Articles

Professor Alovsat Abdullayev “On the History of the Azerbaijani Alphabet”

ABSTRACT

The issue of the alphabet has a special place in the work of Professor Alovsat Abdullayev. First of all, the scientist investigated the history of the Azerbaijani alphabet and gave information about the all-Turkic alphabets in this direction. Based on his research, it is known that the Turkic peoples used the Orkhon-Yenisei, Uighur, Sogdian, Manichean, Brahmi, Arabic, Greek, Latin, Cyrillic, and Albanian alphabets. The author has given detailed information about these alphabets. The alphabet in which the Orkhon-Yenisei monuments are written is a national script. There are different opinions about the origin of this writing; some argue that it is of Cyrillic origin, while others argue that it was formed on the basis of Turkic symbols. The Albanian alphabet was used in Azerbaijan from the first quarter of the fifth century to the eighth century. The type of writing used in Azerbaijan for a long time was the Arabic alphabet. Azerbaijani intellectuals fought against this alphabet, pointing out its defects, some suggested its reformation, while others proposed its complete replacement. Finally, throughout the article, the author talks about the works done for the Latin alphabet, as well as its advantages.

KEYWORDS

alphabet, the Orkhon-Yenisei, Albanian, Arabic, Cyrillic, Latin