Guide to Turkish Alphabet: Pronunciation + Example Words
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Do you know how important it is to learn the Turkish alphabet as a Turkish learner?
“Turkish is pronounced the same way it’s written,” or Türkçe okunduğu gibi yazılır, in Turkish. This sentence, used so often by primary school teachers, is still the first thing that comes to my mind when I think about my native language.
As a six-year-old learning how to read and write, I would have never imagined that one day I would quote my primary school teachers while writing an article about the Turkish alphabet. The reason why I’m quoting them is simple: they are right!
Indeed, Turkish is a phonetic language. Once you learn the alphabet very well, you will be able to read in Turkish without many surprises.
Table of contents
History of the Turkish Alphabet: From Ottoman to Latin Script
One of the reasons why the Turkish alphabet is easy to read is that it’s relatively new. In the 1920s, when Mustafa Kemal Atatürk founded modern Turkey, he introduced a set of reforms to modernise the country. The Alphabet Reform, which introduced Latin Alphabet to Turkish and abandoned the Ottoman Turkish script is part of his reforms.
The Ottoman script was an alphabet derived from Arabic. But Turkish and Arabic are very different languages even though they share some common words. For example, the Arabic script mainly represents consonants but Turkish is a language that is rich in vowels. It has 8 vowels, all with distinct sounds. The writing system that was in place simply was not enough to represent all the Turkish sounds. By using the Latin alphabet, however, we can convey all these sounds where each of them corresponds to one single letter. This also makes Turkish pronunciation consistent and straightforward.
Turkish Alphabet: All 29 Letters and Their Pronunciations
Before we get started with the pronunciation of letters, here is some useful information about the Turkish alphabet: * There are 29 letters in the Turkish alphabet: 8 vowels (A, E, I, İ, O, Ö, U, Ü), and 21 consonants (B, C, Ç, D, F, G, Ğ, H, J, K, L, M, N, P, R, S, Ş, T, V, Y, Z).
- The letters ç, ş, ğ, ı, ö, and ü are the letters that exist in Turkish but not in English. We will cover their pronunciations, so that you don’t confuse them with the letters they look like, such as ö vs. o, and s vs. ş.
- Some Turkish letters, such as ç have different pronunciations than what you would expect. Once you learn them, you’re good to go!
Tip: If you’re familiar with the International Phonetic Alphabet, you can use it to practise your Turkish pronunciation.
A / a
IPA pronunciation: /a/
English equivalent: like the “a” in car.
Example words:
- arı (“bee”)
- at (“horse”)
- ama (“but”)
B / b
IPA pronunciation: /b/
English equivalent: like the “b” in bus.
Example words:
- bebek (“baby”)
- bir (“one”)
- bazen (“sometimes”)
C / c
IPA pronunciation: /dʒ/
English equivalent: The Turkish c does not produce the /s/ or /k/ sound like in English. Instead, it sounds like the “j” in job.
Example words:
- cuma (“Friday”)
- caz (“jazz”)
- can (“life”)
Ç / ç
IPA pronunciation: /tʃ/
English equivalent: ç always sounds like the “ch” in channel.
Example words:
- çay (“tea”)
- çorap (“sock”)
- çok (“a lot”)
D / d
IPA pronunciation: /d/
English equivalent: like the “d” in deal
Example words:
- deniz (“sea”)
- dünya (“world”)
- dün (“yesterday”)
E / e
IPA pronunciation: /e/
English equivalent: like the “e” in red
Example words:
- ev (“house”)
- evet (“yes”)
- ekmek (“bread”)
F / f
IPA pronunciation: /f/
English equivalent: like the “f” in far
Example words:
- fikir (“idea”)
- fark (“difference”)
- fincan (“cup”)
G / g
IPA pronunciation: /g/
English equivalent: like the “g” in great.
Example words:
- gün (“day”)
- günaydın (“good morning”)
- güzel (“beautiful”)
Ğ / ğ
IPA pronunciation: /ɣ/
English equivalent: This is a special letter with no equivalent. It’s also the only letter that is known with a name of its own instead of the sound it makes. We call it yumuşak g which means “soft g.” We can say that it is a silent letter since it makes the previous vowel longer and has no distinct sound.
Example words: There are no words that start with ğ and there is no exception to this rule. It either exists in the middle or at the end of a word. Listen to the pronunciation of a word that has ğ here. Here are some examples:
- yağmur (“rain”)
- dağ (“mountain”)
- ağaç (“tree”)
H / h
IPA pronunciation: /h/
English equivalent: like the “h” in high.
Example words:
- hayır (“no”)
- havuç (“carrot”)
- hep (“always”)
I / ı
IPA pronunciation: /ɯ/
English equivalent: Similar to the “e” sound in open. Listen to the pronunciation of a word that contains ı here.
Example words:
- ışık (“light”)
- ıspanak (“spinach”)
- ısı (“heat”)
İ / i
IPA pronunciation: /i/
English equivalent: like the “ee” in deep.
Example words:
- iyi (“good”)
- iş (“work”)
- ilk (“first”)
J / j
IPA pronunciation: /ʒ/
English equivalent: like the “s” in leisure.
Example words:
- jaguar (“jaguar”)
- jimnastik (“gymnastics”)
K / k
IPA pronunciation: /k/
English equivalent: like the “k” in kite.
