Where to start learning Turkish on your own. Where to start learning Turkish. How to learn Turkish on your own from scratch

Turkey is a republic located in South-West Asia. The inhabitants of this state have their own language. Turkish is also spoken in Northern Iraq, Syria, and Bulgaria. After the abolition of the visa regime, the country became one of the most popular holiday destinations for a large number of Russians. Is it easy to learn Turkish? This is possible if you learn a number of grammatical rules and remember words and expressions that help maintain a conversation.

How to learn Turkish on your own - ways.

What is required to learn Turkish?

Some people visit Turkey for trade purposes. They need to know the local language so that they do not communicate through gestures. Someone goes there to visit, relax or improve their health. Those wishing to learn Turkish will find it useful:

· textbooks and manuals on the language (they contain the necessary grammatical rules that allow you to compose sentences);

· training programs (they are available on the Internet, special disks are also sold that contain theory and practice with tests, this is convenient for those who do not like to read books);

· Turkish dictionary and phrasebook (during the exercises, write down unfamiliar words and then look for them in the dictionary);

· audio recordings and video materials (with the help of these tools you can further expand your vocabulary).

To systematize the acquired knowledge, they are recorded on paper. New words with transcription, individual rules and expressions - everything is written down in a notebook, so that later you can open it and repeat what you have learned.

How to learn Turkish at home from scratch?

Any language can be learned if a person strives for it. It doesn’t matter whether he gets a job with a tutor or starts studying on his own, using textbooks and dictionaries, he will have to mobilize his intellectual abilities. The right attitude is important here. How to learn Turkish on your own?

How to learn Turkish in the shortest possible time and with little bloodshed.

Why sexually mature? Because children usually don’t ask such questions; they pick up foreign languages ​​at the speed of light. But adult brains, stuffed with various necessary and not so necessary knowledge, are not as receptive to learning everything new as fresh, “uncluttered” children’s brains. Actually, our next article is for such people.
First, let's decide whether it is necessary to speak Turkish to live and work in Turkey, or whether you can get by with English. Nobody, of course, argues that in Antalya you can even get by with Russians, since almost every merchant at the bazaar here knows Russian at the everyday level. But. If you plan to live here for quite a long time without wandering the Internet in search of Russian-speaking doctors, or want to make successful transactions (it’s better to bargain in Turkey in a language that the local population understands), then it’s certainly worth mastering Turkish. Let's see how realistic this is.

Regarding the complexity of the language, then “the devil is not so terrible,” as they say. Despite the fact that the grammar in the Turkish language is built on a completely different principle, as in Russian, for example, word formation is obtained by “attaching” one or several suffixes to the root of the word, and the predicate, as a rule, is placed at the end of the sentence, it is quite easy to master this principle perhaps, depending on the intensity of language practice. The Turkish language is quite logical and structured, unlike Russian, and although its logic differs from the logic of English, the structure and principles of constructing sentences are not so difficult to understand and learn to apply. And so that not only the extremely entertaining words for our ears “fool” (stop), “mess” (glass) and tobacco (plate) stick to your tongue, the main thing is practice, practice and practice again, “as the great Ataturk bequeathed! »

Where, for example, did your humble servant start as soon as she moved to Turkey?

First thing, I got a notebook, where I entered all the words and phrases most often used in everyday life in alphabetical order, looked for their translation in the dictionary, and crammed it before going to bed. At the same time, I bought a phrase book, copied the grammar section of a Turkish textbook and delved into the structure of the language. Well, I tried to read “Turkish newspapers” as much as possible at breakfast, watch local Turkish TV series and listen to live spoken language as much as possible. After all, nowhere more often than in colloquial speech will you hear aphorisms, argot and allegorical printed and not quite expressions, without the knowledge of which you will remind the local population of a walking school textbook or a trade register newspaper. And the more masterly you are in the “word” and “live”, not newspaper language, the closer you are to the local population, both in everyday life and in business. I’ll say right away that I began to speak more or less clearly in broken Turkish after about a couple of months, and to understand the “background noise” around almost completely, and to speak freely on any topic, from import issues to disputes about literature - approximately after two years.

