The Focus of This Lesson is Using the Intermediate Level Plural Suffix (-ler, -lar)
Çok güzel. Peki, sizi Tokyolara kadar götüren motivasyon neydi?
"Very nice. Well, what's the motivation that took you as far as Tokyo?"

In this lesson, you will learn how to:

1. Use the -ler and -lar suffix to emphasize respect

2. Use the -ler and -lar suffix to emphasize family

3. Use the -ler and -lar suffix to imply similarity

1. How to use the -ler and -lar suffix to emphasize respect

There are two examples from the dialogue that fit this criteria, Onur Beyler and Tokyolar. In Turkish, the -ler and -lar suffixes are used to make a noun or a verb plural. However, in these examples plural suffixes connote respect, dignity, and reputation.

Similarly, the suffix could be added at the end of the verb to show respect.

The Usage of the Plural Suffix to Show Respect and Reputation

Important point: Notice that the suffixes added to the verbs indicate many things in Turkish like mood, time, and the personal pronoun.

In addition, the plural suffix is attached at the end of the mood suffixes.

Conjugating the verb "to eat" and using plural suffixes to emphasize respect and formality

Turkish is an intensely agglutinative language. Therefore the suffixes demonstrate great diversity due to vowel harmony rules. The plural suffixes -ler and -lar are no exception. In e-type vowel harmony, you have two options: the one with vowel e or the one with vowel a.

Although we've covered Turkish vowel harmony rules in detail in our previous lessons, let us remind you why we have two different plural suffixes one more time.

If the last vowel in the word is a, ı, o, or u: use the suffix with vowel a

If the last vowel in the word is e, i, ö, or ü: use the e form.

A good hint is to memorize this: The suffix with a comes after the undotted vowels and e comes after the dotted vowels.
Why do we have Turkish vowel harmony rules? Well, Turkish claims to be a language that is read as it's written. So in order to have a musical language that flows smoothly the suffixes mutate according to the preceding stem or suffix.

For example:

1. Sayın başbakanımız bir konuşma yapacaklar.
   "Our esteemed Prime Minister will be giving a speech."
2. Fatihler, Kanuniler Osmanlı'yı imparatorluk haline getirdiler.
   "People like Fatih the Conqueror and Suleiman the Magnificent made the Ottomans an empire."
3. Hanımefendi, bu akşam yemek yiyecekler mi?
   "Will the lady be eating tonight?"

Keypoint: Notice that in all examples the personal pronoun is singular, however the plural suffix is added to the verb to emphasize respect, honor, and reputation.

2. How to use the -ler and -lar suffix to emphasize family

The Turkish plural suffix can also be used after proper nouns or words to show relative relationships and make family and collective nouns.

You'll most often encounter this example as objects and subjects in a Turkish sentence.

The Usage of the Plural Suffix to Emphasize Family Relations

Notice that in the first example noun case -e is mutated to -a. This is because of the vowel harmony rules in Turkish. In -e type vowel harmony, vowel e mutates according to the precedent vowel. Remember that noun case -e signifies the dative case and it shows that the word that it is attached to is going towards something or somewhere.

Examples

For example:

1. Mertler yarın boks maçına gidiyorlar.
   "Mert and his friends are going to a boxing match tomorrow."
2. Amcamlar Kanada'ya taşındılar.
   "My uncle and his family moved to Canada."
3. Sizinkiler hala evliler mi?
   "Are your parents still married?"

3. How to use the -ler and -lar suffix to imply similarity and repetition

The third connotation of the Turkish suffix is to imply similarity, time, and generalization.

The generalized connotation sometimes includes apotheosis or irony.

For example, imagine a Turkish person with a degree from an American University. His family asks him something related to the USA and he cannot provide a convincing answer. His family can then say:

1. Amerikalara kadar gittin hala bilmiyor musun?
   "You went to the USA and you still don't know this?"

However, the example in our dialogue is when Tokyolara Selin's future boss Emre is impressed by the fact that she went to Japan to do a PhD. That's why he uses a plural suffix, to emphasize appreciation.

With this connotation, the Turkish plural suffix is often used after a noun as an object or subject of the sentence.

The second usage is to imply repetition.

1. Yıllar yılı seni düşledim.
   "I have been dreaming about you for years and years."
2. Aslanlar aslanı kuzenim burs kazanmış.
   "My most wonderful cousin has won a scholarship."
   Literal translation: "My cousin who is like the lion king among a pride of lions has won the scholarship."

Notice that in the example above, the plural suffix acts like superlative. Also this repetition adds the nuance of exaggeration and worship to the sentence.

The third usage is to express similarity.

1. Orhan Pamuklar Türk edebiyatını Dünya'ya açtı.
   "Authors like Orhan Pamuk introduced Turkish literature to the World."

In this example, the plural suffix indicates authors like Orhan Pamuk. Therefore, it signifies being alike and similarity.

Let us just give a final warning before we end this lesson. In Turkish, the nouns that come after numbers don't have plural suffixes.

