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Occasionally, you will need to use foreign words, people’s names, company names and place
names in Turkish. How would you treat foreign words in Turkish? Would they receive the same
case endings? How would they be spelled? We will talk about the general rules concerning
foreign words in this lesson.
First of all, no matter how a word is pronounced in its own language, within Turkish it follows
Turkish pronunciation rules, and in fact its original pronunciation may be changed to fit Turkish.
(And by the way, all languages do the same. This is not some chauvinistic characteristic of the
Turkish language). Once the pronunciation is changed to fit Turkish, case endings can be
added.
For example:
SPELLING – PRONUNCIATION
email – imeyil
email’im – imeyilim = my email
email’i – imeyili = his/her email
email’ler – imeyiller = emails
email’de – imeyilde = in the email
email’inde – imeyilinde = in his/her email
etc.
Starbucks – starbaks
Starbucks’ta – starbaksta = at Starbucks
Starbucks’ın kahvesi – starbaksın kahvesi = the Starbucks coffee
Secondly, spelling would have to be with Turkish letters. An exception is made only for these
letters: q, w, x. Some foreign proper names and place names containing these letters may keep
them even in Turkish texts, but others may be changed to k, v, ks, respectively.
RULE 1: Words from languages written in non-Latin scripts (Arabic, Greek, Georgian, Cyrillic,
Hebrew, Chinese, Devanagari, Thai, Korean scripts etc.) will be spelled in a way that would
reflect their pronunciation.
Did you notice that the -j sound was rendered as ç in Turkish and the final -b in Arab was
rendered as -p? This is because c and b never come at the end of a word in Turkish.
The beautiful Indian Bollywood actress (who sadly is suffering from COVID-19 currently)
Aishwarya Rai (ऐ वया राय) has her name spelled as Aişvarya Ray in Turkish.
There are a few exceptions, however. Some names enter Turkish through English because
journalists / researchers may first encounter them in English language resources.
Example:
The late Ukrainian Soviet president Khrushchev (Хрущёв) has his name spelled as Kruşçev in
Turkish. Here, the Turkish spelling clearly followed the English pronunciation, otherwise if the
actual Russian or Ukrainian pronunciation (Хрущо́в) was transliterated into Turkish, we would
have had this word: Hruşşof
Another example of following the English pronunciation is the name of this city: Abu Dabi
This was clearly the Turkish transliteration of the English spelling Abu Dhabi. If the above rule
had been followed, the Turkish spelling would have been : Ebu Zabî because the Arabic word
( )ﺍﺑﻭ ﻅﺑﻲhas a sound that is closer to Turkish Z than D.
RULE 2: Words from languages written in Latin alphabets usually are spelled with minimal
change in Turkish. The diacritics on letters are omitted or translated to Turkish diacritics:
For example the Polish town Łódź is spelled as Lodz in Turkish and pronounced like that as
well (which in fact is a mispronunciation).
The town of Bihać in Bosnia-Herzegovina is spelled as Bihaç in Turkish, where the diacritic in ć
is converted into ç.
The Swedish actor Alexander Skarsgård’s last name is spelled as Skarsgard, without the
diacritic on a.
Some words that have very different pronunciations may have their pronunciation given in
parentheses to help the reader. For example, the spelling of the French town Aix-en-Provence
would be baffling for Turks who do not speak French. So, although this town’s name would still
be spelled exactly as in French, its pronunciation would be given in parentheses: (eks-an-
provans)
Some words from languages written in Latin scripts still undergo change in Turkish because of
traditions dating back to Ottoman script. Examples:
Despite these rules, some Turks themselves are not sure as to how to spell foreign words in
Turkish and may follow the English spelling. But whatever the spelling may be, remember, the
pronunciation will always be in Turkish.
Whether you spell Aishwarya Rai or Aişvarya Ray, a Turkish person will always follow the
pronunciation of the Turkish spelling when bringing case endings:
The Turkish letters have very straightforward names. All consonants end in -e but in daily
speech two (H and K) end in -a.