In general, this option for “budget” language learning is not suitable for everyone, because everyone has different abilities for foreign languages, different “volume of RAM” and a different mindset. Therefore, an almost win-win option would be to follow the path of least resistance and sign up for Turkish language courses, which, by the way, are a dime a dozen in Antalya, ranging from free courses for “Turkish wives” to expensive “elite” courses “ Tömer».

Free Turkish language courses available in every city in the country. In Antalya it is " ASMEK" And " KONSEM", in Hatay " HATMEK" and so on. Both Turkish citizens and any foreigners with a residence permit can enroll in these courses. Registration opens annually on certain dates. However, you will have to come to sign up almost from 4 in the morning, since, as you understand, there are enough people willing.

If the issue of maximum savings is not before you, and the task is to master the language as quickly and efficiently as possible, there are many private language centers at your service for different wallet thicknesses. Classes most often take place in the morning or evening, which is convenient if you need to coordinate training with your work schedule. Many language centers conduct various promotions and discount campaigns in the fight for clients.

The average cost of learning Turkish per month is approximately 350 to 1000 TL.

Here is an approximate price range for Turkish language courses in different cities of Turkey:

Antalya

Language CourseNet

Tuition fee – from $237 for 2 weeks

Parus Eğitim

Tuition fee – from 170 TL (approximately USD 50) in 2 weeks

Istanbul

Lotus Eğitim

Tuition fee – from 2000 TL (approximately USD 550) in 3 months

Hülya Gürdamar Etüt Merkezi

Tuition fee – from 400 TL (approximately USD 110) in 1 month

Yüksek Karyer

Tuition fee – from 1000 TL (approximately USD 275) for 6 months and from 1650 TL (approximately USD 455) for 1 year

Ankara

ÇAĞRI DİL OKULU

Tuition cost – from 500 TL (approximately USD 140) in 2 months

In addition to group classes at language centers, which are located in large quantities in all major cities of Turkey, you also have the opportunity to take lessons from local private teachers, who may be Russian-speaking, order training programs (costing from 200 TL) and take private lessons via Skype or watch Turkish language lessons online on YouTube.

* And now a nice bonus!🎁

A small lyrical digression in the form of a list of the most commonly used figurative expressions of colloquial speech by Turks, phrases in Turkish, the translation of which you are unlikely to find in the dictionary:

eline sağlık! - God grant you health! (Literally – “Health to your hands”)

ateş pahasına – at an incredible price

sokağa para atmak – throw money down the drain

baştan çıkmak – to lose one’s head (from temptation), to be confused

baş belası – (translated) headache

dil bozmak - to use foul language, speak obscenity

can pazarı – a matter of life and death

uyku çuvalı – sleepyhead, lover of sleep

herşeyi göze almak – go to any lengths; stop at nothing

meydana çıkmak - becomes obvious (about lies)

her şey yolunda - everything is fine

söz atmak + D.p. - to offend smb. words, making hints

kara sevda - 1/ sadness; 2/unrequited love

kara sakız gibi yapışmak - stick like a bath leaf

kara cahil - complete ignorant, absolute layman

kara borsa - black market

Canını acıtmak - to cause pain, to hurt

Canı çekmek - to want, to crave to death

Canı sıkılmak - to feel bored, to be bored, to languish

Işine bak! - mind your own business!

tovbe tovbe! - God forgive me!

aklından geçmek – come to mind, get into your head

taş koymak – to put a spoke in the wheels, to deliberately interfere

Allahın belası - punishment of Allah, punishment of God

göze çarpmak – to catch the eye, to attract attention

boş vermek + D.p. - do not give the meaning of something., do not mention it

delikanlı - hot (about a person)

ekmek parası - money for daily bread

bozuk para – change, coins

yerim seni – I will eat you (a sweet appeal to cute children)

sıkıntı yok - no problem

kafayı yemek - to go crazy

Why does it make sense to learn Turkish? Because Türkiye is a bridge between East and West. Turkish is a unique and fascinating language that has enriched many languages ​​with new words. You are definitely familiar with the words balaclava, baklava, caftan, pilaf, yogurt, sofa, odalisque and many others. By learning Turkish, you discover a rich culture spread from Bosnia and Herzegovina to China. If you speak Turkish, you can communicate with people living in almost any part of this vast area.

