ABOUT TURKEY

 

ABOUT TURKEY

Turkey is a modern country with a captivating blend of antiquity and contemporary and East and West. Get interesting information about Turkey and read up on our history, culture and art, nature and geography, traditional culinary culture, real Turkish lifestyle and more. All you need to know about Turkey and beyond.

Turkish lifestyle is a vivid mosaic, juxtaposing the West and the East, the modern and the ancient. Also life in Turkey is a rich variety of cultures and traditions, some dating back centuries and others or more recent heritage.

Turkish Lifestyle

LIFESTYLE IN TURKEY

Turkish lifestyle is a vivid mosaic, juxtaposing the West and the East, the modern and the ancient. Also life in Turkey is a rich variety of cultures and traditions, some dating back centuries and others or more recent heritage. Any visitor to Turkey will find a great deal that is exotic, and much that is reassuringly familiar. The surprising blend of East and West makes up the Turkish lifestyle.

TRUE HOSPITALITY IN TURKEY

The mentality of Turkish hospitality is whatever religion you are from, whichever country you come from, whatever language you speak, you are God's Guest.

TRADITIONAL TURKISH HOSPITALITY

Visitors to Turkey are often pleasantly surprised by the friendliness of the Turkish people, who will go out of their way to assist and happily spend time chatting.

Hospitality is a cornerstone of Turkish culture, and Turkish people believe that visitors should be treated as Guests sent by God. This attitude has survived to the 21st century and does not appear to have been diminished by mass tourism. In fact, quite the reverse, most Turks welcome the opportunity to meet foreign visitors, learn about different cultures and practice their language skills.

It is usual for Turkish people even the men to greet each other by kissing on both cheeks. As a tradition, Turkish people treat their national flag as sacred. Therefore, one should avoid insulting or showing disrespect to the Turkish flag.

Experience that how Turkish people friendly and lovely as well as the great history in Turkey.

FAMILY RELATIONS

Family relations are very nice within Turkish people. They respect their older and support each other in every way.

Parents do support their children financially until they get married. When the child get married the financial support may continue but it is expected that the new family could earn enough and manage their livings.

Children do care very much about their older. They take care of their older and support them when they get old or sick both financially and mentally.

This relation is a kind of boomerang, older support children when they are young, children support their elder when they are old.

RELIGION IN TURKEY

Turkey has been home to all three great revealed religions Islam, Judaism and Christianity for centuries. Turkey is also the only Islamic country which is a secular state.

ISLAM IN TURKEY

Turkey is a secular state with no official state religion and is in fact the only secular Islamic country in the world where religion has no place in the running of the state.

The majority of the Turkish population is Muslim but in Turkey religion is strictly a private affair as with other European countries.

However, the call for prayer can be heard five times a day and there are two Islamic festivals in the country alongside the secular national holidays: Sugar festival at the end of Ramazan, and sacrifice festivals.

VISITING MOSQUE

Mosques are usually closed to visitors during prayer times. As in any place of worship, visitors should speak quietly and behave respectfully.

Everyone should wear clothes which cover their legs, so no shorts for either sex, and women should also make sure that their shoulders and head are covered. Shoes should be removed before entering a mosque.

RELIGIOUS FREEDOM

There are also Christian and Jewish minorities throughout the country. The constitution guarantees freedom of religion and the right to worship. During the time of the Ottoman Empire, people of many different faiths lived in what is now Turkey, and since that time, this diversity has been preserved.

Today there are almost 240 churches and 36 synagogues open for worship in Turkey.

LANGUAGE IN TURKEY

Turkish is spoken by over 200 million people and is the world's 7th most widely used language, out of over 4000. Some 70 other languages and dialects are also spoken in Turkey.

TURKISH LANGUAGE

Turkish has evolved from dialects known since the 11th century and is one of the group of languages known as Ural-Altaic which includes Finnish and Hungarian.

It can be quite difficult to get to grips with Turkish. Words sound unfamiliar and even the way they are written appears strange. The key, however, is the Turkish version of the Latin alphabet, the same one which is used for English with the addition of 6 different characters.

Turkish is unusual in that it is completely phonetic, each letter of the alphabet has only one sound, so each word sounds exactly how it is written.

During Ottoman times Turkish was written in Arabic script, which few people could write, so in 1928, Ataturk, founder of the Turkish Republic decided to switch to the new alphabet to improve levels of literacy.

DO I NEED TO KNOW TURKISH?

No, but if you can speak a little bit Turkish probably Turkish people will be so happy and friendly.

Learn some basic Turkish words and phrases before you travel.

English is Turkey's second widest spoken language and you will easily find English speakers in the major cities and holiday resorts.

Restaurant menus and other information for foreigners are often printed in English.

TURKEY'S MODERN AND TRADITIONAL FASHION

Turkish clothing is an important part of our rich culture. Find out more about the modern Turkish fashion, national costumes, typical village clothing, Turkish fashion designers, and international fashion fairs.

TRADITIONAL CLOTHING

Traditional clothing forms a part of Turkish traditional culture. In the past the Turks would weave their own clothing and make dyes from natural plant ingredients, in a way that reflected their feelings in the designs they created.

Today each region has its own characteristics in the way of clothing, headwear, scarves and socks, which have all, attractive interest and admiration.

TURKISH NATIONAL COSTUMES

Yasmak, Islak, Fes, Salvar, Yelek, Cepken, and Entari are some of the old national costumes in Turkey.

MODERN TURKISH FASHION

Modern Turkey has a little of everything. It is made up of bustling cosmopolitan centers, farming villages, beautiful Aegean, Mediterranean and Black Sea coastlines, and steep mountain regions. More than 70% of Turkish people lives in urban areas. Western lifestyles and traditional ways of life coexist.

Females are wearing short dresses, maxi style dresses, shorts, miniskirts, skirts, and many different types of trousers. Flip fops, sandals and flats are the preferred shoe styles.

Hats are worn for protection from the sun and the big bag is very popular because you can get tons of stuff in it like sunscreen and camera.

Stripes, prints, florals, and polka dots are all over the fashions and Turkish women love color, ruffles, and shine.