By Yusuf Beğtaş Language is not merely a tool for communication; it is an invisible bridge connecting human beings. Through words, people share thoughts, articulate feelings, negotiate differences, and construct a shared realm of meaning. Therefore, the social value of a language must be measured not only by how much it conveys, but also by the extent to which it brings people closer together.

By Ablahad Hanna Saka | Member of the Bethnahrin National Council The Syriac language is one of the oldest living languages in the history of Mesopotamia and an integral part of Iraq's civilizational and cultural heritage. It is also a fundamental pillar of the national and cultural identity of our Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian people. It is not merely a means of communication, but a historical and civilizational legacy that preserves thousands of years of knowledge, literature, thought, and heritage.

SULAYMANIYAH, Iraq — A proposal to establish a Syriac-language school in Sulaymaniyah has received the support of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), renewing calls for a broader expansion of education in the mother tongue of the Suraye (Chaldeans–Syriacs–Assyrians) across Iraq. Minister for Regional Affairs Aydin Maruf expressed his support during a visit to Sulaymaniyah on 3 November 2026, where he met with Governor Haval Abubakir and representatives of the city's ethnic and religious communities to discuss their concerns and educational and administrative needs.

By Aday Hawro For the Syriac people, returning to Tur Abdin is about more than merely reclaiming ancestral lands. Such a lasting return would mean the revival of our language and culture, and the flourishing of social life in our native homeland. Yet, nostalgia and a sense of belonging are not enough to make return permanent. It requires legal safeguards, economic preparation, and collective organization.

MELBOURNE — Victoria’s Liberal-National Coalition has pledged $10 million AUD to help establish St. Joseph’s Christian College, a proposed Christian Assyrian school in Melbourne’s northern suburbs, if it wins the November 2026 state election and forms government. Liberal MP Evan Mulholland announced the commitment 25 October in a Facebook post, saying the funding would help deliver the school for the Assyrian Church of the East’s Diocese of Victoria and New Zealand.

SORAN, Kurdistan Region of Iraq — The state of Syriac language education in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) has returned to the forefront following a visit by a delegation from the Syriac Writers and Authors Union to the General Directorate of Education in the Soran Independent Administration. The discussions highlighted curricula, oversight of Syriac schools and efforts to address shortcomings in the educational process as key issues in ensuring that the mother tongue continues to be passed on to younger generations.

BAGHDEDE, Iraq — Under the patronage of Iraqi Minister of Education Abdul Karim Abtan al-Jubouri and supervision of Director General of Syriac Studies Salah Abboush Khidir and in cooperation with Al-Hamdaniya University and the University of Mosul, Iraq held the 13th Educational Conference on Syriac Language and Christian Religious Education Curricula on 7 October 2026, at Al-Hamdaniya University. Held under the slogan, …

HASAKAH, Syria — The World Syriac Advisory Council (WSAC) announced its full support for a memorandum of agreement submitted to the Governor of Hasakah by the Assyrian Democratic Organization (ADO) and the Syriac Union Party (Gabo d’Ḥuyodo Suryoyo, SUP), describing it as a potential basis for strengthening political and administrative partnership in the governorate at a time when its institutions and administrative structures are being reorganized.

By Hend Fathy | PhD in Syriac Language and Literature, Certified International Trainer, Syriac Language Academy Every year on October 5, the world marks World Teachers’ Day in recognition of the vital role teachers play in educating generations and shaping the future of societies. A teacher is not merely a transmitter of knowledge, but a builder of awareness, a guardian of values, and the bridge through which nations move toward a better tomorrow.

By Ablahad Hanna Saka | Retired educator and member of the Bethnahrin National Council in Iraq On 5 October of each year, we celebrate World Teachers’ Day in recognition of the leading role teachers play in shaping individuals, educating generations, and disseminating knowledge. On this occasion, we proudly remember the Syriac language teachers in the Nineveh Plain and Iraq. They are the ones who carry out a noble mission that goes beyond the traditional boundaries of classroom education to safeguard identity, preserve heritage, and protect historical memory.

By Denho Bar Mourad-Özmen | Former Special Educator and Advisor at Sweden’s National Agency for Special Education World Teachers' Day is celebrated around the globe every year on 5 October. It is a day that honors the crucial role teachers have in transferring knowledge and culture, and in the future of society. For the Assyrian/Syriac people, this day carries particular weight.

BETH ZALIN, Syria — Amid Syria’s ongoing political and cultural transformations, renewed debate is emerging over the future of the (Suroyo) Syriac language and its place in the country’s educational and constitutional systems, with advocates calling for its recognition as an integral part of Syria’s national identity and historical heritage. The Olaf Taw Association for Syriac Language is among the organizations working to preserve and promote the language.

This Festschrift is published in honour of Professor Terry C. Falla on the occasion of his 86th birthday. A Founding Professor of the University of Divinity, Falla is widely known in Australia for his...