Why learn Turkish - reasons and motivation

There is a Turkish saying: “Bir lisan bir insan, iki lisan iki insan! “A language is a person, two languages, two people.” In other words, a person who knows a foreign language becomes two people when he learns the culture and traditions of other peoples. Learning a foreign language is a gateway to the worldview of different societies, systems of thinking and values.

Everyone who begins to learn a new language is motivated by certain factors. In most cases, this is related to finding new jobs or being able to communicate clearly when visiting the target country or even living in it as an expat. In order to learn Turkish from scratch, there are also some special factors.

Türkiye is strategically and culturally connected to Central Asia and the Middle East. This is a country with a rapidly developing economy, which allows it to be placed on the international business map. Turkey is becoming increasingly influential politically and economically, and knowledge of the Turkish language is a good asset for research institutes, government agencies, NGOs and various corporations operating in the region. Learning Turkish from scratch online or in courses is very important for both corporate representatives and individuals interested in doing business in this large country.

Indeed, career opportunities in Turkey are varied in different fields - from government to business, law, cybersecurity, technology, finance and service services.

REFERENCE. The US government identifies Turkish as a critical language. A government initiative created the Critical Language Scholarship, an intensive language and cultural immersion program abroad for American students designed to promote rapid language acquisition. This is critical to national security and economic prosperity. CLS plays an important role in preparing students for the globalized 21st century workforce and increased national competitiveness. In addition to Turkish in the list of critical foreign languages: Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian, Hindi, Bangla, Azerbaijani, Punjabi, Urdu, Arabic, Persian and Portuguese. The Critical Languages ​​Fellowship Program is funded by the U.S. Department of State with funding from the U.S. Government.

For the historian

Knowledge of Turkish is especially valuable for those studying history, archeology or anthropology. The historical archives of Turkey contain an unimaginable amount of unique information and amazing documentary evidence that relates to various ancient civilizations: Ottoman-Turkish, Islamic, Byzantine, Roman, Persian, Hellenistic, Assyrian, Hittite...

For the linguist

Knowing Turkish will help in learning other Turkic languages ​​such as Uyghur, Tatar, Kazakh, Uzbek and Kyrgyz: today they are called strategic languages ​​because they are spoken in strategically important regions of the world. The national language of the Turkish Republic can become a stepping stone to older linguistic forms, in particular the literary language of the Ottoman Empire.

How to study - study methods

Learning Turkish for beginners is somewhat difficult, but very interesting. Being part of the Turkic language family, Turkish is classified as an agglutinative language. This means that its structure is rich, highly abstract and has an intriguing, almost mathematical pattern. Much of grammar is expressed through suffixes added to nouns and verbs. For example, the word evlerden (from houses): ev (house), -ler (plural suffix), -den (initial case, answering the questions: from where, from what, from whom); gidiyorum (I am coming); git (go) -iyor (present continuous), -um (1st person singular – I).

Thanks to suffixes, a phrase can be expressed in one word. For example, Gerçek (adjective), real. We add suffixes to it and form a sentence that consists of just one word Gerçekleştirilemeyenlerdir - something that cannot be done. Although in Turkish it is not customary to overuse long words, as is often the case in German.

A characteristic feature of the Turkish language is vowel harmony (most suffixes follow this rule); in practice, the vowels of the suffix change according to the last vowel in the root. For example, evler – at home; evler den– from houses, but başlar (heads) – başlar dan from the heads. Vowel harmony is also common in some other languages, notably Korean and Hungarian.

Likewise, Turkish is a phonetic language. Once you learn the alphabet, mastering the pronunciation of words is not difficult. Each letter corresponds to a specific sound. Some words, usually borrowed from Arabic and French, are pronounced differently from how they are written, but the differences are minor and have little impact on those in the process of learning Turkish.

