Research Article

A Historical Overview of the Languages Spoken in the Lake Van Basin from Antiquity to the Present and Their Implications for Language Education

Number: Van Gölü Havzası Özel Sayısı October 30, 2025
TR EN

A Historical Overview of the Languages Spoken in the Lake Van Basin from Antiquity to the Present and Their Implications for Language Education

Abstract

This study aims to analyse the historical development of the languages spoken in the Lake Van Basin from antiquity to the present day and to evaluate the reflections of this multilingual structure on contemporary language education policies and practices. In the research, historical document analysis method was used; qualitative data were collected in line with archaeological finds, inscriptions, historical texts, ethnographic reports and contemporary academic studies. The data obtained were analysed with the descriptive analysis technique and it was revealed how the languages transformed in the context of sovereignty relations, migration movements, religious transformations and cultural interactions in the region. In the study, the concepts of language change, multilingualism and cultural interaction are discussed as the theoretical framework. The findings show that there is a wide range of languages ranging from Urartian, Old Armenian, Syriac, Arabic, Persian and Ottoman Turkish to contemporary Turkish, Kurdish and Zazaki. This historical multilingualism has played an important role in the formation of the cultural structure and social diversity of the region. The findings show that the region has a rich heritage in terms of language education and that this multilingualism contributes to modern language education. As a result, it has been observed that linguistic diversity has a multi-layered structure in the historical context; this situation is considered to allow a more holistic analysis of language-identity-culture interaction through long-term historical processes.

Keywords

References

  1. Afif Erzen, A. (1992). Doğu Anadolu. Türk Tarih Kurumu Yayınları.
  2. Algül, A. (2018). Doğu Anadolu'da İlk Yerleşimler ve Uygarlıklar. Atatürk Üniversitesi Yayınları.
  3. Aşan, M. B. (1992). XIV. yüzyılda Van ve Yöresi. Tarih ve Toplum, 104, 37-48.
  4. Baker, C. (2011). Foundations of bilingual education and bilingualism (5. baskı). Multilingual Matters.
  5. Baykara, T. (1988). Anadolu'nun tarihi coğrafyasına giriş. Türk Kültürünü Araştırma Enstitüsü Yayınları.
  6. Bois, T., & Welland, M. W. M. (1966). The Kurds. Khayat Book & Publishing.
  7. Bosworth, C. E. (1963). The Ghaznavids: Their empire in Afghanistan and Eastern Iran 994-1040. Edinburgh University Press.
  8. Brook, K. A. (2006). The Jews of Khazaria. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

World Languages, Literature and Culture (Other)

Journal Section

Research Article

Early Pub Date

October 30, 2025

Publication Date

October 30, 2025

Submission Date

April 7, 2025

Acceptance Date

October 6, 2025

Published in Issue

Year 2025 Number: Van Gölü Havzası Özel Sayısı

APA
Babayiğit, M. V., & Pilatin, İ. (2025). A Historical Overview of the Languages Spoken in the Lake Van Basin from Antiquity to the Present and Their Implications for Language Education. Yüzüncü Yıl Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi, Van Gölü Havzası Özel Sayısı, 160-171. https://doi.org/10.53568/yyusbed.1671633
AMA
1.Babayiğit MV, Pilatin İ. A Historical Overview of the Languages Spoken in the Lake Van Basin from Antiquity to the Present and Their Implications for Language Education. Yüzüncü Yıl Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi. 2025;(Van Gölü Havzası Özel Sayısı):160-171. doi:10.53568/yyusbed.1671633
Chicago
Babayiğit, Mehmet Veysi, and İhsan Pilatin. 2025. “A Historical Overview of the Languages Spoken in the Lake Van Basin from Antiquity to the Present and Their Implications for Language Education”. Yüzüncü Yıl Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi, no. Van Gölü Havzası Özel Sayısı: 160-71. https://doi.org/10.53568/yyusbed.1671633.
EndNote
Babayiğit MV, Pilatin İ (October 1, 2025) A Historical Overview of the Languages Spoken in the Lake Van Basin from Antiquity to the Present and Their Implications for Language Education. Yüzüncü Yıl Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi Van Gölü Havzası Özel Sayısı 160–171.
IEEE
[1]M. V. Babayiğit and İ. Pilatin, “A Historical Overview of the Languages Spoken in the Lake Van Basin from Antiquity to the Present and Their Implications for Language Education”, Yüzüncü Yıl Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi, no. Van Gölü Havzası Özel Sayısı, pp. 160–171, Oct. 2025, doi: 10.53568/yyusbed.1671633.
ISNAD
Babayiğit, Mehmet Veysi - Pilatin, İhsan. “A Historical Overview of the Languages Spoken in the Lake Van Basin from Antiquity to the Present and Their Implications for Language Education”. Yüzüncü Yıl Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi. Van Gölü Havzası Özel Sayısı (October 1, 2025): 160-171. https://doi.org/10.53568/yyusbed.1671633.
JAMA
1.Babayiğit MV, Pilatin İ. A Historical Overview of the Languages Spoken in the Lake Van Basin from Antiquity to the Present and Their Implications for Language Education. Yüzüncü Yıl Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi. 2025;:160–171.
MLA
Babayiğit, Mehmet Veysi, and İhsan Pilatin. “A Historical Overview of the Languages Spoken in the Lake Van Basin from Antiquity to the Present and Their Implications for Language Education”. Yüzüncü Yıl Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi, no. Van Gölü Havzası Özel Sayısı, Oct. 2025, pp. 160-71, doi:10.53568/yyusbed.1671633.
Vancouver
1.Mehmet Veysi Babayiğit, İhsan Pilatin. A Historical Overview of the Languages Spoken in the Lake Van Basin from Antiquity to the Present and Their Implications for Language Education. Yüzüncü Yıl Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi. 2025 Oct. 1;(Van Gölü Havzası Özel Sayısı):160-71. doi:10.53568/yyusbed.1671633

Journal of Yüzüncü Yıl University Graduate School of Social Sciences is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY NC).