Turkish language - the basics for a tourist. Why learn the language?

Those who visited Turkey probably know that almost all major hotels and retail outlets have English- or Russian-speaking staff. Therefore, during the rest and purchase of souvenirs, no language barrier and discomfort should arise. Nevertheless, a tourist should have in his vocabulary at least a minimum set of Turkish expressions.

Why should a tourist know the Turkish language?

If you want to not just sunbathe and plenty to swim in the warm sea, but also to learn the culture and features of the country, you certainly even need to know the Turkish language to the minimum. The azes for the tourist include not so much information that will allow you to communicate with the local population.

Another factor that speaks in favor of having to take the course of the Turkish language is that unforeseen situations can arise during the trip. Faced with the staff of hospitals, police or other services, you are unlikely to meet a person who is sufficiently proficient in English, and even more so, Russian.

Features of the Turkish language

First you need to understand what the Turkish language is. The basics for a tourist may seem quite complicated, but it's only at first glance. The thing is that in grammar it is very different from Russian. Also some difficulties can cause pronunciation. So, we can distinguish the following features of the Turkish language, which will be useful for the tourist:

• In 90% of cases the stress falls on the last syllable;
• Most of the concepts associated with scientific and technological progress are borrowed, and therefore do not cause difficulties in understanding;
• The Turkish speech is filled with a set of stable expressions that are associated with the traditions of courtesy, superstition and religion;
• No matter how long the sentence is, the predicate is always put in the end;
• Turks often violate the rules of syntax, if it concerns emotional speech or poetry;
• Despite the fact that the alphabet is based on the Latin alphabet, some letters can cause difficulties for the tourist. Here are some of them:

How to learn Turkish?

Of course, in a short time it is simply impossible to learn the Turkish language. Azi for a tourist includes a minimum set of rules and words that will allow him to at least superficially explain with the local population. In this case, you can go in several ways:

• To pass a course of the Turkish language in a linguistic center or school (this is one of the optimal options that give the fastest results);
• Hiring a tutor or taking lessons on skype;
• To be engaged with the help of the self-instruction manual, and also the materials placed in a network the Internet.

Whichever way you choose, it is important to proceed from the purpose with which you study the Turkish language. The basics for the tourist should include elementary foundations that will make it possible to speak politely and competently in the most common life situations.

How to understand Turkish by ear?

Communication implies not only speech, but also auditory perception. Any foreign language is not so easy to understand, and Turkish - even more so. To learn to parse fluent speech, there is little theoretical knowledge alone. It is necessary to use additional methods:

• Listen to the songs in Turkish. And do not just listen, but try to recognize and translate individual words and sentences. If the task was too much for you, find the lyrics on the Internet and read it while listening to the song.
• Watch Turkish movies. Thanks to them you not only learn to perceive speech by ear, but also get acquainted with its basic intonations. Ideally, you need to use the video without translation (in extreme cases - with subtitles).

Sign Language

One of the most mysterious countries is Turkey. The sign language for tourists is very important to know, so as not to get into an awkward or even conflict situation. Here are the main points:

• The thumb raised up means approval. But it's better not to use girls, let alone catching a car in this way. Such a gesture can be misinterpreted by hot Turkish men.
• Do not use crossed fingers if you wish good luck. The Turk may think that you do not want to continue to communicate.
• A clenched fist with an elongated little finger symbolizes resentment against a person.
• If the Turk pulls the lower eyelid with his finger, it means that he noticed the deception. This is a kind of mistrust.
• Do not use the "OK" gesture in any way. In Turkey, he is associated with homosexuality.
• "Dulya," which we consider to be a fairly innocuous gesture, in Turkey is equated with a raised middle finger.
• A nod with a head means denial.

Sign language is cunning enough, so if you do not know their meaning thoroughly, it's better to behave as discreetly as possible.

Some Common Phrases

Going on a journey, many take with them a Russian-Turkish phrase book. For a tourist this is an important acquisition, but you also need to learn the most popular phrases in Turkish:

This, of course, is not all the words necessary for a tourist. Start small, and the Turkish language will certainly succumb to you!