Spring 2000 (8.1)
Page 25

Alphabet Reversals

"All of my books have been published in Cyrillic. I know that within five years or so, the younger generations will not be able to read them. Sometimes I think: 'What a pity! I've been serving this society as a scholar for 55 years but no one will be able to read my books in the future.'

"But that's all right. It's important for us to use the Latin alphabet. A common alphabet will bring us together with the other Turkic peoples and will give us a national identity. The Cyrillic alphabet was imposed upon us by Soviet totalitarianism and it was necessary to rid ourselves of it. The Latin alphabet will return us to the direction in history that we want to go."

Kamal Abdullayev, Literary Critic and son of children's writer Abdulla Shaig, in an interview with Azerbaijan International, late 1999.


From Azerbaijan International (8.1) Spring 2000.
© Azerbaijan International 2000. All rights reserved.

Back to Quotable Quotes (AI 8.1)
More Quotes
Back to Index AI 8.1 (Spring 2000)
AI Home | Magazine Choice | Topics | Store | Contact us