Abstract:
The Georgian society already knows that Georgian language and
literature departments have been opened in four Turkish universities-
Kars, Ardahan, Rize and Duzce. The charter of Artvin University
includes the opening of a department of Caucasology, but so far this
direction has not been implemented. The paper discusses each department.
How is the Georgian language and literature taught in Turkey?
We believe that Georgian Turkologists should teach Georgian language
(at least at the first stage) at Turkish universities. A Georgian
teacher, a Kartvelologist, will always be needed there until the
Turkish specialists, who carry out this work at the proper level, are
brought up. As it turned out, the boat broke and a rather long process,
which preceded the opening of Kartvelological directions in
Turkey, was crowned with success. In the middle of Turkey, a student
comes to study Georgian language, literature, culture and history, and you have no right to make them say that you can’t teach, that
you are forcing them to memorize, you can’t explain and, therefore,
they don’t understand. We should make it easier for Turks to learn
Georgian (a language quite difficult for them) with the help of Georgian
Turkologists. We have to make them love Georgia, the Georgian
language and Georgians. We need to teach Georgian more fascinatingly,
with the help of their native language and Georgian Turkologists
can do that.
What is the situation in terms of personnel in the Kartvelological
centers of Turkey? If not us, who can teach Georgian to Turks? Especially,
Georgian Turkologists, according to their diplomas, are first
of all teachers of Georgian language and literature and then Turkish
language specialists and translators. The Department of Turkology of
our University, together with the Department of Georgian Language
and Literature, should have close relations with the centers of Georgian
Language and Literature in the universities of different cities
of Turkey in the future. These should be staffed by our professional
staff and not by accident, or nepotism.
Today, in the conditions of modern Georgia, we are witnessing
the diligence of the Turks in propagating their own language and
culture and they achieve this with the help of their teachers and our
educated alumni. The result does not linger. Today Turkish is one of
the most popular languages in Georgia. İt will be nice to follow their
example and teach Georgian in Turkey as they teach and popularize
Turkish in Georgia. The duty of the departments of Turkology is
not only to teach Turkish to Georgian students. A new direction appeared.
Georgian Turkologists should take an active part in teaching
Georgian to Turks. Scientific work, compilation of new textbooks and
the like should be strengthened in this direction as well.