Reporting by Marta Sömek for Gazete Sabro — Beyoğlu, one of Istanbul’s symbolic places with a multicultural fabric and historical depth, hosted colorful and meaningful encounters during the European Heritage Days. The days were held from 12-20 September under the theme “Heritage at Risk: Revive, Persist, Imagine,” and brought the history of Beyoğlu to the attention of visitors through more than 60 free events.

BEIRUT — The Syriac Maronite Union–Tur Levnon launched an effort to persuade Duolingo, one of the world’s most widely used language-learning platforms, to add Syriac to its growing catalogue of languages, bringing a centuries-old language of the Middle East into an app used daily by millions of learners around the world. The initiative builds on Tur Levnon’s broader campaign to revive Syriac in Lebanon through education, cultural awareness and religious life.

DARAMSUQ — The leadership of the Syriac Cultural Association met with Minister of Culture Muhammad Yassin Salih to discuss cultural affairs, the preservation of Suroyo (Syriac–Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) heritage and language and the Association’s efforts to strengthen Suroyo identity within Syria’s emerging cultural framework. The meeting brought together representatives of the Association and the Culture Ministry amid an increasingly consequential debate over how Syria’s cultural institutions will recognize and protect the country’s linguistic diversity.

By Matay Türker When discussing the future of Syriac, simply saying "let's protect our language" is no longer enough. The real issue we need to address is how, where, and within what educational system Syriac will be passed on to future generations. Today, in Tur Abdin, a significant portion of Syriac education is carried out through the efforts of our churches, monasteries, foundations, associations, and teachers who have shown great dedication.

HASAKAH, Syria — As part of its ongoing efforts and its program of visits to political parties and community, youth, and educational institutions across the Gozarto (Jazira) region, a delegation from the Syriac Progressive Youth visited the Directorate of Education of the Hasakah Governate to discuss the state of education in the region. The delegation was received by Education Director Dr.

By The SyriacPress Editorial Team ANKARA — A call by the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) to constitutionally and legally guarantee education in children’s mother tongues in Turkey has reopened a broader question: If education in one’s mother tongue is a fundamental right, why should Suroye (Syriac–Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) children be denied the same right? In a statement marking the start of the new academic year, the DEM Party’s Commission for Language, Culture, and Arts said millions of children, particularly Kurdish children, continue to enter the education system without the opportunity to study in their native language.

Based on reporting and interviews by Matay Türker Deprived of access to formal schooling, Suroye (Syriac–Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) communities are waging a deep-rooted struggle to preserve their heritage through Church-run madrašyotho (Suroyo for schools) in Tur Abdin and the dedication of families. Speaking to Gazete Sabro reporter Matay Türker as the new school year begins, Ayhan Gürkan and Toni Ergin, two malfonos (teachers) based in Medyad (Midyat), called on parents to “make sure to speak Suroyo (Syriac) with your children at home” to help preserve the mother tongue.

BETH ZALIN (QAMISHLI), Syria — As efforts continue to integrate the remaining institutions of the Democratic Autonomous Administration of the Region of North and East Syria (DAARNES) into the Syrian state administration, Syriac political leaders are calling for constitutional guarantees to protect minority rights, language education, cultural heritage, and political representation in the country's evolving governance structure. In an interview with…

BOTKYRKA, Sweden — Sweden has opened its first elderly-care unit with a Syriac-language profile, giving members of the country’s long-established Suroyo (Syriac–Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) community the opportunity to receive care from staff able to communicate in their mother tongue. The unit at Tornet Care and Nursing Home in Norsborg, in Botkyrka Municipality south of Stockholm, was inaugurated on Thursday, 27 August. The opening followed years of political advocacy and comes as the generation of Syriac immigrants who arrived in Sweden in large numbers during the 1960s and 1970s reaches old age.

TUR ABDIN — For a community whose history has been marked by displacement, the loss of institutions and the erosion of its language, a small newspaper can become more than a source of news. For the Syriac community in Turkey, Gazete Sabro, whose name means “hope” in the Syriac language, has spent more than a decade trying to do precisely that, document a community’s presence while preserving fragments of a past that successive generations have struggled to inherit.

DARAMSUQ (DAMASCUS) — Syria’s Ministry of Education has adopted a unified national curriculum based on what it calls the “Damascus curriculum,” bringing schools across the country under a single educational framework after years of competing curricula. The decision is expected to pave the way for the development and introduction of new national curricula, while also raising questions over the place of Syria’s linguistic and cultural communities in the education system.

NORSBORG, Sweden — The Syriac Edessa School in Sweden is preparing to welcome students for the new academic year from a brand-new building that will serve as the permanent home of both the school and its affiliated kindergarten in Norsborg. The building is scheduled to be officially inaugurated next month on 12 September, marking a significant milestone in the school’s history.