[gkya]

Most standardised languages are sorts of conlangs. I can be a testimone for Turkish, where the language was cleared from persian and arabic loanwords by very oppressing revolutionary govt action. So much so that one generation had difficult time talking to grandparents, they say.

[brian_cloutier]

To add to this, I met someone who claims she cannot read Neitzsche because she doesn't know most of the terms recent Turkish translations use and can't find any older translations.

[gkya]

She's right, especially in philosophy, every translator invents his own language, and never care enough to inform the user with a translator's note or whatnot. I had my worst experience till now with translations of Lajos Egri and Schopenhauer. Sometimes it's easier to just learn the original language...

[brian_cloutier]

This is a little odd but I stalked you a little and think you've made some cool comments. I'm also in Istanbul, would you be down to grab coffee sometime? I would send you an email but your profile doesn't have any contact information.

[zeemonkee3]

Moving to the Latin alphabet must have been quite a shift as well.

[gkya]

Certainly, though widespread literacy was a thing of the republican era. And the old script and the language was abolished and not taught in the schools, so it only lives among historians (unlike latin and ancient greek which is studied a bit in European tertiary schools).