4.3 The influence of Arabic on Turkish

Naturally, the influence of Arabic on languages spoken in close geographical and cultural proximity is greater. Additional religious links are further incentives for people to learn Arabic language, as it is the language of the Holy Qur’an.

Turkish is one of the languages that was influenced by Arabic the most. The Arabic alphabet was for instance used throughout the Ottoman Empire – it was only in 1928 that Ataturk implemented reforms for the Turkish Republic that introduced Latin script as the official writing system.

According to the Turkish Language Academy, more than 6,000 words are loanwords from Arabic. For example: Saat , سَاعَة ,Saʿa - Kalem قَلَم , Qalam, - Seccade , Saǧǧada, سَجّادَة - Kitap, Kitab, كِتَاب.