The sentence order is similar to that of Japanese or German: subject–object–verb. Adjectives and possessive nouns precede the noun they describe; the meanings of “behind”, “for”, “like/similar to” and so on are expressed (postpositions) after the noun, and not by prepositions before it.

We learn Turkish from scratch on our own: there are only six cases, the endings of nouns depend on the law of vowel harmony (the table demonstrates this rule).

The accusative case is perhaps the most difficult case, but to give a general idea, we can say that it is necessary whenever the object that is subject to the action expressed by the verb is indicated. For example, sevmek - to love; phrase Ben Carla'yı seviyorum - I love Carla. To “Carla” we add the “accusative case”, because the verb I love must answer the question who I love (“Carla” becomes an object that “twitches” the action and must be defined).

We teach ourselves from scratch at home

Turkish is one of the most established languages ​​in the world. For beginners who want to acquire basic skills in modern Turkish, the do-it-yourself approach involves:

• mastering reading and writing skills;
• spoken language, everyday topics;
• reading simple texts;
• writing topics on everyday topics;

Many texts that make learning Turkish easier are based on ancient stories. If we are learning Turkish on our own, it is important to refer to sources such as Dîvânü Lugati’t-Türk (Divan Lugat at-Turk). This is a comprehensive dictionary of the Turkic language, written by the lexicographer Mahmud al-Kashgari in 1072, and later edited by the historian Ali Amiri. Reading texts in Turkish is necessary: ​​it is easier to understand parables, idioms, figurative meanings.

Textbooks and tutorials

1. Turkish language textbook Ebru – Turkish language lessons for beginners.
2. Turkish in three months to Bengis Ron.
3. Learn Turkish with the study guide Adım Adım Türkçe (Turkish Step by Step), Level A1–C Phrasebook.
4. Self-instruction manual (in English).
5. Everyday Turkish Shahin Cevik.
6. Sesli Sözlük – online dictionary (translation into English and Turkish-English dictionary).
7. Turkish Studies at University of Michigan - an exclusive collection of Turkish textbooks, reference books, dictionaries, texts, literary works, including audio files, for anyone who wants to learn Turkish from scratch at home, from the University of Michigan.
8. Grammar and – Turkish grammar website. Like the entire group of Turkic languages, including Turkish, which is spoken today in Turkey, it is an extremely regular language with few exceptions. For this reason, Turkish served as the grammatical basis for artificial languages ​​such as Esperanto. In other words, you can learn grammar quite quickly.

Applications on smartphones

To study 1000 words, you can use the Anki app, which uses a spaced repetition system and has proven to be an effective way to retain vocabulary in memory. Download ready-made decks and transfer them to your smartphone.

1. Beginner Turkish - Turkish language from scratch for beginners

All methods are justified when a beginner is trying to learn a foreign language. But the main condition is constant practice, which includes reading and listening, writing, but, above all, speaking skills. This is the most interactive way to apply your knowledge.

Foreign languages ​​are more often studied in an emotionally neutral academic environment. Simply put, during the lessons we only get some idea of ​​phonetics and pronunciation. But there is a so-called “folk” language, which is definitely lacking when learning a language in the classroom. The effect of the vernacular language can only be felt in a conversation with a native speaker, when we get the opportunity to listen and imitate the accent, and try to learn the correct pronunciation. People learning a foreign language should pay attention to details that are important to native speakers. They include not only the correct pronunciation of words, but also the use of intonation and pauses (this is practically not given attention in lessons).

Communication with native speakers benefits writing, reading and listening skills. We have the opportunity to ask for help if something is unclear, because some concepts are completely alien to our native language and culture. Understanding culture is critical to learning a foreign language. This promotes the student's cultural awareness, broadens their horizons, helps develop communicative competence and ensures intercultural dialogue. Classroom instruction includes some lessons that specifically focus on cultural studies, but in this way we learn culture passively. By communicating with a native speaker, we have the opportunity to immerse ourselves in this culture, ask a person who is in this cultural environment every day, explain to us some of the features.

