Fictional characters
Tepegöz
A one-eyed monster from the Dede Korkut stories.
A little more Türkiye
A Turkish culture reference for people learning the language. 81 pages on the people, places, food, traditions and stories of Türkiye — each one written plainly, built from named sources, and printed with the Turkish name as it is actually said.
Picked at random. Come back tomorrow and there will be three others.
Fictional characters
A one-eyed monster from the Dede Korkut stories.
Musicians & singers
The pop star who carried Turkish music around the world with Şımarık.
Historical dates
23 April 1920: the Grand National Assembly opens.
Every page belongs to one of these. A category is a good place to start when you do not yet know what you are looking for.
All 81 pages are below.
Fictional characters
A one-eyed monster from the Dede Korkut stories.
Fictional characters
The oppressive landowner in Yaşar Kemal’s İnce Memed.
Fictional characters
A strategic adversary of Ramiz in the television drama Ezel.
Fictional characters
A trusted companion who betrays Ömer in Ezel.
Fictional characters
A scheming character in the television drama Yasak Elma.
Fictional characters
The wise fool of Akşehir, riding his donkey backwards through a thousand jokes.
Fictional characters
The bald, penniless boy of the folk tales who wins by wit alone.
UNESCO sites
A prehistoric site known for monumental T-shaped stone pillars.
UNESCO sites
An ancient settlement landscape with major Greco-Roman remains.
UNESCO sites
Four historic areas preserve important layers of İstanbul’s past.
UNESCO sites
Fairy chimneys, cave churches and hot-air balloons in central Anatolia.
UNESCO sites
White travertine terraces of warm water beside the ancient city of Hierapolis.
UNESCO sites
Giant stone heads on a mountaintop tomb built by a king of Commagene.
UNESCO sites
The many-layered city of the Trojan War, dug from the hill of Hisarlık.
Beach towns
A coastal destination associated with bays, boats and historical sites.
Beach towns
A settlement in the Çeşme area associated with windsurfing.
Beach towns
A small Mediterranean harbour town of bougainvillea, diving and Lycian tombs.
Beach towns
The Aegean resort town of thermal springs, an Ottoman castle and beaches.
Beach towns
An olive-oil town of stone houses and islands on the northern Aegean.
Musicians & singers
A musician associated with Anatolian rock and a wide cultural legacy.
Musicians & singers
A singer and composer remembered for distinctive performances and stage clothing.
Musicians & singers
The Little Sparrow, the most influential voice in Turkish pop.
Musicians & singers
The pop star who carried Turkish music around the world with Şımarık.
Musicians & singers
The blind bard of Sivas, whose songs every Turkish person knows.
Actors
A film and television performer who also directed films.
Actors
An actor whose career includes screen performance and comic storytelling.
Actors
The comic actor whose Şaban character is loved by every generation.
Actors
The warm-hearted actress with the unforgettable laugh, Hafize Ana of Hababam Sınıfı.
Artists
An artist known for abstract painting.
Artists
A painter represented in İstanbul Modern’s collection and exhibitions.
Artists
Painter of The Tortoise Trainer and founder of the İstanbul Archaeology Museum.
Artists
Painter and poet who brought Anatolian folk motifs into modern art.
Artists
A painter, writer and friend of Nâzım Hikmet, asked to paint happiness.
Historical statespeople
Founder and first president of the Republic of Türkiye.
Historical statespeople
Türkiye’s second president and a former prime minister.
Historical statespeople
Prime minister for the whole of the 1950s, the first elected from opposition.
Historical statespeople
The prime minister and president who opened the economy in the 1980s.
Historical dates
23 April 1920: the Grand National Assembly opens.
Historical dates
13 October 1923: Ankara becomes the capital.
Historical dates
29 October 1923: the republican form of government is proclaimed.
Historical dates
29 May 1453: Sultan Mehmed II takes Constantinople.
Food & drink
Black tea brewed strong, served in a tulip-shaped glass all day long.
Food & drink
A sesame-crusted bread ring sold from street carts in every city.
