Türkiye’s embassy in Senegal and the Dakar Yunus Emre Institute (YEE) jointly organised an event in the capital, Dakar, to mark World Turkic Languages Family Day on December 15.

The event held at the Dakar Yunus Emre Institute brought together Türkiye’s Ambassador to Senegal Nur Sağman, representatives of Turkish institutions and students enrolled in Turkish language courses at the institute.

Speaking at the event, Ambassador Sağman recalled that December 15 marks the day when Danish linguist Vilhelm Thomsen announced to the international scholarly community in 1893 that the Orkhon Inscriptions were written in Turkish.

She noted that the celebration was held a month later than usual as she had been in Türkiye on the actual date.

Highlighting that Turkish is the mother tongue of more than 200 million people across a vast geography spanning three continents, Sağman said Türkiye would continue to strengthen cooperation with its brotherly Turkic states to preserve the Turkish language and pass it on to future generations.

She also expressed her happiness and pride in celebrating World Turkic Languages Family Day together with students learning Turkish at the Yunus Emre Institute.

Dakar YEE Coordinator Muhammed Yusuf Deniz said interest in learning Turkish in Senegal has been steadily growing, describing this as a tangible reflection of the deepening friendship, strategic cooperation and mutual trust between Türkiye and Senegal.

Deniz added that the institute’s core mission is not only to promote the Turkish language, culture and arts, but also to help build a sustainable space for cultural exchange between countries.

As part of the programme, students studying Turkish at the Dakar YEE recited “Sakarya Türküsü” by Necip Fazıl Kısakürek and performed Turkish songs. The event concluded with refreshments.

The Yunus Emre Institute (YEE) promotes Turkish language and culture around the world. It started its activities in 2009 and has cultural centres in 69 countries worldwide.