It's normal to feel awkward when overcoming a language barrier. The beginning is accompanied by emotions, which, as a rule, prevent you from thinking correctly, and there is always a chance of forgetting what you know. Advice: we need to try to remain calm, because no one can judge if we don’t know something yet. There are still many opportunities to practice words and phrases and after a few conversations the thought of trying to be perfect often goes away, even if you spend some time finding/remembering the right words.

Of course, immersion in real situations with native speakers is the best way to learn any language, but if this is not possible, you should mobilize every conceivable substitute that the Internet offers: listening to the radio, exchanging conversations on Skype or even singing songs.

Watching movies, listening to audio, reading books

A surefire way to increase your learning curve is to follow news in Turkish. The same can be said about advertising; on national television and in local newspapers. This is a satisfactory way of using basic vocabulary and grammar.

Films and TV series:

1. Hope(Umut) Umut is the story of an illiterate man and his family, whose existence depends on his income as a chaise driver. When one of the horses dies under the wheels of a car, and it becomes clear that neither justice nor mercy will prevail, the man played by Güney Yilmaz gradually falls into despair. On the advice of a local saint, he goes into the desert in search of a mythical treasure, going further and further into that final and inevitable moment when hope itself becomes a terrible delusion.
2. Laughing eyes(Gülen Gözler) – comedy; Yashar and his wife Nezaket do not give up hope of having a boy. But they only have daughters, whom they call by male names. The time comes when they need to find suitable rich husbands for their daughters.
3. My untouched island(Issız Adam)
4. Magnificent century(Muhteşem Yüzyıl) is a historical television series inspired by real events that occurred during the reign of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent.
5. Kinglet - songbird(Çalıkuşu)
6. Forbidden love(Aşk-ı Memnu)
7. Resurrected Ertugrul(Diriliş Ertuğrul)
8. Ezel television crime drama (an adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo) set in modern-day Istanbul.

Is it possible to learn Turkish quickly with a tutor?

First of all, languages ​​essentially cannot be taught, they can only be studied, or better yet, mastered. Responsibility for the educational process lies entirely with the student, and the teacher is the guide who should motivate, especially if he develops an individual curriculum to achieve specific goals. One-on-one training with a tutor takes into account a completely individual learning background and gives you more chances to work on your speaking skills. Unlike group classes, where the teacher must pay attention to many students, tutoring often produces faster results.

The question is not whether it is better to learn a language online, with a tutor or in a group. There are two problems with group classes. First, learning progresses at the speed of the slowest learner. Secondly, learning a language is a very personal process. Some students learn topics more easily and quickly than others, but courses cannot meet each student's personal needs or even do so in a timely manner. Then, learning a language using a grammar-oriented method is unlikely to lead to good results. Or rather, it will lead to a result, but we will get only a weak idea of ​​​​how to work with language, without having experience in real conversations.

Based on such experience, you need to choose schools or courses that are the best in terms of quality of teaching, professionalism of teachers and relevant teaching materials. We can recommend:

Dilmer – courses for all levels (from intensive to weekend courses). The teaching method here is mainly communicative and places students in active situations to develop communication skills.

Tömer, organized by Ankara University, is possibly the oldest school. The certificate issued by Tömer is valuable both in educational institutions and when applying for a job. The school is focused on traditional learning, with a lot of space devoted to detailed analysis of grammar.

Among smaller schools, the KediCat program, which has an informal approach, is a good choice. Also courses at the Türkçe Atölyesi center.

The difficulties in learning Turkish are the same as in any other foreign language; if the native language is structurally different. But the main thing is that learning a language goes beyond learning the rules of grammar. Turkish grammar is indeed regular and predictable, but the underlying mentality of the language is different. The associations that surround certain words and phrases are completely different for a Turk. Trying to translate literally can create monstrous sentences. Although various idioms and proverbs are similar in Turkish and Russian. In general, it is very important to know more about the culture so that you can participate in conversations.

