Dialogue - Turkish

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Vocabulary

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yazar writer, author
pozisyon position
yüksek lisans MA degree
pazarlama marketing
başvurmak to apply
metin text, content
görüşmek to meet, to keep in touch, to do an interview
toplantı meeting
deneyim experience
ertelemek to postpone

Lesson Notes

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Lesson Focus

The Focus of This Lesson is Using the Intermediate Level Plural Suffix (-ler, -lar)
Çok güzel. Peki, sizi Tokyolara kadar götüren motivasyon neydi?

"Very nice. Well, what's the motivation that took you as far as Tokyo?"

 


 

In this lesson, you will learn how to:

1. Use the -ler and -lar suffix to emphasize respect

2. Use the -ler and -lar suffix to emphasize family

3. Use the -ler and -lar suffix to imply similarity

 


 

 

1. How to use the -ler and -lar suffix to emphasize respect


 

There are two examples from the dialogue that fit this criteria, Onur Beyler and Tokyolar. In Turkish, the -ler and -lar suffixes are used to make a noun or a verb plural. However, in these examples plural suffixes connote respect, dignity, and reputation.

Similarly, the suffix could be added at the end of the verb to show respect.

 

The Usage of the Plural Suffix to Show Respect and Reputation

When the plural suffix is attached to the object

When the plural suffix is attached to the subject

When the plural suffix is attached to the verb

Onur Beyler toplantı yapıyor.
"Onur is having a meeting."

Onur Beyler'e toplantıya gittik.
"We went to Onur's office for the meeting."

Onur Bey toplantı yapıyorlar.
"Onur is having a meeting."

Doktor Hanımlar ameliyattadır.
"The doctor (female) is in surgery."

Biz gittiğimizde Doktor Hanımlar ameliyattaydı.
"When we went there the doctor was in surgery."

Doktor Hanım ameliyattalar.
"The doctor (female) is in surgery."

 

Important point: Notice that the suffixes added to the verbs indicate many things in Turkish like mood, time, and the personal pronoun.

In addition, the plural suffix is attached at the end of the mood suffixes.

 

Conjugating the verb "to eat" and using plural suffixes to emphasize respect and formality


Affirmative

Negative

Interrogative

Suffix -ler

yerler
"They/You/he/she eat/s."

yemezler
"They don't eat."

yerler mi?
"Do they eat?"

Suffix -lar

 

yaparlar
"They/You/he/she do/does."

yapmazlar
"They/you/he/

she don't/doesn't do."

yaparlar mı?
"Do they/you/he/she do?"

 

Turkish is an intensely agglutinative language. Therefore the suffixes demonstrate great diversity due to vowel harmony rules. The plural suffixes -ler and -lar are no exception. In e-type vowel harmony, you have two options: the one with vowel e or the one with vowel a.

Although we've covered Turkish vowel harmony rules in detail in our previous lessons, let us remind you why we have two different plural suffixes one more time.

If the last vowel in the word is a, ı, o, or u: use the suffix with vowel a

If the last vowel in the word is e, i, ö, or ü: use the e form.

A good hint is to memorize this: The suffix with a comes after the undotted vowels and e comes after the dotted vowels.
Why do we have Turkish vowel harmony rules? Well, Turkish claims to be a language that is read as it's written. So in order to have a musical language that flows smoothly the suffixes mutate according to the preceding stem or suffix.

For example:

  1. Sayın başbakanımız bir konuşma yapacaklar.
    "Our esteemed Prime Minister will be giving a speech."
  2. Fatihler, Kanuniler Osmanlı'yı imparatorluk haline getirdiler.
    "People like Fatih the Conqueror and Suleiman the Magnificent made the Ottomans an empire."
  3. Hanımefendi, bu akşam yemek yiyecekler mi?
    "Will the lady be eating tonight?"

Keypoint: Notice that in all examples the personal pronoun is singular, however the plural suffix is added to the verb to emphasize respect, honor, and reputation.

 

2. How to use the -ler and -lar suffix to emphasize family


 

The Turkish plural suffix can also be used after proper nouns or words to show relative relationships and make family and collective nouns.

You'll most often encounter this example as objects and subjects in a Turkish sentence.

The Usage of the Plural Suffix to Emphasize Family Relations

Bugün dayımlara gittik.

Object

Bugün dayımlar bize geldi.

