All mass media outlets will be required to operate using a single alphabet once the bill on the updated Latin alphabet takes effect. That's according to Nodir Jonuzoq, head of the government's State Language Development Department, who made the announcement at a Senate session today.
He said the state and society have long been caught in limbo between two alphabets — Cyrillic and Latin — and that the government is now on the verge of putting an end to that dual-alphabet situation.
"One might ask whether this could lead to a third alphabet. Once the new bill takes effect, we intend to put this issue firmly on the agenda. Specifically, we plan to make it mandatory for all mass media to operate using a single, approved and refined standard alphabet. The updated alphabet will apply strictly in other areas as well, and official recordkeeping will fully transition to it. We'll use every means available to make that happen, and the necessary technological groundwork will be put in place," the official said.
Jonuzoq said software had already been developed, even before the bill's passage, to convert text from other scripts into the letters of the updated alphabet. He stressed that adopting the new alphabet would not pose any difficulty for the public.
It was previously announced that school textbooks are due to be fully printed in the updated alphabet by 2031. Senators raised a number of questions of their own while debating the bill.
Stay up to date with all the latest news:
