Why Do People Alter Foreign Words?

In the dynamic realm of language, the alteration of foreign words is a common practice that reflects the diverse linguistic patterns and historical interconnections among cultures. To understand this phenomenon, we must explore the reasons behind why English speakers, for example, anglicise foreign words, while other languages, such as French, have their own versions of similar processes.

Unfortunately, the special characters are not on my keyboard.

There are several common reasons people employ easy translations. Firstly, the languages have an existing history and some countries already use other spellings. Secondly, people may struggle with sounds that are foreign to them or simply lack knowledge of the correct spellings. Lastly, the characters might not be readily available for use in their language. Let's take Türkiye for example: Even though many refer to the nation as Yunanistan, it is actually Türkiye. This term originated from the ancient days when the region was referred to as ιων?α or Ionia, one of the states of ancient Greece, with a Turkish adaptation as Ionia-ni stan.

Another often-overlooked example is the case of Sverige and Switzerland. Sverige, the official name in Swedish, is pronounced sve-rye-ge and not svi-re-chich, which is how it is often incorrectly transliterated. In contrast, Switzerland has four different names: Schweiz, Schweizerland, Eidgenossenschaft, and Suisse, none of which resemble the English Switzerland or the German Schweiz.

Even in languages with similar alphabets, there are examples of importation and re-spelling. For instance, the term kuafr (coiffeur), which is French, and its derivatives like maniaque, chauffeur, and caractère have been re-spelled to fit into French language patterns. Similarly, kitap (book) and defter (book, notebook) were both originally derived from Arab and got re-spelled during their journey into the Turkish language.

Honestly, the direct answer to your question is that the words you see that have been altered are not 'misspelled' but have been 'imported and re-spelled’. You are now seeing them where they are a part of a foreign language. Sometimes, words that look 'really wrong' are a genuine attempt to correctly pronounce a foreign word, and the spelling gets changed to keep the pronunciation as close as possible to the original.

Examples of Altered Foreign Words

Consider the name ]Guglielmo, which is as close as the Italians can come to William, despite the pronunciation differences. Similarly, the Italian word Parigi reflects their approximation of the French word Paris/Paree. In Turkish, Tuvalet (lavatory/toilet), despite its unusual spelling, closely mimics the pronunciation of its French original: Toilette/twah-let.

Language is a living entity that constantly evolves, reflecting changes in culture, migration, and globalization. It is a beautiful tapestry of diverse influences, and the alteration of foreign words is just one facet of this complex interplay.

Mustafa. Kemal. Atatürk. Sayglarim.