Subject

 

Notice that in the first example noun case -e is mutated to -a. This is because of the vowel harmony rules in Turkish. In -e type vowel harmony, vowel e mutates according to the precedent vowel. Remember that noun case -e signifies the dative case and it shows that the word that it is attached to is going towards something or somewhere.

 

Examples

Complement

Subject

Object

Example

Bugün

"Today"

(biz) gittik

"(we) went"

dayımlara

"to my uncle's"

Bugün dayımlara gittik.

"We went to my uncle's today."

Bugün

"Today"

(onlar) dayımlar geldi

"(they) my uncle and his family came"

bize

'to us"

Bugün dayımlar bize geldi.

"My uncle and his family came to us today."

 

For example:

  1. Mertler yarın boks maçına gidiyorlar.
    "Mert and his friends are going to a boxing match tomorrow."
  2. Amcamlar Kanada'ya taşındılar.
    "My uncle and his family moved to Canada."
  3. Sizinkiler hala evliler mi?
    "Are your parents still married?"

 

3. How to use the -ler and -lar suffix to imply similarity and repetition


 

The third connotation of the Turkish suffix is to imply similarity, time, and generalization.

The generalized connotation sometimes includes apotheosis or irony.

For example, imagine a Turkish person with a degree from an American University. His family asks him something related to the USA and he cannot provide a convincing answer. His family can then say:

  1. Amerikalara kadar gittin hala bilmiyor musun?
    "You went to the USA and you still don't know this?"

However, the example in our dialogue is when Tokyolara Selin's future boss Emre is impressed by the fact that she went to Japan to do a PhD. That's why he uses a plural suffix, to emphasize appreciation.

With this connotation, the Turkish plural suffix is often used after a noun as an object or subject of the sentence.

 

The second usage is to imply repetition.

  1. Yıllar yılı seni düşledim.
    "I have been dreaming about you for years and years."
  2. Aslanlar aslanı kuzenim burs kazanmış.
    "My most wonderful cousin has won a scholarship."
    Literal translation: "My cousin who is like the lion king among a pride of lions has won the scholarship."

Notice that in the example above, the plural suffix acts like superlative. Also this repetition adds the nuance of exaggeration and worship to the sentence.

 

The third usage is to express similarity.

  1. Orhan Pamuklar Türk edebiyatını Dünya'ya açtı.
    "Authors like Orhan Pamuk introduced Turkish literature to the World."

In this example, the plural suffix indicates authors like Orhan Pamuk. Therefore, it signifies being alike and similarity.

Let us just give a final warning before we end this lesson. In Turkish, the nouns that come after numbers don't have plural suffixes.

  1. İki kalemler (Wrong)
    İki kalem
    (Correct)
    "Two pencils"

 

Sample Sentences

 


 

  1. Sabahları gazete okurum.
    "I read the newspaper every morning."
  2. Sizler de Orhan Pamuklar gibi yaratıcı olabilirsiniz.
    "You can be as creative as the likes of Orhan Pamuk."
  3. Marka çanta satın almak için Parislere gitmenin ne anlamı var!
    "There is no sense in going to Paris in order to buy brand bags."

 

Key Vocabulary & Phrases

davet etmek ("to invite")

Davet is a noun meaning "invitation" and etmek is one of the major auxiliary verbs in Turkish.

Davet etmek can be used in any formal or casual occasion like when inviting someone to dinner at your place, asking for a dance, or even to a formal event like a wedding. In more informal situations, like among friends, you can use çağırmak instead. Çağırmak means "to call."

For example, if you want to invite your friends to a home party, a café, or the movies you can say Arkadaşlarımı çağırdım, meaning "I invited my friends."

For example:

  1. Kuzenini yemeğe davet ettim.
    "I invited your cousin to dinner."

 

eğitim bursu ("education scholarship")

Eğitim bursu is a compound noun composed of two different nouns: eğitim meaning "education," and burs meaning "scholarship."

This compound noun is often used for university scholarships sponsored by the government or private scholarships sponsored by companies. You'll find that scholarships fall into different categories in the Turkish Education system. It is good to know these terms if you are interested in studying in Turkey. For instance, başarı bursu means "scholarship of academic excellence," gereksinim bursu means "grant of necessity," kitap bursu means "book grant," yemek bursu means "food grant," yaz okulu bursu means "summer school scholarship," and harç artışı muafiyeti means "school fee exemption."

For example:

  1. Eğitim bursu alarak Japonya'ya gitti ve doktora yaptı.
    "He/she received a scholarship, went to Japan, and got a PhD."