A-a
B – be
C – ce
Ç – çe
D – de
E–e
F – fe
G – ge
Ğ – yumuşak ge (yumuşak = soft)
H – he OR ha
I–ı
İ–i
J – je
K – ke OR ka
L – le
M – me
N – ne
O–o
Ö–ö
P – pe
R – re
S – se
Ş – şe
T – te
U–u
Ü–ü
V – ve
Y – ye
Z – ze
This is how we would ask someone how his or her name is spelled:
Adınız nasıl yazılıyor? or İsminiz nasıl yazılıyor? (literally, how is your name written)
In Turkish, infinitives are the basic building blocks for the elaborate and otherwise dauntingly
complex verbs. Understanding infinitives will make your conjugations much easier.
Examples:
gelmek – to go
gelmemek – not to go
The fact that there are two infinitives (one affirmative and one negative) for the same verb will
make it easier to understand the conjugation of negative verbs:
gelmek:
gel! = come! (sing.)
gelin! = come! (plural/formal)
gelelim! = let’s come!
geliyorum = I am coming
geliyordum = I was coming
geleceğim = I am going to come
gelirim = I come, I will come
geldim = I came
gelmişim = I have come, as I have just realized
gelmemek:
gelme! = don’t come! (sing.)
gelmeyin! = don’t come! (plural/formal)
gelmeyelim! = let’s not come!
gelmiyorum = I am not coming
gelmiyordum = I wasn’t coming
gelmeyeceğim = I am not going to come
gelmem = I don’t come, I won’t come
gelmedim = I didn’t come
gelmemişim = I haven’t come, as I have just realized
gelebilmek = to be able to come …did you notice that this is almost like the combination of
gelmek = to come and bilmek = to know?
gelememek = not to be able to come, to be unable to come (it is only one E that makes the
difference between gelmemek and gelememek, and the stress of the word is on that very E
sound. Of course based on vocal harmony it could be an E or A sound.)
Alıştırma 1
Try to conjugate the following verbs in Şimdiki Zaman:
1- yapabilmek = to be able to do
2- yapamamak = not to be able to do
3- gidebilmek = to be able to go
4- gidememek = not to be able to go
5- uyuyamamak = not to be able to sleep
6- konuşabilmek = to be able to speak
Don’t forget that this word can also mean ‘to mean’.
Derived from this meaning is ‘demek ki’ which means so, it means.
The negative of this meaning uses ‘değil’ and treats demek like a noun.
Sana hediye almıyorum seni sevmiyorum demek değil.
= The fact that I am not buying you presents doesn’t mean I don’t love you.
Söyler misin? Dün neredeydin? = Will you please tell me? Where were you yesterday?
Bunu sana söyleyemem. = I can’t tell you this.
Annen sana evde ne söyledi? = What did your mother tell you at home?
Anlat bana, İlham Perisi! Şanlı Troya'yı yıktıktan sonra çok gezen ve çok dolaşan o yaman
adamdan söz et.
Tell me, O muse, of that ingenious hero who traveled far and wide after he had sacked the
famous town of Troy. (the beginning verse of Homer’s Odyssey)
yapabilirim = I can do *** (it may also mean I may do, I might do)
yapabilirsin = you can do (singular / informal)
yapabilir = he/she can do
yapabiliriz = we can do
yapabilirsiniz = you can do (plural / formal)
yapabilirler = they can do
Notice that this conjugation is different from the Geniş Zaman of yapmamak by only one single
middle a:
That middle A is so important! Look at this conversation, which actually happened and is from
real life:
A man who has been blind for a long time undergoes cataract surgery and now he can see.
How does he express his ecstasy for being able to see again?
a- Artık görebiliyorum!
b- Artık görebilirim!
Cevap: A
DERS 61
In this dialogue Volkan is looking for his keys but cannot find them.
SÖZCÜK BİLGİSİ
cep = pocket
kendi = own
bir daha = once again
Ne oldu? = what happened?
önce = first
Volkan: Mom, have you seen my keys?
İffet: No, what keys are these? Home keys or car keys?
Volkan: The car keys. I put them on the coffee table yesterday but now I can’t find them.
İffet: Gosh, where are they? Have you looked on the table?
Volkan: Yes, I have. There are only books and pens on the table. My keys are not there.
İffet: Well, have you checked the drawers in your room?
Volkan: No, I haven’t. I’m looking there now. No, they’re not in the drawers, either.
İffet: Oh boy! There are no keys in the drawers?
Volkan: No, there aren’t. I’ll ask Aslı. Aslı!
Aslı: Yes, brother. What do you want?
