Literacy rate, adult female in Turkey
Turkey: Literacy rate, adult female was 95.3% in 2021. ▲ Rising
Literacy rate, adult female in Turkey, 1975–2021
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in % of females ages 15 and above.
Analysis
In 2021, literacy rate, adult female in Turkey stood at 95.3%. That is the highest value across all 19 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.9% on the previous year and up 5.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, literacy rate, adult female in Turkey peaked at 95.3% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 45.1%, in 1975.
Turkey ranks 28th of 89 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 19 years of available data.
Literacy rate, adult female in Turkey, year by year
| Year | % of females ages 15 and above | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 45.1% | — |
| 1980 | 49.8% | +10.4% |
| 1985 | 64.2% | +29.0% |
| 1990 | 68.5% | +6.7% |
| 2004 | 79.6% | +16.1% |
| 2005 | 80.5% | +1.2% |
| 2006 | 80.4% | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 81.3% | +1.1% |
| 2009 | 85.3% | +5.0% |
| 2010 | 88.1% | +3.2% |
| 2011 | 90.3% | +2.5% |
| 2012 | 91.6% | +1.4% |
| 2013 | 92.1% | +0.6% |
| 2014 | 92.4% | +0.3% |
| 2015 | 92.7% | +0.3% |
| 2016 | 93.0% | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 93.5% | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 94.4% | +1.0% |
| 2021 | 95.3% | +0.9% |
Turkey compared with similar countries
- Turkey's 95.3% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 94.8%, 1.0× the median. (34 countries reporting)
- Turkey's 95.3% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 99.3%, 96% of the median. (10 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Literacy rate, adult female in Turkey changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | +29.0% | 49.8% | 64.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 45.1% | 45.1% | 45.1% | 1 |
| 1980s | 57.0% | 49.8% | 64.2% | 2 |
| 1990s | 68.5% | 68.5% | 68.5% | 1 |
| 2000s | 81.4% | 79.6% | 85.3% | 5 |
| 2010s | 92.0% | 88.1% | 94.4% | 9 |
| 2020s | 95.3% | 95.3% | 95.3% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Turkey
More gender data for Turkey
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) 16,631 (2030)
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) (0-14), annual growth -2.16 % change on previous year (2030)
- Population 72,396 (2030)
- Working-age population (UN estimates and projections) 72,396 (2030)
- Population (UN estimates and projections), annual growth rate 0.8922 % change on previous year (2030)
- Age population, age 00, female, interpolated 508,403 (2025)
- Age population, age 00, male, interpolated 533,517 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, female, interpolated 509,261 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, male, interpolated 534,655 (2025)
- Age population, age 02, female, interpolated 511,701 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is literacy rate, adult female in Turkey?
- Literacy rate, adult female in Turkey was 95.3% in 2021, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest literacy rate, adult female recorded in Turkey?
- The highest recorded value was 95.3% in 2021.
- What is the lowest literacy rate, adult female recorded in Turkey?
- The lowest recorded value was 45.1% in 1975.
- How does Turkey rank for literacy rate, adult female?
- Turkey ranks 28th out of 89 countries with data for 2021.
- Is literacy rate, adult female rising or falling in Turkey?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Turkey data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Literacy rate, adult female (% of females ages 15 and above). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 19 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Adult literacy rate is the percentage of people ages 15 and above who can both read and write with understanding a short simple statement about their everyday life.