The Concepts of Sakat, Özürlü and Engelli: Definitions and Differences

Abstract

Over the course of time, the differences in meanings among some words may become absorbed and as a result, some of the words may fall out of use. There are also cases where words get abandoned because their meanings make us uncomfortable. An example of this situation is the words sakat, özürlü and engelli. The word sakat, oftentimes avoided on the grounds that it contains a negative connotation, was replaced by the word özürlü. Yet, the word engelli subsequently was preferred over the word özürlü for the same reason. However, there was never a complete consensus on which of these words should be used and where they should be used. Indeed, current Turkish dictionaries assume that sakat, özürlü and engelli are equivalents for each other. Therefore, in this study, the words in question are defined in a way that reveals the differences in their meanings. This study asserts that sakat, özürlü and engelli are not different words expressing the same concept. In fact, these words are different concepts that emerge when the same issue is evaluated from different perspectives. Therefore, I argue that these concepts are not equivalent to each other, that it would be inadequate to choose one of these concepts instead of the other, and that each concept in question should be used in accordance with its own meaning.