Volkan: I can’t find my keys. Have you seen my keys?
Aslı: No, I haven’t. Where were they?
Volkan: They were on the coffee table.
Aslı: Have you asked dad? Perhaps he took them.
Volkan: No, I haven’t asked him. I’ll call him now. (He calls his dad on the phone.) Hello, dad.
I’m sorry, I know you’re at work but I need to ask you. I can’t find my keys. Have you taken
them?
Tahsin: No, son. I’m checking my pocket now. No, your keys are not with me.
Volkan: Okay, dad, thanks. (hangs up) My father doesn’t have them either. Where are they?
İffet: Son, have you checked your own pocket?
Volkan: Of course, I have. I’m checking it once again and …oops!
İffet: What happened?
Volkan: Well, so, they were in my pocket all along!
İffet: Really, Volkan! Why didn’t you check your own pocket first? You’re so absent-minded!
Aslı: They were in his pocket? Hahaha!
Volkan: Okay, my bad. Sorry!
DERS 61 FILL IN THE BLANKS BASED ON THE DIALOGUE
See how many points you will get! Each blank is 0.5 points except a really hard one which is 1.5
points.
SÖZCÜK BİLGİSİ
bütün gün = all day long
bütün gece = all night long
bütün sabah = all morning
konu = topic
mutasyon = mutation
DNA’daki mutasyonlar = mutations (that are) in DNA
kalıtım = genetics
araştırma = research
benim DNA ve RNA hakkında çok okumam lazım = I need to read a lot on DNA and RNA.
Sibel notlarını Volkan’a verir. Volkan notları alır ve eve döner. Evde ders çalışır, notları okur.
Volkan koronavirusu çok ilginç buluyor ve koronavirus hakkında araştırma yapmak istiyor.
Volkan kendi kendine konuşur:
‘Bu koronavirus gerçekten çok ilginç. Koronavirus hakkında araştırma yapmak isterim, ama bu
araştırmayı nerede yapabilirim? Hangi laboratuvarda, hangi hoca ile yapabilirim? Bilmiyorum.
Acaba televizyonda, haberlerde ne var?’
Volkan televizyonu açar. Haberleri seyreder. Haberlerde Amerikalı uzman Doktor Fauci
konuşuyor. Doktor Fauci koronavirus aşısı hakkında konuşuyor.
Volkan: Bu çok ilginç bir haber ama çok yorgunum. Şimdi seyredemem. Kanepede oturacağım.
Volkan çok yorgundur. Biraz sonra Volkan uyur. Volkan bir rüya görür. Rüyasında bir
laboratuvardadır. Sibel de oradadır.
İffet ve Aslı odaya girerler. Volkan kanepede uyuyor ama rüyasında bağırıyor.
İffet: Volkan! Oğlum! Bağırma lütfen! Ne aşısı?
Volkan: Hayır, Fauci hocam! Sibel aşı olamaz! Önce ben aşı olmak istiyorum. Fauci hocam!
Fauci hocam!
İffet: Oğlum, Sibel kim? Doktor Fauci’ye niye bağırıyorsun?
Aslı: Anne, ben Sibel’i biliyorum. Ağabeyimin kız arkadaşı!
Volkan: Hayır, kız arkadaşım değil! Biz beraber Atlanta’da araştırma yapıyoruz. Ben koronavirus
aşısını buldum. Ama Doktor Fauci aşıyı Sibel’e yapacak.
İffet: Oğlum, ne diyorsun? Atlanta’da mı araştırma yapıyorsunuz? Ne zaman Atlanta’ya gittin
sen?
Volkan: Aaa! Acaba rüya mıydı? Tabii ki, rüyaymış.
Aslı: Ağabey, sen rüyanda Sibel’i mi gördün?
Volkan: Ne diyorsun sen, Aslı?
Aslı: Facebook’a yazacağım. ‘Ağabeyim rüyasında kız arkadaşı Sibel’i görmüş.
Atlanta’daymışlar.’
Volkan: Aslı! Yazma! Facebook’a koyma! Lütfen!
İffet: Bağırma Volkan, lütfen! Haberleri seyretmek istiyorum. Doktor Fauci’yi dinlemek istiyorum.
Doktor Fauci ne diyor?
Televizyonda:
Fauci: Koronavirus aşısı hazır. Laboratuvarda aşı deneyleri yaptık. Yarın aşıyı insanlara
vereceğiz.
