SDLC 110 Learning Journal # 11

[Sydney Freeman]

Last week we learned about how to talk about the family in Turkish. I found two things interesting about this lesson. For one, how you say grandparents in Turkish differs based on whether they are you maternal grandparents or your paternal grandparents. Maternal grandmothers are called "anneanne" and granddad's are called "dede" while paternal grandmothers are called "babaanne". Another interesting part of the family vocabulary is that there is only one word for half sibling and step sibling. Additionally, there are different ways to refer to younger and older family members. For instance, for younger brothers you say "erkek kardes" and you call your older brother "ag-abey abi". Above all, I found it very surprising that the way you refer to a wife is a major sign of respect in Turkey. It is respectful for a man to call his wife, "karim" which is my wife, but it is incredibly rude to refer to a wife as "Kari". 

Overall, the nuances in the family vocabulary directly reflect how Turkish culture, respect for women, paternal and maternal relatives, and siblings impact the way you refer to family members in this language.