And after February 24, 2022, the flag of the Crimean Tatars, along with the flag of Ukraine, has been flying even more powerfully in the hottest spots of the fighting.

Ірина Глухова