I was born and raised in Turkey, a country located in between the East and the West, connecting Europe and Asia. The location of the country has created a unique culture which has been affected by both Eastern and Western values as well as religious values tied to Islam. Over the years people have chosen to attach themselves to a more Western identity with the increase of the need to keep up with a globalizing world and prioritizing English education has been a huge aspect of this transition.

This essay will analyze English becoming more important in Turkey and its cultural implications and connecting to my personal experience learning English with an aim to move abroad and how it has affected the way I was viewed. Overall, connecting the ideas the global language English’s move and its effects on the people who have had to learn it.

Turkey is a country that is in the expanding circle in Kachru’s model which means that English has not been used in daily life or in governmental institutions and has been introduced as a foreign language in education. The changes in the world and the growth of international contacts have led to the need for high competence of English if someone wishes to communicate beyond borders for political, economic and cultural reasons (Atay & Ece, 2009).

English is viewed as a status symbol and has ties to becoming more Westernized in Turkish society and is seen as a way to get ahead in life. Most Turkish people had their first real encounter with the Western world through English lessons which was an integral part of the formation of their Western identities (Atay & Ece, 2009). Learning English in this context meant starting have a more Western point of view and essentially becoming “more western” which is deemed desirable, since learning the language exposed them to a Western lifestyle and broadened their worldview. Globalization and the need for English in communication for most fields has cemented the importance of English in every society and knowing it has become a way of becoming a more globalized person. The value of English education in Turkish society is quite integral as it holds a lot of power in identity formation and affects the way people view one another.

Talking about my experience, being a Turkish person studying in an American college with English as a medium of instruction, I was always taught that knowing English is a way to get ahead in life. I was praised by my family members for being able to speak English fluently and was put in this school specifically so I could enhance my language abilities even more and eventually leave the country for better education and opportunities. Studying in ACI, lead me to both be viewed as knowledgeable and more western however no longer Turkish. I remember wearing my uniform with the name of my school, people looking at me and saying to each other “Are they even Turkish? Do they only know English?” The way Turkish society viewed me reflected the fear of English’s dominating power and the detachment from Turkish culture by speaking another language. I can speak English fluently, does that make me less Turkish? I never felt like that, but that is what people saw in me and assumed.

These ideas and my experience led me to believe that maybe I did develop an additional identity with my English language skills, as my thoughts differed from the traditional cultural values since I was exposed to different sources, different cultures, belief systems and values. I also started to consume more Western media content such as TV shows or YouTube videos and even started to integrate certain parts into my personality. Mimicking jokes I saw on popular videos, starting to mix them into my Turkish. This led to me using even more English words and phrases as I was speaking Turkish. This type of half Turkish, half English language usage is heavily criticized by Turkish people as it shows how a clash of two different identities and primarily the loss of your native one.

Using English phrases such as the previous example has become popular through the popularization of the language in the country. I didn’t understand why my Turkish teachers would get mad when my classmates would stay words like “email” or “late” while speaking Turkish since I was always taught that English was a priority and we had to learn it to get ahead in life. However, a lot of people believe mixing English with Turkish is a major impediment to the development of Turkish (Atay & Ece, 2009). Over the years, this back and forth between the positive and negative effects of learning English has become topic of debate with some people arguing that learning English leads to people becoming detached from Turkish culture and becoming more westernized which is a threat to the maintenance of Turkish cultural norms.
The value English holds in an identity context is a big reason why people have negative attitudes towards the popularization of English language education. In the Longman Dictionary of Applied Linguistics ‘language attitudes’ are defined as follows: “The attitude which speakers of different languages or language varieties have towards each other’s languages or to their own language. (…) Attitudes towards a language may also show what people feel about the speakers of that language” (Platt et al., 1992) The formation of an identity, which might or might not align with existing traditional Turkish values affects the way people view the learning of English. The fear of becoming more like the people who speak the language and connecting to their culture instead of one’s own is a reason behind the negative attitudes towards English education.

The value English holds in an identity context is a big reason why people have negative attitudes towards the popularization of English language education. In the Longman Dictionary of Applied Linguistics ‘language attitudes’ are defined as follows: “The attitude which speakers of different languages or language varieties have towards each other’s languages or to their own language. (…) Attitudes towards a language may also show what people feel about the speakers of that language” (Platt et al., 1992) The formation of an identity, which might or might not align with existing traditional Turkish values affects the way people view the learning of English. The fear of becoming more like the people who speak the language and connecting to their culture instead of one’s own is a reason behind the negative attitudes towards English education.

In conclusion, I talked about my experience as someone who was raised in accordance with Turkish values and how I developed an additional identity throughout my education in an American high school. Although my proficiency in English allowed me to interact with different cultures and I am grateful for it as I am currently studying a different country where I use it daily, it is also important to acknowledge that it may lead people to believe you have separated from your identity. Overall, learning a language is a big deal with lots of implications, especially a global language that has taken over the world.

References:
Atay, D., & Ece, A. (2009). Multiple identities as reflected in English-language education: The Turkish perspective. Journal of Language, Identity & Education, 8(1), 21–34. https://doi.org/10.1080/15348450802619961
Platt, J., Richards, J., & Weber, H. (1992). Longman Dictionary of Applied Linguistics. Longman World Publishing Corp.