Turkey has told the United Nations that, on instructions of president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, it wishes to be called “Türkiye” in all languages, effective immediately, the United Nations announced Thursday.
Stephane Dujarric, the U.N. chief’s spokesperson told the media that the change was made upon receiving an official letter from Ankaraat the U.N.’s New York headquarters on Wednesday, requesting for a name change.
Earlier this week, the Foreign Minister of Turkey, Mr. MevlütÇavuşoğlu, had tweeted a photo of himself signing the letter, addressed to Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres.
“With the letter I sent to the U.N. Secretary-General today, we are registering our country’s name in foreign languages at the U.N. as ‘Türkiye,'” he wrote.
Çavuşoğlu said the change would help increase the brand value of Turkey, following up on an initiative started by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who has led the country for almost two decades now.
Over the past few years, Turkey has been seeking changes to branding its products from “made in Turkey” to “made in Türkiye.”
Besides making changes to its nomenclature in U.N., the name change would also help distinguish the country from the bird of the same name in English.
Turkey’s move to change its official name at the U.N. was widely covered by international media.
Some big names to have covered the news include Anadolu Agency, which first reported the news, The Associated Press, NPR, CBS, Al Jazeera, France 24, Canberra Times, WBTV, Greek newspaper Kathimerini, Greek City Times, and several websites.
“The name change may seem silly to some but it puts Erdoğan in the role of protector, of safeguarding international respect for the country,” Georgetown University professor Mustafa Aksakal was quoted as saying in The New York Times.
The newspaper also noted that the move comes ahead of the presidential elections, to be held in 2023, as well as the centenary of the nation’s founding after the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire.