Like every ancient language, there is a history of Turkish language and a development, a ramification process in this history. Illustrating this process clearly with various phases is important in terms of a proper education and training of topic. This study consists of two primary parts. In the first part, the approaches on the historical periods and the branching of the Turkish language have been pointed out. In the second period, the problem of naming the historical periods the Turkish language has been addressed. In context of the naming problem, the status of the period names which are built with adjectives such as ilk (first), ön (preliminary), ana (main), eski (old), orta (middle,), yeni (new), çağdaş / modern / bugünkü (contemporary / modern / current) have been discussed and suggestions have been made on the naming of the historical periods of the Turkish language in an accurate manner.

Anahtar Kelimeler
Turkish language, historical period, the problem of naming.