Turkish Alphabet & Pronunciation Guide

The Alphabet Revolution

Before 1928, Turkish was written in a version of the Arabic script (Ottoman Turkish). That script marked few vowels, which fitted Turkish's eight-vowel system poorly. In 1928 Turkey adopted a Latin-based alphabet designed specifically for Turkish sounds.

The result is a highly phonetic alphabet: as a rule, one letter = one sound.

The 29 Letters

The alphabet consists of 21 consonants and 8 vowels. Noticeably absent are Q, W, and X. You will also find some letters equipped with dots, cedillas, and a little hat (the breve).

The Tricky Consonants

If you are an English speaker, these are the letters that will trip you up. Memorize them immediately:

C c

Pronounced like the J in "Jam".

Example: Cami (Mosque) is pronounced "Jah-mee".

Ç ç

Pronounced like the Ch in "Chat".

Example: Çay (Tea) is pronounced "Chai".

Ş ş

Pronounced like the Sh in "Shoe".

Example: Şehir (City) is pronounced "Sheh-heer".

J j

Pronounced like the S in "Measure" or French "Jacques".

Example: Jeton (Token).

The Yumuşak G (Soft G)

Ğ ğ

This letter is unique to Turkish. It has no sound of its own. It never starts a word. Its only job is to lengthen the preceding vowel.

Example: Dağ (Mountain) is pronounced like "Daah".Yağmur (Rain) is pronounced "Yah-moor", lengthening the "a".

The Eight Vowels

Turkish vowels fall into two groups: back vowels (a, ı, o, u) and front vowels (e, i, ö, ü). This split is the key to vowel harmony. Turkish vowels are short and "pure" — they don't glide into a second sound the way English "o" in "go" does.

A a: Like the "a" in "father", but shorter. (Example: Ad – name)
E e: Like the "e" in "bed". (Example: Ev – house)
I ı (dotless I): A short, unrounded "uh", close to the vowel in the second syllable of "cousin". Spread your lips as for "ee", then pull your tongue back. (Example: Işık – light)
İ i (dotted İ): Like the "ee" in "see". It keeps its dot even when capitalized! (Example: İstanbul)
O o: Like the "o" in "for", short and without the English glide. (Example: Okul – school)
Ö ö: Say "e" (as in "bed") with rounded lips, like German ö. (Example: Göz – eye)
U u: Like the "oo" in "boot", but shorter. (Example: Su – water)
Ü ü: Say "ee" with rounded lips, like German ü or French u in "tu". (Example: Üç – three)

The Rest of the Consonants

Most remaining consonants sound much as they do in English, with a few details: R is a light tap of the tongue (and often softly hissed at the end of a word, as in bir); G is always hard as in "go", never as in "gem"; S is always "s" as in "sun", never "z"; Y is always a consonant as in "yes"; and H is always pronounced, including at the end of a word (sabah, morning).

The Circumflex (Â, Î, Û)

You will sometimes see a little hat on a vowel in loanwords, e.g. kâr (profit) vs. kar (snow), or hâlâ (still) vs. hala (paternal aunt). It shows a longer vowel and/or a softened preceding consonant. It is not a separate letter and isn't counted in the 29.

Word Stress

Most Turkish words are stressed on the last syllable (ki-TAP, ki-tap-LAR). Many place names and some common words are exceptions (AN-ka-ra, is-TAN-bul, ME-se-la, for example), and some suffixes such as the negative -me/-ma push the stress onto the syllable before them (GEL-me, don't come).

Reading Practice

Because there are no silent letters (except ğ), you can read Turkish aloud with confidence once you know these rules. To put it to the test, try reading one of our beginner stories out loud! Browse Reading Stories.

The Turkish Alphabet & Pronunciation Guide: A Masterclass