The Turkish Language
A quick guide for tourists
Before you jump into learning Turkish ask yourself first if you need it where you will be vacationing. If you are planning a holiday to a resort on the Western coast, you will not need to speak Turkish. The waiters, shopkeepers and guides all speak reasonable English. German is spoken very well by a lot of Turks. If you plan on travelling in eastern or central Turkey though you will need at least a few basic phrases of Turkish as it can be difficult to find an English speaker especially in the small towns and villages. Nevertheless, even if you are going to a well-known tourist city like Bodrum or Antalya some basic words of the language are always appreciated - if nothing else, learn the numbers as you will find it easier to get a better deal in the markets when you negociate in Turkish!
The following
is some basic vocabulary you can learn on the plane trip over, including a
phonetic pronunciation guide:
Numbers
| Number | Turkish | Pronunciation |
| 1 | bir | beer |
| 2 | iki | ih-kih |
| 3 | üç | oo-ch |
| 4 | dört | dirt |
| 5 | beş | besh |
| 6 | altı | all-tuh |
| 7 | yedi | yed-ee |
| 8 | sekiz | sek-eez |
| 9 | dokuz | doh-kooz |
| 10 | on | on |
Greeting and saying goodbye
| English | Turkish | Pronunciation |
| Hello | Merhaba | Mera-ba |
| Good bye (formal) | Haşça Kalın | Hosh-chaw call-un |
| Goodbye (inormal) | Güle güle | Gool gool |
| How are you | Nasılsın | Noss-uhl-son |
Colours
| English | Turkish | Pronunciation |
| white | beyaz | bay-Oz |
| black | siyah | see-yah |
| yellow | sarı | saw-ruh |
| orange | turuncu | too-roon-ju |
| blue | mavi | maw-vee |
| red | kırmızı | kur-ma-zuh |
| grey | gri | gree |
| green | yeşil | yeh-sheel |
| purple | mor | mohr |
If you are interested in learning more of the language I would highly recommend the following books, all aimed at absolute beginners:
