Public Institutions Terminology Coordination Board Meeting

Aim of the Meeting

This meeting aims to ensure the correct and consistent use of Turkish, its development, and the preservation of its expressive power by consciously responding to innovations and changes in all areas; to achieve terminology consistency among public institutions in line with this goal; and to establish continuous cooperation and communication networks among public institutions in the field of terminology studies.

Participating Institutions

• Ministry of Justice
• Anadolu Agency
• Constitutional Court
• Ankara Development Agency
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Deputy Directorate General for European Union
• Ministry of Labour and Social Security
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Directorate of Translation
• Presidency of Religious Affairs
• Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources
• Ministry of Youth and Sports
• Ministry of Treasury and Finance
• Directorate of Communications
• Vocational Qualifications Authority
• Ministry of National Education
• Secretariat General of the National Security Council
• Ministry of National Defence
• Turkish National Police Academy
• Ministry of Health
• Social Security Institution
• Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry
• Directorate General of Trade Research and Risk Assessment
• Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TÜBİTAK)
• Turkish Academy of Sciences (TÜBA)
• Turkish Employment Agency
• Turkish Patent and Trademark Office
• Turkish Standards Institution
• Turkish Radio and Television Corporation
• Turkish Space Agency
• Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities
• Council of Higher Education

Speeches

At the meeting chaired and inaugurated by Prof. Dr. Osman Mert, President of the Turkish Language Association (TDK), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ender Ateşman, Chairman of the TDK Terminology Board, delivered a speech addressing current issues and solution paths in the field of terminology. Hakan Abacı, Head of the Directorate of Translation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, discussed the past and present state of terminology work in our country. As part of the program, other public institutions also shared the work they have done in their respective fields and the problems they have encountered; they also presented their suggestions for the coming period.

Findings

1. There are inconsistencies in the use of terms in specific fields in Turkish; the lack of systematic equivalents for terms borrowed from foreign languages increases the use of foreign terms and inconsistencies;
2. Ensuring consistency in terminology will have a positive impact on administration, communication, culture, and social life, as well as directly contributing to economic and technological development;
3. The continuation and further development of collaborations initiated in previous years by various institutions—namely the Directorate of Communications, the Deputy Directorate General for the European Union of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Directorate of Translation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs—as well as the adoption of common standards in the principles and methods of terminology work, would be beneficial;
4. Working collaboratively to standardize terminology, ensure the use of preferred terms, and, where necessary, introduce administrative and legal regulations in this regard would be useful;
5. Turkish Language Association (TDK) is well-positioned to ensure coordination among public institutions in this regard and TDK should support our public institutions in terms of technical infrastructure, academic research, education, and finding Turkish equivalents for foreign terms;
6. The establishment of a National Term Bank (NTB) through the codification and standardization of terminology studies conducted to date by public institutions, their transfer to software hosted on a server provided by Turkish Language Association, and their accessibility to all public institutions and the general public would be beneficial;
7. Conducting such a study in our country would have a positive impact on the efforts initiated within the Organization of Turkic States to achieve terminological and linguistic unity in the Turkic world;
8. The establishment of regulations concerning terminology planning and management in public institutions, the provision of national and international training and events for terminology experts, and the future employment of such experts in public institutions would be appropriate.

Recommendations

In light of the aforementioned considerations, it was proposed that a Public Institutions Terminology Coordination Commission (KaTEK) be established, chaired by the Committee for Terminology Science and Practice of the Turkish Language Association (TDK), with the aim of determining the steps to be taken in the first phase, guiding the work, and establishing a National Term Bank (UTB). The Commission should include representatives from:

• Directorate of Communications
• Directorate of Translation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• Deputy Directorate General for European Union of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• Ministry of National Education
• Secretariat General of the National Security Council
• Ministry of National Defence
• Ministry of Health
• Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry
• Turkish Academy of Sciences
• Vocational Qualifications Authority.