Turkish
lifestyle is a vivid mosaic; juxtaposing the West and the
East, the modern and the ancient
Life in Turkey is a rich variety
of cultures and traditions, some dating back centuries and
others or more recent heritage. The visitor to Turkey will
find a great deal that is exotic, and also much that is
reassuringly familiar. The intriguing blend of East and West
makes up the Turkish lifestyle.
Language
The official language of the
country, Turkish is spoken by 220 million people and is the
world's 5th most widely used language. Today's 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.
Turkish is written with the Latin
alphabet with the addition of 6 different characters. Turkish
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,
that a limited number of people were able to write. In order
to improve literacy and therefore to overcome the difficulties
of learning and reading Turkish using Arabic script, Turkey
switched to the Latin alphabet following the initiative
started by Atatürk in 1928.
English has replaced French and
German as the chief secondary language taught in school and is
becoming more widespread. English is widely spoken and
understood by many throughout Turkey. German, Russian and
French are also spoken especially in popular holiday
destinations.
Religion
Although 99% of the population is
Muslim, religion is seen as strictly a private matter in
Turkey. In fact, Turkey is the only secular country in Islamic
world. Secularism is enshrined in the constitution that
religion has no place whatsoever in governing of the country.
Like other European countries, the weekly holiday is Sunday -
not Friday as many are mistaken- and the Gregorian calendar is
used in Turkey. The constitution secures the freedom of belief
and worshiping. During the time of the Ottoman Empire, people
of many different faiths lived together in peace, and since
then this diversity has been preserved. Today there are 236
churches and 34 synagogues open for worship in Turkey.
Tourists visiting Turkey are
unlikely to see much evidence that they are in a Muslim
country, except for the call to prayer which can be heard 5
times a day. People wear contemporary dresses like any western
country, and especially in big cities and popular holiday
destinations, one can easily spot many who are closely
observing fashion of Paris, London, Milan. There is probably
no difference between the way in which people dress in
especially large cities in Turkey and the rest of Europe. It
is only in smaller villages, more remote areas and the east of
the country that dress codes are more local. It is quite
common for village women to wear headscarves but this is
generally as much out of practical and cultural than religious
considerations.
The only time when you need to
worry about dress codes is when visiting a mosque. Everyone
should wear clothes which cover their legs, so no shorts for
either sex. Women should also make sure that their shoulders
and head are covered. Shoes should be removed before entering
a mosque. There is usually a rack or storage area where they
can be left or you can carry them with you in a bag. Mosques
are usually closed to visitors during prayer times.
There are two major Islamic
Festivals which are celebrated in Turkey. The dates of both
change each year, according to lunar calendar. Eid (Ramazan or
Şeker Bayramı) falls at the end of period of fasting. Greater
Eid, the Feast of Sacrifice (Kurban Bayramı) falls almost two
months after Eid, when wealthy believers usually sacrifice a
sheep or a cow and it is distributed to the needy including
friends, family and neighbours. Government offices and some
other institutions are closed during these periods but life in
resorts continues much as usual, and many Turks also head to
the holiday destinations.
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 Turks 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 Turks - 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.
Food
Turkish cuisine is renowned as
one of the world's best. It is considered to be one of the
three main cuisines of the world because of the variety of its
recipes, its use of natural ingredients, its flavours and
tastes which appeal to all palates and its influence
throughout Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. The
cuisine originated in central Asia, the first home of the
Turks, and then evolved with the contributions of the inland
and Mediterranean cultures with which Turks interacted after
their arrival in Anatolia.
Turkish cuisine is in a sense a bridge between far-Eastern and
Mediterranean cuisines, with the accent always on enhancing
the natural taste and flavour of the ingredients. There is no
one dominant element in Turkish cuisine, like sauces in French
and pasta in Italian cuisines.
While the Palace cuisine was
developing in İstanbul, local cuisines in Anatolia were
multiplying in several regions, all displaying different
geographical and climactic characteristics. These cuisines,
after remaining within regional borders for centuries, are now
being transplanted to the big cities and their suburbs as a
consequence of large scale urbanisation and migration towards
new urban centres. As a result, the national Turkish cuisine
has been enriched by the contribution of a great number of
local recipes.
Turkey is self-sufficient in food
production and produces enough for export as well. This means
that Turkish food is usually made from fresh, local
ingredients and is all the tastier for it.
A main meal will usually start
with soup and the meze, a variety of small cold and hot dishes
which are made for sharing. In many restaurants a waiter will
bring these round on a tray for you to inspect and make your
choice. Tarama salad, cacik (taziki), dolma (vine leaves or
peppers stuffed with rice), börek (pastries) , arnavut ciğeri
(cubes of fried liver) are amongst the many types of mezes
found in most of the restaurants.
The main course is usually meat
or fish. Turks always eat bread with their meal and main
courses are usually served with rice. Typically çoban
salatası, a salad made of tomato, cucumber, parsley and onion,
dressed with olive oil and lemon juice, will be offered as a
side dish. Lamb is the most popular meat and prepared in a
variety of ways, including “şiş kebap” (grilled cubes of
seasoned meat on skewer). “Köfte”, which are like small lamb
burgers are well worth trying. Those who prefer something hot
and spicy should try “Adana kebap”, which is made of minced
lamb but with the addition of hot peppers and spices formed
around a flat skewer. There are numerous variations and
regional specialities of kebap. Somewhat rich but very tasty,
is the İskender or Bursa kebab, named respectively after
Alexander the Great and the town in which it is originated,
which is slices of döner meat laid over small bites of a
freshly cooked flat bread and covered with tomato sauce and
hot butter all served with yoghurt. Turks traditionally are
fond of stews called sulu yemek or ev yemeği (home cook) and
therefore there are many restaurants offering these foods
which are usually displayed in the entrance of the restaurant
in large containers.
Fish and seafood restaurants are
widely found in Istanbul, in the other big cities and in the
coastal resorts. Mostly fish is simply grilled to bring out
its natural flavour and there is a wide variety of seafood
meze including midye tava (fried mussels), kalamar (calamari),
midye dolma (mussels in shells stuffed with seasoned rice). It
is worth asking for recommendations but some of the tastiest
are levrek (sea bass), çupra (sea bream) and kalkan (turbot).
Fish is also sold by weight in specialist restaurants where
some customers prefer to make their choice from the fishes
offered on a large display.
Note
: quoted from goturkey.com