Example words:
- kar (“snow”)
- kapı (“door”)
- küçük (“small”)
L / l
IPA pronunciation: /l/
English equivalent: like the “l” in language
Example words:
- limonata (“lemonade”)
- lacivert (“dark blue”)
- lamba (“lamp”)
M / m
IPA pronunciation: /m/
English equivalent: like the “m” in meaning
Example words:
- marul (“lettuce”)
- malzeme (“ingredient”)
- mesela (“for example”)
N / n
IPA pronunciation: /n/
English equivalent: like the “n” in near
Example words:
- nar (“pomegranate”)
- ne (“what”)
- neden (“why”)
O / o
IPA pronunciation: /o/
English equivalent: like the “o” in open
Example words:
- on (“ten”)
- olay (“incident”)
- olur (“sure, that works”)
Ö / ö
IPA pronunciation: /ø/
English equivalent: similar to the “i” sound in girl.
Example words:
- ördek (“duck”)
- ödev (“homework”)
- örnek (“example”)
P / p
IPA pronunciation: /p/
English equivalent: like the “p” in party.
Example words:
- parti (“party”)
- pazar (“Sunday”)
- para (“money”)
R / r
IPA pronunciation: /ɾ/
English equivalent: like the “r” in right.
Example words:
- renk (“colour”)
- rahat (“comfortable”)
- risk (“risk”)
S / s
IPA pronunciation: /s/
English equivalent: like the “s” in snake.
Example words:
- saat (“clock”)
- saç (“hair”)
- sarı (“yellow”)
Ş / ş
IPA pronunciation: /ʃ/
English equivalent: like the “sh” in share.
Example words:
- şimdi (“now”)
- şans (“luck”)
- şapka (“hat”)
T / t
IPA pronunciation: /t/
English equivalent: like the “t” in tea.
Example words:
- taze (“fresh”)
- tamam (“okay”)
- timsah (“crocodile”)
U / u
IPA pronunciation: /u/
English equivalent: like the “oo” in boot.
Example words:
- uzak (“far”)
- uçak (“plane”)
- uzun (“tall”)
Ü / ü
IPA pronunciation: /y/
English equivalent: similar to the “u” in cube but the exact sound doesn’t exist in English. Here’s a tip to pronounce this letter: make the “ee” sound in English and slowly close your lips to form a round shape. You will end up saying ü.
Example words:
- üzüm (“grape”)
- üzgün (“sad”)
- ünlü (“famous”)
V / v
IPA pronunciation: /v/
English equivalent: like the “v” in victory.
Example words:
- vakit (“time”)
- valiz (“luggage”)
- var (“there is/there are”)
Y / y
IPA pronunciation: /j/
English equivalent: like the y in yellow.
Example words:
- yaz (“summer”)
- yalnız (“alone”)
- yarım (“half”)
Z / z
IPA pronunciation: /z/
English equivalent: like the “z” in zebra.
Example words:
- zarf (“envelope”)
- zürafa (“giraffe”)
- zeki (“intelligent”)
What Letters Are Not in the Turkish Alphabet?
Q, W, and X are not in the Turkish alphabet. Q and W are never used in Turkish, except for foreign words. As for X, you would often see loan words written with ks instead of “x.”
Example: faks (“fax”)
Tips for Reading in Turkish and Practising the Turkish Alphabet
As you can see, Turkish is easy to read once you get used to the letters that are pronounced differently. Their pronunciations are not irregular like in French or English.
You can practise your Turkish pronunciation by watching videos, reading books out loud, and speaking as much as possible to familiarise yourself with the sounds of the language.
For additional resources, make sure to check the best Turkish learning resources recommended by Fluent in 3 Months.
Frequently Asked Questions about the Turkish Alphabet
What Are Ü and Ö Turkish?
Ü and Ö are both different letters in Turkish. Often considered difficult to pronounce by English speakers, these letters sound different from each other, also from u and o.
How Do You Pronounce Ö in Turkish?
Ö is pronounced similarly to the vowel sound in girl or burn.
Why Is C Pronounced as J in Turkish?
In Turkish, every letter corresponds to a single sound. C’s corresponding sound is /dʒ/, similar to the English J.
What Is the Difference Between I and İ in Turkish?
I and İ are two different letters with different sounds. I sounds like the “e” sound in the word open, whereas İ sounds like the English “ee” sound. So if you want to write Istanbul in Turkish, you would write it as İstanbul.
How Do You Pronounce Ç?
Ç is always pronounced like the ch in chocolate or channel.
How Do You Pronounce Ş?
Ş is always pronounced like the “sh” sound in shop or shake.
Is it Easy to Learn Turkish?
It depends. But many learners, including Benny Lewis, the founder of Fluent in 3 Months have said that Turkish is easier than they expected.
Firstly, Turkish pronunciation and grammar are very regular once you learn the rules. There are also many loan words from other languages, especially French, Arabic, and Persian. I’ve actually used some of them in my examples when covering the pronunciations of letters.
Check out the letters Ş and V. Şans (“luck,” chance in French) and valiz (“luggage,” valise in French) are both words of French origin.
What Is â in Turkish?
Although it is not very common, you might occasionally see a written as â. It is not considered a different letter but when it’s written this way, it softens the previous consonant and makes the a sound longer. Besides the pronunciation, it can also change the meaning of the word.
Example: kar (“snow”) – see its pronunciation here vskâr (“profit”) – see its pronunciation here.
First Step: Done!
Now you know how to pronounce Turkish letters. Congratulations! Make sure to practise them by using audio guides and speaking as much as possible. You can use this article as a guide to refer back to the letters’ pronunciations and refresh your knowledge with the FAQs.
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