Here is what the Russian Turkologist, literary translator Apollinaria Avrutina says about this: “...difficulties can exist in culture. Sometimes some social facts, such as Islam, for example, may be incomprehensible to Russian speakers...”

Learn a new word every day; make a simple sentence or construction with an adjective using this word. Start with the 100 most common words, and then make sentences with them over and over again.

Read texts in Turkish (even if it is initially an easy text or a children's book), even if you are unfamiliar with most of the words, but try to understand the essence of the story yourself. The point is that the brain is trained in the process: words, phrases, statements become more familiar. Reading is one of the most beneficial aspects of the learning process.

Listen to Turkish songs and sing (finding lyrics online will not be a problem). It's like talking to yourself and is great practice for developing your pronunciation skills. Onun Arabası Var(She's Got a Car) is a song popular in the 1990s with memorable lyrics.

Listen to Turkish news: The Turkish language used in BBC Türkçe is correct and carefully edited. Listen to podcasts in Turkish: the same exercise as listening to the news.

Often discussions about how to learn a language turn into discussions about so-called traditional approaches to technology. But the question is not so much what is better: online - offline or app - book. It is important to collect the necessary elements of language for a specific purpose, present them in a form convenient for yourself in order to understand. Ultimately, learning takes place within us, regardless of what or who is in front of us - a computer, a book or a teacher.

They say that it is more difficult for an adult to learn a new language than for children. This is a key language myth. In fact, adults and children learn differently. Languages ​​are both organic and systematic. As children, we assimilate them organically and instinctively; as adults, we study them systematically.

In contact with

Turkey is a country that each of you knows firsthand. Every year more and more tourists come to Turkey to soak up the sun on the shores of the clear Black Sea. This is a unique state, which is full of historical monuments, has a huge cultural heritage, attracts with nightclubs, beaches and, of course, its world-famous markets. Here you will find both holidays to suit your taste and goods. However, for both one and the other you will need at least minimal knowledge of the Turkish language, because while in a foreign country you can accidentally get lost or find yourself in some kind of emergency situation. To ensure that you do not feel even a drop of discomfort during your stay in Turkey, we have compiled an excellent Russian-Turkish phrasebook.

Everyday phrases

Appeals

At the station

At customs

Emergencies

Walk around the city

At the hotel

Times of day and year

Numerals

In the shop

To a restaurant and cafe

The phrasebook has several topics, each of which has translations and pronunciations of all kinds of necessary phrases.

Greetings – a list containing words that will help you start communicating with local residents.

Standard phrases are the largest topic that has collected a lot of really necessary words that are often used in everyday life. These words will greatly simplify your communication with Turks.

Station - a list of common phrases that will be useful to you at the station.

Passport Control – Once you arrive in Turkey, you will need to go through passport control. Thanks to this theme, you will complete this procedure in no time.

Orientation in the city - if this is your first time in a particular city in Turkey, you will definitely need the phrases that are collected in this topic. There is everything here that will help you navigate the city.

Hotel – don’t know how to order room cleaning in Turkish and ask for breakfast to be brought to you? Don't understand what is required of you at the reception? Then quickly open this topic and you will find the answers and suitable words.

Emergency situations - if you find yourself in some kind of trouble, open this topic without thinking and look for words that are suitable for you in the current situation.

Dates and times – translation of words indicating date or exact time.

Shopping – with the help of the Russian-Turkish phrasebook, which you can download from our website, you can easily make any purchases.

Restaurant – want to have a meal in a restaurant, but don’t know how to order a dish in Turkish? Our section will help you have a good time in the restaurant.

Numbers and figures - translation of numbers in Turkish.

In many ways it is extremely logical, consistent and understandable, despite the fact that it differs significantly from the system of European languages ​​that we are accustomed to and therefore at first glance seems frighteningly confusing. Today we will look at those aspects of Turkish that are easiest for those who start from a “zero” level, and we will tell you how to make your life easier in mastering Turkish.