 

kreatif metin yazarlığı ("creative copywriting/content writing")

Kreatif metin yazarlığı is an adjective clause made by a loanword, kreatif, meaning "creative," metin meaning "text," and yazarlık, meaning "writer," "author."

Loanwords are often used for stylized connotations. For example, "creative" translates to yaratıcı in Turkish. But for this job position they prefered to use kreatif to have a stronger, cooler effect. This is often mocked as being plaza dili, meaning "business slang."

For example:

  1. Ünlü yazar geçmişinde bir ajansta kreatif metin yazarlığı yapmıştı.
    "The famous author did creative typewriting in an agency in his/her past."

Cultural Insights

Useful Things to Learn for a Job Interview in Turkey


 

 

Türkiye'de başarılı bir iş görüşmesi yapmak evrensel olarak kabul edilmiş bir takım kurallar çerçevesinde şekillenir. Örneğin; iş görüşmesinden önce özgeçmişinizi iki kopya olarak hazırlamak. Günümüzde, özellikle Amerika'da özgeçmişe resim eklemek politik olarak doğru bir davranış olmasa da Türkiye'deki iş başvurularında hala çok önemlidir. Bu yüzden güncel fotoğrafınızı özgeçmişinize ataçla tutturun veya yapıştırın. Görüşmeye zamanında gidin, rahat ama aynı zamanda ciddi giyinin. Görüşme sırasında, kişisel başarılarınızı ön plana çıkarın ve neden başvurduğunuz pozisyon için ideal bir aday olduğunuzu anlatın. Maaşı sormaktan çekinmeyin ve sigortanızın olup olmayacağını mutlaka sorun. Bir çok firma yemek masrafları için ticket sistemini kullanmaktadır. Ticket sistemi bir kart yardımı ile işler. Temelde, çalıştığınız kurum bu kartın içine öğle yemeklerinizi dışarıda yemeniz için para koyar. İstanbul'da trafik çok yorucu ve zor olabilir bu yüzden servisi olan bir şirketi tercih etmek isteyebilirsiniz. Yoksa, yol için ekstra para istemekten çekinmeyin.

You can find the most popular Turkish websites for job hunting below. You can fill out your CV in English or Turkish on these websites and write a different cover letter for each application.

http://www.kariyer.net/

https://www.secretcv.com/

http://www.yenibiris.com/

 

Having a successful job interview in Turkey pretty much revolves around universally accepted patterns. For instance, you need to prepare two copies of your CV just to be safe before the job interview. Nowadays, especially in the USA, it is not considered politically correct to have your photo on the your CV, however it is still considered to be a vital part of Turkish job applications. So make sure to glue or attach your updated photo on your CV. Be on time, and dress in a smart casual fashion. During the interview, try to emphasize your individual accomplishments and why you think you are the best candidate for the position you want to apply for. Don't be shy when talking about your salary and asking whether you'll have insurance. Most companies offer tickets for your daily food expenses. The ticket system operates with a card. Basically, your company puts money on that special card so that you can have lunch outside at any restaurant for free. The card should not be included in the salary. Some companies also offer service buses for your commute to work. The traffic in Istanbul can be very challenging and tiring, so you might prefer a company with service buses. Otherwise, do not hesitate to ask for extra commute money.

You can find the most popular Turkish websites for job hunting below. You can fill out your CV in English or Turkish on these websites and write a different cover letter for each application.

http://www.kariyer.net/

https://www.secretcv.com/

http://www.yenibiris.com/

 

