Spelling Orthography conference calls for an end to state spelling rules
Twenty years after the spelling reform, the Swiss Orthographic Conference (SOK) is calling for an end to the state rules. The current orthography is incorrect and unsettles writers.
02.06.2026, 18:12
SDA
The controversial reform and its revisions have caused lasting uncertainty and a feeling of arbitrariness and thus contributed to "the rapid decline in writing competence", the Swiss Spelling Conference (SOK) announced on the occasion of its twentieth anniversary on Tuesday.
According to the SOK, the errors in the rules from 2006 have remained almost unchanged to this day: for example, it is still officially forbidden to use the word "jedesmal" - even though the five-hundred-year-old German word has long been in common use.
The mystery surrounding the "well-known defect" is also still unresolved: does it refer to a defect that is known to everyone or one that is rather unknown? The capitalization of "einzelne" as opposed to "wenige" or "einige" also leads to contradictions, according to the SOK.
The conference is therefore calling for the state authorities to relinquish their responsibility for spelling. The official set of rules should be independently reviewed in its current form. The aim is a uniform and autonomously developing orthography.
The SOK was founded on June 1, 2006 as a reaction to the revision of the 1996 spelling reform. The "Neue deutsche Rechtschreibung" celebrates its thirtieth anniversary this year.
