Turkish Phrases Blog

When my parents visited us in Turkey last April I couldn’t believe my ears.  My dear 67 year old mother was speaking Turkish phrases amazingly well.  She was speaking some even more accurately than me!  I couldn’t believe it.

There is a simple reason for her language learning success: before their visit I recommended the resource posted on the right side of this page.  My Mom ordered a copy of the Pimsleur Conversational Turkish program and listened to the CD in her car.

The really cool thing about Pimsleur is that it will teach you basic Turkish phrases without telling you what they mean in English.  I know that whole concept makes some people want to pull out their hair and run screaming away.  They would much rather write sentence diagrams, memorize verb conjugation charts and all the time know exactly what the translation is in their native language.  My lovely wife is one of those people so I’m not saying the left-brain approach is all bad.  I am telling you the approach Pimsleur takes is just the most effective way to actually learn how to understand and speak basic Turkish.  It is the way children learn.  It is the natural way to learn.

OK, this is starting to sound like an ad, so I’ll stop now.  Let me just say, you will learn basic Turkish phrases if you buy Pimsleur.  And if you buy it through this site you will help me keep writing!

Technorati Tags: Audio, Learning Tools, learning turkish

Damaris Kremida writes in the Turkish Daily News about her experiences learning Turkish.  She includes these tips (for those who are seriously learning Turkish):

1)   Make friends with Turks who can’t speak English. Talk to Turkish kids as often as you can. You won’t be so nervous practicing with them.

2)   Try new grammar “live”. Have fun with it.

3)   Dust off your dictionary and translate sentences from English to Turkish. Becker said the search for words to make meaning is an old and useful tool.

4)   Become a Turkish TV show fan. Pick a show and get hooked.

5)   Think in Turkish. String sentences in the car or as you walk down the street.

Technorati Tags: learning turkish, turkish language

Tsilla Chelton

If you are feeling too old to learn Turkish phrases, read on.  Stories like this inspire me.

Tsilla Chelton is 90 years old and recently played a key role in the film Pandora’s Box.  The movie won the “Best Picture” award at the San Sebastian film festival in Spain.

Yeşim Ustaoğlu, the director of the film “Pandora’s Box,” was at first a little hesitant to have Ms. Chelton play the key role in the film because she is 90 years old. But Ustaoğlu was soon impressed with the actress.  “She…began learning Turkish as soon as she accepted the role in my film.”

Chelton went on to win the “best actress” prize at the film festival–an impressive feat!

Ustaoğlu says, “I have never met anyone like her. I admire her ambitiousness and her nerve. She deserved the best actress award in Spain.”

Check out the whole story.

Technorati Tags: Inspiration, news articles, turkish phrases

Wondering if it is worth it to learn Turkish phrases?  This is from an article I just read about a Dutch woman who moved to Istanbul:  “I have noticed that as soon as people hear you speak Turkish you immediately get more respect.”

The woman, Anderske Kaspersma, is a professional singer who is focusing on learning Turkish before starting her own business.  Ms. Kaspersma says she will have a much larger and stronger market after she masters Turkish.

“Learning to speak Turkish is necessary in order to integrate, make contacts and find work.”

Read the whole article.

Technorati Tags: Inspiration, news articles, turkish phrases