Before 1923 the population of Turkey included large numbers of Greeks, Armenians, Jews and Venetians, and many of the most influential figures in business, trade and the arts were non-Turkish citizens. After the War of Independence in 1923 there was an exchange of populations between Turkey and Greece, and most Greeks were re-settled in Greece. Small communities of Greeks and Jews remain in Istanbul, but the only significant non-Turkish ethnic group in Turkey today are the Kurds. Kurdish is widely spoken in the east and Arabic is common in the south-east, but the official language is Turkish. English is taught as a second language in schools and German is fairly widespread as a great number of guest-workers are "'employed in Germany. In centres of tourism and main cities the touts and shop-sellers seem to speak any language that mav bring them business and most people have no difficulty in communicating.
