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I have been learning the Turkish language for 30
years, and you are right about this vocabulary -- with stems -- that is
extremely difficult to memorize. I also speak some Arabic and the more
the words of Arabic origin disappear, the more difficult Turkish language will become.
I originally learned Turkish from a Teach Yourself Book in Holland, so my knowledge of
grammar is reasonably good. But most of my
practice has been the result of work-related conversations with immigrants who settled in The Netherlands years ago -- and who, unfortunately, have not been able to learn Dutch very well.
I say 'unfortunately'... but on the the positive side, it gave me a lot of opportunity to practice the Turkish language. As a result, over time, my workaday Turkish improved more than their immigrant Dutch. And, the day actually arrived when it was easier and more practical to speak entirely in Turkish with most members of the immigrant community. Sometimes, though, it took a little friendly, assertive persuasion on my part...
Once, in my job as a social worker, an immigrant family came to ask questions about matters of social insurance. And, when I started conversing in Turkish language, the head of family interrupted, saying,
Seninle Türkce konuşsam, belki anlaşamayız.
If I speak Turkish, there may be some misunderstanding.
Figurative translation
And, I had to reply as tactfully as possible,
Evet, belki anlaşamayız fakat Hollandaca
konuşsanız
kesinlikle anlaşamayız!
Yes, there's a chance of that...
But if you speak in Dutch,
my misunderstanding will be certain!
Figurative translation
I hasten to add that such ticklish situations have been few and far between...Luckily, most of the Turkish immigrants have appreciated my way of communicating with them.
On another subject, you've mentioned the need for Turkish-language 'memory hooks'... Might I suggest that we
invent some sentences like the famous French sentence poisson
sans boison est poison (fish without a drink is like poison). I am not
sure if the sentence in Turkish will be correct but you could say,
something like:
İhtiram ile cok ihtiram kazandım.
I gained a lot of
respect with my invention.
And...
when I show too much
ihtiras (enthusiastic attention) to a girl,
there could come itirazlar (objections) from her boyfriend!
What do you think, Jim and Peri? Do those memory hooks help?
Martien van Wanrooij (June '05)
info@martienvanwanrooij.nl
http://www.martienvanwanrooij.nl/turks.php
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