• A beginner's guide to learning Turkish

I spent several days looking through textbooks and manuals from the point of view of understandability for someone learning a language from scratch, and I realized that, undoubtedly, the best option would be “Colloquial Turkish: The Complete Course for Beginners” (authors Ad Backus and Jeroen Aarssen).

This textbook provides the most necessary grammar and basic vocabulary in all areas and topics in a logical sequence, which allows you to read full-fledged original passages in Turkish after the first chapters. In addition, the focus is precisely on, in contrast to the formal “academic” version of the language.

This manual does not repeat answers and translations of what has already been explained or analyzed once, which encourages you to turn to information that has already been studied and assimilated.

• Reading Turkish is very easy

The first thing to note is that Turkish is a phonetically written language, and modern Turkish uses the Latin alphabet. Before the Atatürk Revolution and the reform of 1928, during which the Latin alphabet was adapted to Turkish pronunciation of sounds, the Turkish language used the Arabic alphabet.

So, in Turkish, each letter corresponds to one sound, there are no combinations of consonants (such as sh, ch, ght), so each letter is pronounced separately. Pronunciation generally matches what you see in written text, with the following exceptions:

- c pronounced like English j (j am), so the word sadece(only, only) pronounced like sah-deh-jeh.

- ç pronounced like English ch (ch arge), not to be confused with French ç , which is pronounced like s.

- ğ – unpronounceable letter (lengthens the previous vowel sound)

- ş pronounced like English sh .

- ı - looks like i without a dot. What's confusing is that Turkish capitalizes ı - this is I (like I is capitalized in English), but capitalized in Turkish I- This İ , so the city where all the tourists end up is not I stanbul (Istanbul), and İ Stanbul. ı pronounced as a neutral vowel sound.

Umlauts ö/ü pronounced as in German.

Once you know these rules and exceptions, you should be able to read something in Turkish, although be prepared for the fact that locals may pronounce words slightly differently. For example, I discovered that the letter “e” in words was pronounced by many as “a”.

• You already know many Turkish words

I was very happy to find many familiar words in Turkish that I recognized instantly. As with all languages, you typically start with a base of thousands of words before you even begin learning the language. Turkish has borrowed many brand names and technological terms from English, as have most other languages.

But what I found much more interesting was that Turkish has a huge number of borrowed words from other languages, the most surprising (and useful for me) being borrowings from French. One source I found claims that there are approximately 5,000 words in Turkish that come from French. By comparison, 6,500 words came from Arabic, 1,400 from Persian, about 600 came from Italian, 400 from Greek and about 150 from Latin. In many cases, a loanword has a Turkish counterpart, which is considered preferable in everyday communication, but in some cases the loanword is the only designation of a word or concept, and sometimes both words are used (as şehir And kent for "city", where şehir is a non-Turkish word).

Loanwords that I have personally encountered include kuaför, şans, büfe, lise (lycee), bulvar, asensör, aksesuar, kartuş, ekselans, sal ...and I'm sure there are many more. Of course, they are sometimes difficult to recognize, because they are written in accordance with the rules of Turkish transcription, but when pronounced they are very similar to French words (although they do not have French nasals). Even if you don't speak French, you will certainly recognize many of these words, since many of them are well established in English.

It's funny that I even recognized the Spanish word banyo in Turkish!

As for the vocabulary, which is unique and originally Turkish, it can be mastered surprisingly quickly if you simply apply effective memorization methods or download a selection of basic vocabulary, load it into the application for memorizing and practicing words and run it regularly to get the fastest possible results. get used to new combinations of sounds. The roots of words in Turkish, as a rule, are short, which makes them even easier to remember and then, based on them, to decipher more complex derivative words.

• Suffixes will help you expand your active vocabulary

Returning to derivative words, it is important to note that a key skill in working on expanding your vocabulary will be an understanding of how the structure of a word works and how the language “works”. In this regard, vocabulary and grammar are quite closely related to each other: you will not be able to look up most words in the dictionary as they are written in the text, but if you know the basic grammatical structures, you will immediately determine the root of the word and be able to look up its meaning in the dictionary.

