2024. no 2. Nadir Bekirov
Ethnonym “Crimean Tatars” in documents of international organizations
Nadir Bekirov
Fevzi Yakubov Crimean Engineering and Pedagogical University
Abstract. Over the past few decades a group of Crimean Tatar intellectuals have been imposing on public opinion the discussion that the self-name of the people “Crimean Tatars” allegedly does not reflect reality, it is “invented” and does not meet their cultural, public and national interests. From their point of view, there is a misunderstanding of the very word combination “Crimean Tatars” by the public, science and international organizations abroad, which creates confusion and “identifies” the indigenous people of Crimea with other peoples. From the point of view of the proponents of this concept, the adequate names are “Crimeans”, “Krymly”, “Crimeans”. At the same time, they claim that the word “Crimeans” synonymous with “Crimeans” is allegedly absolutely not close to it in meaning and cannot be mixed in any form of speech and in different languages. The author has analyzed the public documentation of the following international institutions: the United Nations (UN), the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the Council of Europe (CoE), the European Union (EU), UNESCO for the presence in them of the mentioned words, both in the accepted translation into the languages of these organizations and in the Latin transcription of the words “Crimeans” and “Crimeans” in these languages (in order to avoid reproaches that the proposed words should be used not in their translation, but in their literal form).
Acquaintance with and recording of the number of uses of the centuries-old self-designation of the people, Crimean Tatars, in comparison with the proposed or assumed words “Krymtsy”, “Krym”, “Krymly” (including in the international Latin transcription Kyrymly) shows with full clarity that the self-designation “Crimean Tatars” in the official languages of the most important and influential organizations is widespread, understandable and accepted in official documents, while the expressions “Krymly” and “Krymly” are either absolutely absent or refer to completely different phenomena. The very attempt of renaming is an unfriendly action against the Crimean Tatar people.
Keywords: Crimean Tatars, Crimeans, Krymly, Kyrymly, Kryms, Krymtsy, Krymchans, self-name, ethnonym, indigenous people of Crimea.
For citation: Bekirov N.V. Ethnonym “Crimean Tatars” in documents of international organizations. Krymskoe istoricheskoe obozrenie=Crimean Historical Review. 2024, vol. 11, no. 2, pp. 58–68. DOI: 10.22378/kio.2024.2.58-68 (In Russian)
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About the author: Nadir V. Bekirov – Cand. Sci. (Philosophy), Senior Lecturer; Senior Researcher of the Research Institute of the Crimean Tatar philology, history and culture of ethnic groups of the Crimea, Fevzi Yakubov Crimean Engineering and Pedagogical University (8, Uchebny lane, Simferopol 295015, Russian Federation); nadirbekirov@yandex.com
