Stop sniggering and call us Turkiye, says President Erdogan

Turkey will be referred to as Türkiye at the United Nations from now on, after a formal request from Ankara in a drive to distance the country from the dim-witted bird and Christmas-themed puns.

President Erdogan’s government submitted a letter to the UN requesting the name change this week. The state-run Anadolu news agency said that António Guterres, the UN secretary-general, had acceded to the request, effective “from the moment” the letter was received. Other international bodies are to follow suit.

Erdogan ordered the nationwide use of Türkiye, as it is spelt and pronounced in Turkish, in December and has since pressed for international recognition of the change in its English pronunciation.

 “Türkiye is the best representation and expression of the Turkish people’s culture, civilisation, and values,” said Erdogan, 68, who has driven the country towards a more authoritarian, populist brand of Islamist politics since taking power in 2003, first as prime minister and then as president.

 “Made in Türkiye” has begun replacing “Made in Turkey” on exported goods and Turkish ministries have altered their stationery and official documents. The government released a promotional video this year, showing tourists across the globe declaring “Hello Türkiye” at famous sights.

Turkey’s English-language state broadcaster TRT World has already switched, explaining that an online search for “Turkey” brings up “a muddled set of images, articles, and dictionary definitions that conflate the country with ... a large bird native to North America — which is famous for being served on Christmas menus or Thanksgiving dinners.”

The broadcaster added: “Flip through the Cambridge Dictionary and ‘turkey’ is defined as ‘something that fails badly’ or ‘a stupid or silly person.’”

Whether the name change will catch on abroad remains to be seen. The Czech Republic formally registered Czechia as its short-form name in 2016 but it is rarely used