La révolution au pied de la lettre. L’invention de « l’alphabet turc »

Abstract

This article aims at giving visibility to the social and political motivations behind the introduction of a new alphabet in 1928 Turkey, breaking loose from ideological or cultural explanations. More than a step in the process of 'modernization' or 'westernization', the authoritarian reformulation of the graphic norm actually (1) represents a decisive step in the enrooting of the Republican state power structures, (2) prepares the way for the homogenisation of national territory and (3) makes for the shoring up of symbolic hierarchies. The setting of the new letters, then the enforcement of the Millet Mektepleri [Schools of the Nation], which means inventing, institutionalising and propagating a new orthographical orthodoxy, give a good indication of the social role played by the new alphabet. First, the new writing produces the cognitive frame likely to induce a break with the cultural practices of the Ottoman Empire. Second, diffusing the 'Turkish alphabet' [Türk Alfabesi], especially among the young generations, enables new authorities both to familiarize the population to 'national values' and to 'nationalise' the statute of the literati in the People's Party Republic. Third, the legal alteration of literacy appears as a strategy of the Kemalist elites aimed at turning a transitory position of political superiority into a long-term cultural domination.

Keywords

• alphabet
• kemalist revolution
• nation-building
• millet mektepleri