Food & drink
Paper-thin pastry layered with nuts and soaked in syrup.
Food & drink
Eggs scrambled with tomatoes and green peppers, the classic Turkish breakfast dish.
Food & drink
Finely ground coffee brewed in a small pot and served with its foam and grounds.
Food & drink
Turkish delight: soft cubes of starch and sugar, dusted and scented with rose.
Food & drink
The cold, salty yoghurt drink served with every kebab.
Food & drink
A hot dessert of shredded pastry and melting cheese soaked in syrup.
Food & drink
Vegetables and vine leaves stuffed with rice, herbs and spice.
Writers & poets
Türkiye's best known modern poet, whose free verse is read around the world.
Writers & poets
Novelist of İstanbul and winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Literature.
Writers & poets
The storyteller of the Çukurova plain and author of İnce Memed.
Writers & poets
Author of Madonna in a Fur Coat, a quiet love story that became a modern classic.
Writers & poets
A widely translated novelist writing in both Turkish and English.
Writers & poets
The great satirist, whose thousands of stories laugh at bureaucracy and bad luck.
Writers & poets
The poet who brought everyday speech into Turkish verse.
Traditions & everyday life
The blue glass eye bead hung everywhere to ward off the evil eye.
Traditions & everyday life
The public bath house, a tradition of steam, scrubbing and conversation.
Traditions & everyday life
The two heroes of Turkish shadow theatre, quarrelling behind a lit screen.
Traditions & everyday life
Paper marbling: colours floated on water and lifted onto paper.
Traditions & everyday life
The whirling ceremony of the followers of Rumi, turning in white robes.
Traditions & everyday life
The tea garden: tables under trees, a samovar and an afternoon that lasts.
Cities & regions
The capital since 1923, a planned city built around an ancient citadel.
Cities & regions
The Aegean port city of the Kordon waterfront and the clock tower.
Cities & regions
A hillside city of honey-coloured stone houses above the Mesopotamian plain.
Cities & regions
The green Black Sea city of hazelnuts, tea and the cliffside Sümela Monastery.
Cities & regions
An Ottoman town of timber-framed houses, preserved whole, named for saffron.
Nature & animals
The white cat of Lake Van, famous for eyes of two different colours.
Nature & animals
The great shepherd dog of Sivas, guardian of Anatolian flocks.
Nature & animals
The country's highest mountain, the Ararat of the Noah story.
Nature & animals
The Bosphorus, the strait that divides İstanbul between Europe and Asia.
Holidays & celebrations
The three-day festival that ends the month of Ramadan, all visits and sweets.
Holidays & celebrations
The four-day feast of sacrifice, the biggest family holiday of the year.
Holidays & celebrations
The spring festival of 21 March, greeted with fires and painted eggs.
Holidays & celebrations
Youth and Sports Day, remembering Atatürk's landing at Samsun in 1919.
Holidays & celebrations
Victory Day, the anniversary of the decisive battle of 1922.
Sport & games
The İstanbul derby between two continents that stops the whole country.
Sport & games
Oil wrestling, and the Kırkpınar tournament held in Edirne since the 1300s.
Sport & games
Backgammon, the game of every tea house, played fast and loud.
Sport & games
The tile game of numbered colours played around every café table.
It is a free reference about Türkiye written for people learning Turkish: short, sourced pages on the country's people, places, food, traditions and stories, each one printed with the Turkish name and, where a reading exists, that name spoken aloud.
They are written and checked by the small team behind Suzy Talks Turkey, a picture-book app for learning Turkish. Every page lists the sources it was built from, with the date each source was last checked, so you can follow anything further than we took it.
Yes. Every page here is open, with no account, no paywall and nothing to sign. The lessons, the coach and the progress book inside Suzy Talks Turkey are the part you sign in for; the encyclopedia is not.
Each page prints the name as it is said and plays a recording of it where we have one. Turkish is written very close to how it sounds, so once you know the letters the spelling itself is a reliable guide — which is why every page keeps the Turkish spelling rather than an English approximation.