Since 2000, 21 February has been observed as International Mother Language Day by decision of UNESCO. The aim is to promote cultural diversity and multilingualism worldwide. However, while symbolic commitments are increasing, the loss of linguistic diversity continues to advance.
According to a UNESCO report published in March 2025, there are 8,324 spoken or signed languages worldwide. Around 7,000 of them are still actively used, yet only 351 serve as languages of instruction. Merely 40 percent of children worldwide receive education in their mother tongue. The organization warns that a language dies out every two weeks. Programs for language protection and revitalization are therefore more urgent than ever.
The international language database Ethnologue reaches similar conclusions. Of the 7,159 languages recorded worldwide, around 44 percent are considered endangered, many of them with fewer than 1,000 speakers. At the same time, 20 major languages dominate, spoken as a mother tongue by more than 3.7 billion people—almost half of the world’s population.
Education as the key
Linguists and international organizations identify the primary cause of the disappearance of many languages as their lack of use in public life and within the education system. Mother tongue instruction is regarded as a central prerequisite for preserving linguistic diversity. While many multilingual states provide education in multiple languages, classical nation-states continue to adhere to monolingual policies. Turkey is considered one of the most striking examples.
A monolingual constitutional reality
In Turkey, Turkish is the sole official language. Although Article 42 of the Constitution formally guarantees the right to education, it explicitly prohibits the teaching and instruction of any language other than Turkish in educational institutions. This provision stands in tension with international conventions that prohibit discrimination in education. While Turkey has ratified numerous international treaties, such as the UN International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, it has done so with reservations concerning mother tongue instruction.
Turkey has also not signed the UNESCO Convention against Discrimination in Education, which obliges states to abolish discriminatory legal provisions and recognize the linguistic rights of minorities. A further peculiarity arises from the Treaty of Lausanne. This treaty grants non-Muslim minorities the right to establish and operate educational institutions in their own language—yet does not extend this right to Muslim population groups. As a result, a large portion of the country’s linguistic diversity lacks institutional protection.
Endangered languages in Turkey
The exact number of languages spoken in Turkey remains unclear; estimates range between 20 and 30 languages and dialects. According to the UNESCO Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger, three languages have already become completely extinct: Ubykh, Mlahsô, and Cappadocian Greek. Other languages are classified as severely endangered or at risk of extinction, including Turoyo (also known as Surayt), Ladino, Gagauz, Romani, Western Armenian, Homshetsma, Laz, Pontic Greek, Abaza, and Neo-Aramaic. Adyghe, Abkhaz, Kabardian, as well as Kirmanckî (Zazakî)—a variant of Kurdish—are categorized as “endangered” or “vulnerable.”
“Living languages” as an elective course
It was not until 2012, as part of political reforms, that the elective course “Living Languages and Dialects” was introduced. Since then, Kurdish—in its Kurmancî and Kirmanckî variants—can be chosen as an elective in grades 5 through 8. However, implementation remains controversial. Language associations and experts criticize the fact that they were barely involved in the development process. Moreover, schools regularly report shortages of qualified teachers, insufficient teaching materials, and limited resources.
Although the number of students choosing Kurdish as an elective has increased over the past three years—from 23,000 (2023/24) to 59,362 (2025/26)—the number of newly appointed teachers has fluctuated significantly. While 50 positions were advertised in 2023, the figure dropped to ten in 2024 and to only six in 2025.
Between recognition and restriction
The discrepancy between rising demand and limited institutional support highlights structural tensions. While the protection of linguistic diversity is internationally framed as a human rights issue, implementation in Turkey remains constrained by constitutional and political boundaries. Against the backdrop of global warnings that a language disappears every two weeks, Turkey too faces the question of whether its “living languages” truly have a future or will gradually vanish from public life.
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