This unique Turkish language is not spoken, it’s whistled

In Kuskoy village above Turkey’s Black Sea coast, there are villagers who communicate across valleys by whistling

The  language is known as ‘bird language’ and for around three centuries, farmers there have communicated great distances by whistling.

Only a few people have mastered this unique form of communication. Women sit on roofs and whistle to their neighbors on the other side of the valley

The language joins the “List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding” because of the impact of social and technological change

According to BBC, Kuskoy is making efforts to keep the practice alive through its annual Bird Language Festival, and the head of the Bird Language Cultural Association, Seref Kocek, said local people have welcomed the news “with joy, as a dream come true”