Lesson Transcript

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Intermediate Season 1 Lesson 1 - A Turkish Job Interview
INTRODUCTION
Eric: Hi everyone, and welcome back to TurkishClass101.com. This is Intermediate Season 1 Lesson 1 - A Turkish Job Interview. Eric here.
İçten: Merhaba, I'm İçten.
Eric: In this lesson, you’ll learn about intermediate level plural suffixes. The conversation takes place at a job interview in a social media company.
İçten: It's between Özge, Emre, and Selin.
Eric: The speakers are an employer and employees, so they’ll speak both formal and informal Turkish. Okay, let's listen to the conversation.
DIALOGUE
Emre: Selin Hanım, toplantı için Onur Beyler geldiler mi?
Selin: Gelmediler Emre Bey. Hastaymış. Salı gününe ertelediler.
Emre: Tamam. Ben Özge Hanım'la görüşmeye gidiyorum. Özge Hanım merhaba, hoşgeldiniz.
Özge: Hoş bulduk Emre Bey.
Emre: Kreatif metin yazarlığı pozisyonumuza başvurmuşsunuz. Yüksek lisansınızı Tokyo'da yapmışsınız. Ne üzerine?
Özge: Pazarlama ve tüketim kültürü üzerine çalıştım.
Emre: Çok güzel. Peki, sizi Tokyolara kadar götüren motivasyon neydi?
Özge: Japonya'dan eğitim bursu aldım. Teyzemler de orada yaşıyorlardı.
Emre: Peki, akademik başarınız var ama iş deneyiminiz yok galiba?
Özge: Evet, bu yüzden size başvurmak istedim.
Eric: Listen to the conversation with the English translation.
Emre: Selin, has Onur come for the meeting?
Selin: He hasn't, Emre. He's sick. He postponed it until Tuesday.
Emre: OK. I'm going to interview Ozge now. Ozge, hello, welcome.
Ozge: Thanks, Emre.
Emre: You've applied for our creative content writing position and you did your Master’s in Tokyo. In what?
Ozge: I did my work in marketing and consumption culture.
Emre: Very nice. Well, what's the motivation that took you as far as Tokyo?
Ozge: I had a scholarship, and my aunt's family lives there as well.
Emre: Well, you’ve had academic success but no work experience, I guess...
Ozge: Yes, that's why I applied to your company.
POST CONVERSATION BANTER
Eric: So Ozge was having a job interview – that’s always a nerve-racking experience!
İçten: That’s right. I think that job interviews are something you’ll encounter no matter where you are.
Eric: That’s true. What can you tell us about job interviews in Turkey?
İçten: First, you should prepare two copies of your CV.
Eric: Okay, and should you put a photo on your CV? In some countries they don’t expect one.
İçten: In Turkey, you should include one. When you have the interview, dress in smart casual attire and arrive on time!
Eric: That last part is very important! Is it okay to ask about the salary and benefits in the interview?
İçten: Of course! Most companies in Turkey even offer a ticket system for food expenses. They charge a card, and you can use it to eat at restaurants.
Eric: That’s convenient! How about travel to and from work?
İçten: Some companies provide buses. The traffic in Istanbul can be very heavy, so buses are a convenient way to get to and from work. If there isn’t a bus, you can ask for your travel expenses to be covered.
Eric: That’s good to know! Listeners, if you check the lesson notes, there are some popular Turkish job hunting sites listed.
İçten: That’s right. If you go job hunting in Turkey, remember what we said and good luck!
Eric: Okay, now onto the vocab.
VOCAB LIST
Eric: Let’s take a look at the vocabulary from this lesson. The first word is..
İçten: toplantı [natural native speed]
Eric: meeting
İçten: toplantı[slowly - broken down by syllable]
İçten: toplantı [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have..
İçten: deneyim [natural native speed]
Eric: experience
İçten: deneyim[slowly - broken down by syllable]
İçten: deneyim [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have..
İçten: ertelemek [natural native speed]
Eric: to postpone
İçten: ertelemek[slowly - broken down by syllable]
İçten: ertelemek [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have..
İçten: görüşmek [natural native speed]
Eric: to discuss, to negotiate
İçten: görüşmek[slowly - broken down by syllable]
İçten: görüşmek [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have..
İçten: metin [natural native speed]
Eric: text, content
İçten: metin[slowly - broken down by syllable]
İçten: metin [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have..
İçten: yazar [natural native speed]
Eric: writer, author
İçten: yazar[slowly - broken down by syllable]
İçten: yazar [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have..
İçten: pozisyon [natural native speed]
Eric: position
İçten: pozisyon[slowly - broken down by syllable]
İçten: pozisyon [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have..
İçten: yüksek lisans [natural native speed]
Eric: Master’s degree
İçten: yüksek lisans[slowly - broken down by syllable]
İçten: yüksek lisans [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have..
İçten: pazarlama [natural native speed]
Eric: marketing
İçten: pazarlama[slowly - broken down by syllable]
İçten: pazarlama [natural native speed]
Eric: And last..
İçten: başvurmak [natural native speed]
Eric: to apply
İçten: başvurmak[slowly - broken down by syllable]
İçten: başvurmak [natural native speed]
KEY VOCAB AND PHRASES
Eric: Let's have a closer look at some of the words and phrases from this lesson. The first phrase is..
İçten: davet etmek
Eric: meaning "to invite." What can you tell us about this, İçten?
İçten: Davet is a noun that means “invitation,” and etmek is one of the most important auxiliary verbs.
Eric: Together, they mean “to invite.” When do we use this?
İçten: It can be used any time, whether it’s a formal or informal situation.
Eric: So for everything from a casual dinner at your home to a wedding?
İçten: That’s right. If it’s a really informal situation, you can use çağırmak instead.
Eric: Can you give us an example using this phrase?
İçten: Sure. For example, you can say.. Kuzenini yemeğe davet ettim.
Eric: ..which means "I invited your cousin to dinner." Okay, what's the next phrase?
İçten: eğitim bursu
Eric: meaning "education scholarship." Can you break this down for us?
İçten: It’s a compound noun composed of two different nouns – eğitim meaning ''education,'' and burs meaning ''scholarship.''
Eric: So, “education scholarship.” What kind of scholarships are there in Turkey?
İçten: You can get scholarships from the government or private scholarships from companies. There are different categories of scholarships.
Eric: Such as?
İçten: There are quite a few, but a couple of them are başarı bursu meaning ''scholarship of academic excellence,'' and gereksinim bursu meaning ''grant of necessity.”
Eric: There are more in the lesson notes. Can you give us an example using this phrase?
İçten: Sure. For example, you can say.. Eğitim bursu alarak Japonya'ya gitti ve doktora yaptı.
Eric: .. which means "He received a scholarship, went to Japan, and did a PhD." Okay, what's the next phrase?
İçten: kreatif metin yazarlığı
Eric: meaning "creative copywriting, content writing." What can you tell us about this?
İçten: This is an adjective clause made up of the loanword kreatif meaning ''creative,'' metin meaning ''text,'' and yazarlık, meaning ''writer, author.”
Eric: Are there many loanwords in Turkish?
İçten: There are a few. They’re usually used for emphasis or style. In this example, the word yaratıcı could have been used instead.
Eric: Is this common?
İçten: It can be. It’s often mocked as being plaza dili, meaning ''business slang.''
Eric: Can you give us an example using this phrase?
İçten: For example, you can say.. Ünlü yazar geçmişinde bir ajansta kreatif metin yazarlığı yapmıştı.
Eric: .. which means "The famous author did creative copywriting for an agency in her past." Okay, now onto the lesson focus.

