Lawmakers in Uzbekistan have approved a bill to update the national Latin-based alphabet and forwarded the legislation to the Senate for review.
The Oliy Majlis press service announced the proposed changes will transition the current writing system from 26 letters and three combinations to an updated 28 letters and a single apostrophe.
Under the new legislation, four specific letter combinations will be replaced with single characters. The combination “sh” will become “ş”, “ch” will change to “ç”, “o‘” will transition to “ö” and “g‘” will be replaced by “ğ”. The combination “ng” will be removed entirely from the official alphabet while all remaining characters stay unchanged.
Parliamentary officials noted these characters are not unprecedented in Uzbek writing. The country previously used these specific symbols during two historical periods between 1928 and 1940, as well as from 1993 to 1995.
The amendments stem from scientific research conducted by linguistic specialists to refine the rules for using individual letters.
During the parliamentary debate, deputies emphasised the importance of a gradual transition. The government will implement the new alphabet in stages to avoid sudden financial burdens on the state budget.
All national currency, securities and official documents issued before the law takes effect will retain their full legal validity. State bodies and organisations can continue using their existing signage, letterheads and other official attributes until the designated transition period concludes.