One of the fastest ways to expand your vocabulary is to memorize standard suffixes. Many of them perform important functions: turning nouns into adjectives (or vice versa) or verbs (infinitives ending in -mek/-mak), or designation of a person who belongs to a particular profession, for example, using suffixes -ci/-ci (öğrenci– student from the verb öğrenmek- study).

Another important suffix is ​​the possessive formation suffix. You will encounter it everywhere, so learn to recognize it. For example, Istiklal is the name of the main street/avenue, or cadde, next to which I lived, so the street is called Istiklal caddesi. Suffix -si here reflects the meaning of possessiveness, and the word Istiklal means "independence". (Consider the English example: it turns out that in Turkish they prefer to speak Avenue of independence, but not Independence avenue). In the same way, the names of all universities (üniversite) in the city have university si .

Thus, Turkish suffixes express meanings that in other languages ​​would be conveyed by separate words, for example, prepositions.

Another important observation regarding all suffixes and words in general: the laws of vowel harmony, which you just have to get used to. I also encountered this in the Hungarian language, but in other languages ​​this phenomenon practically does not occur, so it is necessary to accustom yourself to a completely different way of thinking. Like many other aspects of Turkish, vowel harmony is easier than it seems, but takes time to develop the habit of arranging the vowels in a certain order. By the way, at the initial stage in the conversation you will still make mistakes, but in most cases people will still understand you.

• Put words and sentences together like a jigsaw puzzle

One point that requires some “restructuring” of thinking with an orientation towards the Turkish language is that the usual verbs “to be” or “to have” simply do not exist in the Turkish language. This may sound absurd, but once you get a little used to saying “my car exists” instead of “I have a car”, you will understand what's what.

Another "weird" aspect of Turkish is word order. For example, verbs tend to come at the end of sentences. So, you say: Türkçe öğreniyorum- “I’m studying Turkish.” In my opinion, this is even more logical than in English, because what you study is more important than what you study it. It is very important to remember that languages ​​have different ways of “processing” information, and not to panic if something in the language does not fit into our usual thinking model.

Once you think about some of the designs and understand how they work, they will become logical and obvious. For example:

Nerelisin(iz) means "Where are you from?" Let's look at it in parts: Ne-re-li-sin(iz): -sin= you, -siniz= you (polite/plural form), -li= from, place suffix, -ne= what (or just nere= where). Because there is no verb be, the meaning of a phrase consists of individual significant components of the word.

The same is the case with the word nereye, which means “Where to?” ( nere+ e (To) and letter "y" to separate two vowels).

• The grammar will seem extremely logical to you

How it happened to me. There are so few exceptions in the language, and the conjugation and word formation are so consistent, that the system of grammar is very easy to get used to: simple past tense, two present tenses (one similar to the English continuous tense, the other is the standard present tense), future tense, etc.

One example of the formation of the present tense using the ending -er there will be a verb donmek(turn), which in the third person singular sounds familiar to everyone doner.

Yes, there are differences with English or Russian, but based on my experience of learning other languages, Turkish has far fewer exceptions and completely unimaginable and illogical constructions.

In addition, Turkish has no grammatical gender, no definite or indefinite articles, and no irregular plurals (in some cases you don't even need to add a plural suffix -ler/-lar, if the meaning of the plural is clear from the context, for example, when used with a numeral).

The only case that may cause you some problems at the beginning is the accusative, which has already frayed a lot of my nerves in German. If the very idea of ​​the accusative confuses you, then I strongly recommend that you study Esperanto for at least a few weeks: using the accusative in Esperanto helped me understand it better than any theoretical explanation in Turkish or German, plus it is almost the only “difficult” » to understand grammatical construction throughout the language.

Using ĉu in Esperanto also helped me intuitively understand the suffix/particle issue mi/mı/mü in Turkish. This particle is added to questions that require a simple yes/no answer (in English we would simply show this difference using intonation). It's actually very easy to understand, but not easy to get used to, so learning it in a simpler language first can really give you a "jump start" in your understanding.

For example, the word çalışıyor means “it works” and çalışıyor mu? - "she works?"