Lesson focus

Eric: In this lesson, you'll learn about intermediate plural suffixes.
We’re going to look at three reasons why these suffixes are used. İçten, what’s the first one?
İçten: We can use -ler and -lar to emphasize respect. In the dialogue, the word Tokyolar was used to express dignity and respect.
Eric: These suffixes are usually used to make a noun or verb plural, right?
İçten: Right, but not in this case. The suffix can be added to the object, subject, or verb. For example, Onur Bey toplantı yapıyorlar.
Eric: “Onur is having a meeting.”
İçten: In that sentence, -lar was added to the verb.
Eric: Do you have an example of the same sentence, only where the suffix is added to the object?
İçten: For example, Onur Beyler toplantı yapıyor. Turkish is an intensely agglutinative language, so the suffixes demonstrate great diversity due to the vowel harmony rules.
Eric: Let’s quickly mention the vowel harmony rules.
İçten: If the last vowel in the word is a, ı, o, or u – use the suffix with vowel a. If the last vowel in the word is e, i, ö, or ü – use the e form.
Eric: The second reason we will look at in this lesson is to emphasize family.
İçten: Right, we can use these suffixes after proper nouns or words to show relationships between relatives and make family and collective nouns.
Eric: Can you give us an example?
İçten: Amcamlar Kanada’ya taşındılar.
Eric: “My uncle and his family moved to Canada.”
İçten: The third reason is to imply similarity and repetition.
Eric: How is this used?
İçten: It can be used to express irony, or that something has reached its peak. It can also mean repetition or similarity.
Eric: Can you talk us through those a little?
İçten: In the dialogue, Emre was impressed that Özge had studied in Japan, so Tokyolara was used.
Eric: And for repetition?
İçten: I’ll give you an example sentence. Yıllar yılı seni düşledim.
Eric: “I’ve been dreaming about you for years and years.” And for similarity?
İçten: Sizler de Orhan Pamuklar gibi yaratıcı olabilirsiniz.
Eric: ‘’You can be as creative as the likes of Orhan Pamuk.’’

Outro

Eric: Okay, that’s all for this lesson. Thank you for listening, everyone, and we’ll see you next time! Bye!
İçten: Güle güle.