TURKEY TO BE CALLED TüRKIYE FROM NOW ON

The United Nations (UN) has agreed to a formal request from the country formally known as Turkey, to be called Türkiye from now on. The UN confirmed that it made the name change as soon as it was requested.

This forms part of a rebranding campaign launched by the Turkish president towards the end of 2022.

Although most Turks refer to their country as Türkiye already, the English version of the name is often used by locals as well.

“Türkiye is the best representation and expression of the Turkish people’s culture, civilisation, and value,” said Recep Tayyip Erdogan in December.

The BBC reports that state broadcaster TRT was quick to make the change as soon as it was announced last year, explaining that among the reasons for the image rebrand was the association with the bird traditionally associated with Christmas, New Year or Thanksgiving.

Although it is a very big and often expensive move, Türkiye is not the only country to have changed its name in the modern world.

Iran used to be called Persia, while Thailand used to be known as Siam. In Africa, the country once known as Rhodesia, is now called Zimbabwe, while the former Swaziland was renamed Eswatini in 2018.

Based on a political dispute with Greece, Macedonia changed its name to North Macedonia.  

As part of the country’s rebranding move, The Netherlands decided to drop Holland in 2020.

Image credit: Anadolu Agency