1. İki kalemler (Wrong)
   İki kalem (Correct)
   "Two pencils"

Sample Sentences

1. Sabahları gazete okurum.
   "I read the newspaper every morning."
2. Sizler de Orhan Pamuklar gibi yaratıcı olabilirsiniz.
   "You can be as creative as the likes of Orhan Pamuk."
3. Marka çanta satın almak için Parislere gitmenin ne anlamı var!
   "There is no sense in going to Paris in order to buy brand bags."

davet etmek ("to invite")

Davet is a noun meaning "invitation" and etmek is one of the major auxiliary verbs in Turkish.

Davet etmek can be used in any formal or casual occasion like when inviting someone to dinner at your place, asking for a dance, or even to a formal event like a wedding. In more informal situations, like among friends, you can use çağırmak instead. Çağırmak means "to call."

For example, if you want to invite your friends to a home party, a café, or the movies you can say Arkadaşlarımı çağırdım, meaning "I invited my friends."

For example:

1. Kuzenini yemeğe davet ettim.
   "I invited your cousin to dinner."

eğitim bursu ("education scholarship")

Eğitim bursu is a compound noun composed of two different nouns: eğitim meaning "education," and burs meaning "scholarship."

This compound noun is often used for university scholarships sponsored by the government or private scholarships sponsored by companies. You'll find that scholarships fall into different categories in the Turkish Education system. It is good to know these terms if you are interested in studying in Turkey. For instance, başarı bursu means "scholarship of academic excellence," gereksinim bursu means "grant of necessity," kitap bursu means "book grant," yemek bursu means "food grant," yaz okulu bursu means "summer school scholarship," and harç artışı muafiyeti means "school fee exemption."

For example:

1. Eğitim bursu alarak Japonya'ya gitti ve doktora yaptı.
   "He/she received a scholarship, went to Japan, and got a PhD."

kreatif metin yazarlığı ("creative copywriting/content writing")

Kreatif metin yazarlığı is an adjective clause made by a loanword, kreatif, meaning "creative," metin meaning "text," and yazarlık, meaning "writer," "author."

Loanwords are often used for stylized connotations. For example, "creative" translates to yaratıcı in Turkish. But for this job position they prefered to use kreatif to have a stronger, cooler effect. This is often mocked as being plaza dili, meaning "business slang."

For example:

1. Ünlü yazar geçmişinde bir ajansta kreatif metin yazarlığı yapmıştı.
   "The famous author did creative typewriting in an agency in his/her past."

Useful Things to Learn for a Job Interview in Turkey

Türkiye'de başarılı bir iş görüşmesi yapmak evrensel olarak kabul edilmiş bir takım kurallar çerçevesinde şekillenir. Örneğin; iş görüşmesinden önce özgeçmişinizi iki kopya olarak hazırlamak. Günümüzde, özellikle Amerika'da özgeçmişe resim eklemek politik olarak doğru bir davranış olmasa da Türkiye'deki iş başvurularında hala çok önemlidir. Bu yüzden güncel fotoğrafınızı özgeçmişinize ataçla tutturun veya yapıştırın. Görüşmeye zamanında gidin, rahat ama aynı zamanda ciddi giyinin. Görüşme sırasında, kişisel başarılarınızı ön plana çıkarın ve neden başvurduğunuz pozisyon için ideal bir aday olduğunuzu anlatın. Maaşı sormaktan çekinmeyin ve sigortanızın olup olmayacağını mutlaka sorun. Bir çok firma yemek masrafları için ticket sistemini kullanmaktadır. Ticket sistemi bir kart yardımı ile işler. Temelde, çalıştığınız kurum bu kartın içine öğle yemeklerinizi dışarıda yemeniz için para koyar. İstanbul'da trafik çok yorucu ve zor olabilir bu yüzden servisi olan bir şirketi tercih etmek isteyebilirsiniz. Yoksa, yol için ekstra para istemekten çekinmeyin.

You can find the most popular Turkish websites for job hunting below. You can fill out your CV in English or Turkish on these websites and write a different cover letter for each application.

http://www.kariyer.net/

https://www.secretcv.com/

http://www.yenibiris.com/

Having a successful job interview in Turkey pretty much revolves around universally accepted patterns. For instance, you need to prepare two copies of your CV just to be safe before the job interview. Nowadays, especially in the USA, it is not considered politically correct to have your photo on the your CV, however it is still considered to be a vital part of Turkish job applications. So make sure to glue or attach your updated photo on your CV. Be on time, and dress in a smart casual fashion. During the interview, try to emphasize your individual accomplishments and why you think you are the best candidate for the position you want to apply for. Don't be shy when talking about your salary and asking whether you'll have insurance. Most companies offer tickets for your daily food expenses. The ticket system operates with a card. Basically, your company puts money on that special card so that you can have lunch outside at any restaurant for free. The card should not be included in the salary. Some companies also offer service buses for your commute to work. The traffic in Istanbul can be very challenging and tiring, so you might prefer a company with service buses. Otherwise, do not hesitate to ask for extra commute money.

You can find the most popular Turkish websites for job hunting below. You can fill out your CV in English or Turkish on these websites and write a different cover letter for each application.

http://www.kariyer.net/

https://www.secretcv.com/

http://www.yenibiris.com/