SÖZCÜK BİLGİSİ
kendi kendine = by or to himself / herself
gerçekten = really
acaba = I wonder
açmak = to turn on the TV, lights etc. Remember, this word actually means to open.
aşı = vaccine
koronavirus aşısı = Coronavirus vaccine
kanepe = couch
rüya = dream
rüyasında = in his dream
laboratuvar-da-dır = he is in a lab ...here we put the -dır because it’s an explanatory statement.
deney = experiment
önce = first
Acaba rüya mıydı? Tabii ki, rüyaymış. = I wonder if it was a dream, what I experienced. Of
course, I now realize it, it was a dream.
koymak = originally to put, but here it means to post on a social media platform
DERS 63 SÖZCÜK BİLGİSİ
RÜYA ve HAYAL
The English word dream could be translated as two different words in Turkish, depending on
what you actually mean by a dream.
The dream that you see when you go to bed and sleep is ‘rüya’.
The dream that you imagine while awake, the dream of things that you want to accomplish, or
an imaginary apparition is called a ‘hayal’.
So in the dialogue above we could talk of both the rüya and the hayal that Volkan had:
If you dream about something in your sleep, you use ‘rüyasında görmek’ for him/her.
Rüyasında Sibel’i ve Doktor Fauci’yi gördü. = He dreamed about or saw Sibel and Dr Fauci in
his dream.
Ben rüyamda bir ev gördüm. = I saw a house in my dream. I dreamed about a house.
Sen rüyanda ne gördün? = What did you see in your dream? What did you dream about?
Alıştırma:
1- Her gün rüya görür müsün?
2- Dün gece rüyanda ne gördün?
3- Hiç rüyanda kendini okulda gördün mü?
4- Neyin hayalini kuruyorsun?
5- Büyük bir ev hayal et. Hayal evinde neler var?
buluyorum bulacağım buldum bulabiliyorum
buluyorsun bulacaksın buldun bulabiliyorsun
buluyor bulacak buldu bulabiliyor
buluyoruz bulacağız bulduk bulabiliyoruz
buluyorsunuz bulacaksınız buldunuz bulabiliyorsunuz
buluyorlar bulacaklar buldular bulabiliyorlar
bulmuyorum bulmayacağım bulmadım bulamıyorum
bulmuyorsun bulmayacaksın bulmadın bulamıyorsun
bulmuyor bulmayacak bulmadı bulamıyor
bulmuyoruz bulmayacağız bulmadık bulamıyoruz
bulmuyorsunuz bulmayacaksın bulmadınız bulamıyorsunuz
bulmuyorlar bulmayacaklar bulmadılar bulamıyorlar
buluyor muyum bulacak mıyım buldum mu bulabiliyor muyum
buluyor musun bulacak mısın buldun mu bulabiliyor musun
buluyor mu bulacak mı buldu mu bulabiliyor mu
buluyor muyuz bulacak mıyız bulduk mu bulabiliyor muyuz
buluyor musunuz bulacak mısınız buldunuz mu bulabiliyor musunuz
buluyorlar mı bulacaklar mı buldular mı bulabiliyorlar mı
And in the end are you unable to come up with the answer to the most basic question, even the
question that had the verb you had crammed just a few minutes ago?
A language is NOT a subject like history, geography, literature, math or physics, and cannot be
learned in the same way these subjects are learned.
So, instead of learning the verb BULMAK and its conjugation, learn these three most useful verb
forms:
buldum = I found it, I have found it
buldun mu? = have you found it?
bulamıyorum = I can’t find it
You can manage the other forms once you fully grasp these most useful verb forms. You can
always modify them easily.
Pasaportumu bulamıyorum. = I can’t find my passport…. Could become:
Anahtarlarımı - - -
Paramı - - -
Kalemimi - - -
Cüzdanımı - - - bulamıyorum.
And if you ever have to venture outside of these verb forms into other persons or tenses, you
could do a little thinking and come up with the correct form:
Use this system of learning for all other words that you are learning. Learn all your words and
phrases along with a sentence. Think of the words as flowers and sentences as the flowerpot
with soil. If you take only the flowers without the flowerpot, they will not survive long and soon
wither away from your memory. The ones in the flowerpot will bloom and blossom for much
longer.