Dance with Death
Page 31
During the course of my stay in Cappadocia I was treated with unfailing kindness and understanding. Neighbours willingly helped this practical incompetent to change propane gas bottles and assisted me in the conservation of energy by always telling me when I had more than one electric light blazing. ‘My’ village was not the fictional Muratpaşa. Having said that however, some of the rather more remote hamlets that I visited have more than a passing resemblance to my fictional creation. Isolated communities across the globe were ever thus.
Whilst almost all of the characters in this novel are fictional, some of the events are very real. The bombings of the Neve Şalom and Beth Israel synagogues on 15th November 2003, as well as the attacks on the British Consulate and HSBC Bank (all in İstanbul) one week later, shocked the nation. It was quite by chance that some of my characters ‘lived’ opposite the Neve Şalom. But because of this and because of the magnitude of the explosion I was bound to deal at least with the Neve Şalom bombing on some level. Having said that, I have probably failed to do justice to the suffering that occurred on that terrible day, just as I cannot adequately describe the heroism of those who attended the injured and the dying – medics, police, fire service and military. Even in far away Cappadocia people unconnected with these events and with İstanbul were moved to tears by the images we all saw on our televisions over those two dreadful weekends.
Finally, if you are wondering who is not a fictional character in this book, it is the cat, Kismet. He is not, in reality, truly owned by anyone and quite terrified the cats I was looking after on occasion. But I do know him and whenever I have been in his presence, I have treated him with the utmost respect!
Barbara Nadel
Glossary
* * *
Anıt Kabir – Atatürk’s mausoleum in Ankara
Beledıye – local council
Bey – as in ‘Çetin Bey’, an Ottoman title denoting respect, still in use today following a man’s first name
Börek – flaky pastry parcel
Cacık – yoghurt with grated cucumber and mint
Çay bahçe – tea garden
Djinn – evil spirits
Hamam – traditional Turkish steam bath
Hanım – lady, woman. Like the male ‘bey’, it is a title denoting respect for an older, usually married woman. It follows the woman’s first name, as in ‘Nazlı Hanım’
İftar – the meal eaten at sunset during Ramazan
İnşallah – ‘God willing’ or ‘If God wills’
İskender Kebab – Döner kebab on flat (pide) bread with yoghurt, butter and tomato sauce
Jandarma – while the Turkish National Police are responsible for law and order in the urban districts, the Jandarma cover the rural areas. They are a paramilitary force under joint control of the military and the Interior Ministry
Kangal – Anatolian sheepdog
Kapıcı – Doorkeeper. Blocks of flats have kapıcılar, men who act as security, porters etc., for the apartment community
Kapalı Çarsı – the Grand Bazaar
Kismet – Fate
MİT – Turkish Secret Service
Mescit – small mosque
Meyhane – Tavern or bar
Müezzin – Cantor who sings the call to prayer
Pansiyon – Pension, guest house
Patlıcan salatası – Aubergine salad
Peris – Fairies
Rakı – Aniseed-flavoured alcoholic spirit
Ramazan – Ramadan. The ninth month of the Islamic calendar when Muslims, if healthy, are expected to fast during the hours of daylight
Şalvar trousers – Traditional baggy trousers worn by both men and women, mainly in rural areas
Şeytan – Satan
Şiş Kebab – Lamb or chicken cubes grilled on a skewer
TRT – Türkiye Radyo ve Televizyon, Turkish broadcasting corporation
Tavla – Backgammon
Yıldırım – thunderbolt
Turkish Alphabet
* * *
The Turkish Alphabet is very similar to its English counterpart with the following exceptions:
• The letters q, w and x do not appear.
• Some letters behave differently in Turkish compared with English:
C, c Not the c in cat and tractor, but the j in jam and Taj or the g in gentle and courageous.
G, g Always the hard g in great or slug, never the soft g of general and outrage.
J, j As the French pronounce the j in bonjour and the g in gendarme.
• The following additional letters appear:
Ç ç The ch in chunk or choke.
Ğ, ğ ‘Yumuşak ge’ is used to lengthen the vowel that it follows. It is not usually voiced (except as a vague y sound). For instance, it is used in the name Ayşe Farsakoğlu, which is pronounced Far-sak-erlu, and in öğle (noon, midday), pronounced öy-lay (see below for how to pronounce ö).
Ş, ş The sh in ship and shovel.
I, ı Without a dot, the sound of the a in probable.
İ, i With a dot, the i in thin or tinny.
Ö, ö Like the ur sound in further.
Ü, ü Like the u in the French tu.
Full pronunciation guide
A, a Usually short, the a in hah! or the u in but, never the medium or long a in nasty and hateful.
B, b As in English.
C, c Not the c in cat and tractor, but the j in jam and Taj or the g in gentle and courageous.
Ç, ç The ch in chunk or choke.
D, d As in English.
E, e Always short, the e in venerable, never the e in Bede (and never silent).
F, f As in English.
G, g Always the hard g in great or slug, never the soft g of general and outrage.
Ğ, ğ ‘Yumuşak ge’ is used to lengthen the vowel that it follows. It is not usually voiced (except as a vague y sound). For instance, it is used in the name Ayşe Farsakoğlu, which is pronounced Far-sak-erlu, and in öğle (noon, midday), pronounced öy-lay (see below for how to pronounce ö).
H, h As in English (and never silent).
I, i Without a dot, the sound of the a in probable.
İ, i With a dot, the i in thin or tinny.
J, j As the French pronounce the j in bonjour and the g in gendarme.
K, k As in English (and never silent).
L, l As in English.
M, m As in English.
N, n As in English.
O, o Always short, the o in hot and bothered.
Ö, ö Like the ur sound in further.
P, p As in English.
R, r As in English.
S, s As in English.
Ş, ş, The sh in ship and shovel.
T, t As in English.
U, u Always medium-length, the u in push and pull, never the u in but.
Ü, ü Like the u in the French tu.
V, v Usually as in English, but sometimes almost a w sound in words such as tavuk (hen).
Y, y As in English. Follows vowels to make diphthongs: ay is the y sound in fly; ey is the ay sound in day; oy is the oy sound in toy; uy is almost the same as the French oui.
Z, z As in English.
* Midnight Express - the story of an American convicted of drug offences and confined in a prison is Istanbul. It was highly sensationalist and covertly anti-Turkish.