PRONUNCIATION OF THE NAME TURK

“Türk” suggests that it may have been pronounced as a single syllable even in pre-BC times, but it is known that it was first used in this form during the Göktürk period (6th-8th centuries AD). The word, which appears as Tu- küe in Chinese sources , evolved from the forms Törük-Türük. It is accepted that the form “Türk” was adopted. In this context, although there are suggestions such as “Türküt” (P. Pelliot ) and “Türkü” (R. Clauson ), the form “Türük” found in the Köktürk inscriptions is more widely accepted. Consequently, the two-syllable “T’ukü” found in Chinese sources gradually transformed into “Türük ,” and then into “Türk .”

THE MEANING OF THE NAME TURK

The word “Turk” has been used with various meanings by different nations throughout history. In Chinese sources it refers to a helmet, in Persian texts to a Turanian , and in Byzantine sources to a powerful one . While it means Hun , during the Uyghur period it means power and order , and in Chagatai and Baburnama… The term “yiğit” (brave /heroic) was used during the Seljuk period to describe a nomadic people. Mahmud al-Kashgari interpreted the name “Turk” as meaning maturity , deriving it from Noah’s son , while the Arabs considered it a deserted people. In the 19th and 20th centuries, Ahmed… While Vefik Pasha explained the word as referring to peasants and ordinary people, some researchers argued that it comes from the verb “to originate” and means “created.” G. Clauson and G. Nemeth stated that the word acquired a strong meaning, while İbrahim Kafesoğlu noted that it carries meanings that develop in the order of existence, power, and maturity. The name “Turk” emerged in the last millennium BC and over time became the identity of a specific group of people.

FROM THE WORD TURK TO THE TURKISH NATION

“Turk” has been used throughout history as a supra-identity uniting various sub-identities. It emerged as the name of a state-founding tribe during the Göktürk period, and, spreading in Islamic sources , acquired a meaning encompassing Turkic tribes in Eastern Europe. Although the Karakhanids and Seljuks did not directly use the name “Turk” in their state names, they were referred to by this name by their neighbors. The name “Turk , ” which spread to West Asia in the 11th century , was used by Europeans as ” Turkia .” While communities known by names such as Oghuz, Kazakh, Uzbek, Kyrgyz, Tatar, and Uyghur diverged due to different political developments, their languages remained common. After the Turks converted to Islam, the concepts of Turkishness and Islam became intertwined, and in the West, ” being Turkish ” became synonymous with becoming Muslim .

THE FIRST HOMELAND OF THE TURKS

Although there are differing opinions about the original homeland of the Turks , research indicates that the area around the Altai and Sayan Mountains , and the northwest of these mountains, was the oldest homeland of the Turks. Turkic tribes such as the Huns, Göktürks, Uyghurs, Oghuzs, Kyrgyz, and Tatars , who spread to different regions through migrations, established states in a vast geographical area, but their homeland was never completely abandoned. While Western researchers suggest that the Turks were a constantly migrating people, regions such as Turkestan , the Altai Mountains , the Tian Shan Mountains , and the Ural Mountains have historically been inhabited by the Turks. Linguistic and archaeological findings show that the Turks lived in these vast regions from around 2000 BC onwards, and gradually spread eastward, westward, and southward.