Learn to speak Turkish  

Turkish Language

Turkish CD-ROM
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Where does Turkish come from?
Turkish is a member of the Turkic sub-division of the Altaic group of languages and is descended from the language brought to Asia Minor by the Seljuk Turks in the 11th century.

How many people speak Turkish?
59 million people throughout the world speak Turkish.

In how many countries?
Turkish is the official language of the country of Turkey where 46 million speakers live. It is also spoken in Germany, United Kingdom, Bulgaria, Greece, Tajikistan, Iraq, Iran, and the USA amongst others.

Turkish Culture

Turkish Art
The Muslim ban on representation of any being 'with an immortal soul', meant Islamic artists focussed on non-representative arts. Turkish museums are full of delicate coloured tiles, graceful glass vases, carved wooden mosque doors, glittering illuminated Korans, intricate jewellery and sumptuous costumes. Atatürk changed all this and encouraged representative painting and sculpture.

Turkish Architecture
The mosques, tombs, vaults, medreses (theological schools) which comprise so much of Turkish classical architecture, and in which domes are a characteristic feature, have been subject to enduring Seljuk and Ottoman influences. However, at various times western influences have also left their mark on Turkish buildings.

Turkish Music and Dance
Folk music accompanies Turkish people every moment of their lives. People create their own music, and do not write it down, but pass it from one to the other, and the "asiklar" (troubadours) who sing and play this music keep it alive.

Turkish Food and Drink
Lamb is the basic meat of the Turkish kitchen. Pieces of lamb threaded on a skewer and grilled over charcoal form the famous "sis kebab" now known in many countries of the world. "Doner kebab" is another famous Turkish dish, being a roll of lamb on a vertical skewer turning parallel to a hot grill.

Turkish sweet-meats are world famous and many of these have milk as the basic ingredient.

Turkish coffee needs a special mention. It comes thick and dark in a small cup and may be served with or without sugar. It plays an important role in Turkish lifestyle and culture.

Turkish Attractions
Istanbul remains the heartbeat of Turkey. It's a well-worn but still glorious metropolis with about 12 million residents, an impressive setting straddling Europe and Asia, and an unchallenged place in the country's history, commerce and culture. Its attractions include the Topkapi Palace (residence of the sultans from the 15th century to the early 1800s), Aya Sofya, the Church of the Divine Wisdom, built in 548 when it was the greatest church in Christendom, the Blue Mosque (a triumph of harmony, proportion and elegance) and the Grand Bazaar, a maze of narrow streets where you can buy almost anything.

Ankara Turkey's capital is a sprawling urban mass in the midst of the Central Anatolian semi-desert but there's a lot of ancient history around too, especially the Roman ruins.

Ephesus Of Turkey's hundreds of ancient cities and classical ruins, Ephesus is the grandest and best preserved, with a host of relics of ancient Greece and Rome.

About Talk Now! Language CD-ROMs
This is an excitingly different language learning series. Talk Now! uses games and quizzes as a basis for making the learning process fun, easy and relaxing. There is no better way to teach an old dog new tricks and this fun element of the program means that your fears are forgotten as you absorb words and phrases without even realising you are learning them.

Talk Now! is the world's best selling language learning CD-ROM series for beginners, used by more than three million people to date. It's ideal for travellers, holidaymakers, business people, schoolchildren, students and families.

Anyone over 10 years of age will find the disc indispensable for improving listening, understanding and spoken language skills. There are nine topics: first words, food, colours, phrases, parts of the body, numbers, time, shopping and countries.

The games and quizzes included on the disc ensure that users have fun whilst using the disc, without realising that they're learning. The "intelligent" software feature remembers words you get wrong and targets your weak points.

"This is an excitingly different language learning series. Talk Now! Uses games and quizzes as a basis for making the learning process fun and relaxing." - PC Answers

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