I've decided the Turkish equivalent to a dozen is one kilogram. Not only does one usually buy a kilogram of baklava, börek (Turkish blintz) or poğaça at the bakery, where a North American would probably buy a dozen, eggs come in cartons of ten.
No Turk I've ever asked, including my husband, has been able to give me a Turkish word for dozen, although my dictionary tells me there is one. It's just clearly never used!
Don't even ask how I ended up reading your blog, but it just happened ...ok ... the truth is I was on google searching something, your blog was the second on the list!!! - and my famous curiosity dragged me in to your last posting. Anyway, yes, there is a word for dozen in Turkish(pronounced pretty close to your "dozen". It is "duzine", and they teach you that at grade 1 and 2 ... so you start using the word ... but to be honest, nowadays, I hardly can understand my country people's Turkish as many of the words I/we used are not in use anymore for some reason. If I were at a street market, and say buying tea cups (the Turkish ones!), if I decide to buy a dozen, I would say "duzine", or say buying some chestnuts, I would ask for one "duzine". Perhaps, I am the only one who is left using this word!
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I will try to read the rest of your postings, if I may :) It must be a great experience for you to live in Turkey ...
Idil
Hi Idil,
ReplyDeletethanks for the Turkish perspective!