FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHING IN TÜRKIYE - An Overview from the Early Republic to the Present

Foreign language teaching practises in Türkiye has a long-established history, extending back to the pre-Ottoman period. Since the early stages of Turkish settlement in Anatolia, various foreign languages have been taught. For instance, eastern languages such as Arabic and Persian were regularly taught in madrasas – the early forms of higher education institutions- while western languages such as French and Latin were taught in Istanbul-based education institutions. Following the foundation of Turkish republic in 1923, significant changes occurred in foreign language teaching, in parallel with the major reforms introduced in the broader field of education in Türkiye.
To offer a comprehensive and insightful account of foreign language teaching in Türkiye—a country positioned at the crossroads of Eastern and Western linguistic traditions—18 scholars specializing in English, German, French, Russian, Spanish, Japanese, Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Korean, Chinese, and Turkish have been invited to contribute to this book. Although it is possible to adopt different approaches to the discussion of each language included in the book, we have sought to structure all chapters around a common framework. This framework not only enables us to examine each language from the perspective of foreign language teaching but also allows for a comparative analysis of the develop mental trajectory of foreign language education in Türkiye.