# Hayat / Ömür / Yaşam



## jaxlarus

Hi everyone!

I have a very modest knowledge of the Turkish language and I always get confused   when or how to use the Arabic / Farsi / Turkish synonyms, specifically with the ones like:

Hayat / Ömür / Yaşam

Can you please clarify the usage of each one?
I'd be much obliged....

 Kıbrıs’tan yürekten selamlar!


----------



## Chazzwozzer

Kalimera, Kıbrıs! 

TDK - official dictionary
Throw the words one by one and see if you get your answer.

Please don't hesitate to ask if there's something you don't get with the definitions or the examples.


----------



## jaxlarus

Firstly, I'd like to thank you for taking the time to get back to me. The thing is that all the links lead to the anasayfa but it's OK, I can just enter the word and it takes me to the examples. Really great definitions, I just wish my Turkish was as good as to fully understand the examples! I’ll give it a serious study…

_Çok tesekkürler, abi _
_(Now that I think about it, can I really call you __abi__, since you’re younger than me?)_


----------



## Chazzwozzer

jaxlarus said:


> Firstly, I'd like to thank you for taking the time to get back to me. The thing is that all the links lead to the anasayfa but it's OK, I can just enter the word and it takes me to the examples. Really great definitions, I just wish my Turkish was as good as to fully understand the examples! I’ll give it a serious study…


You may also post some sentences here where you're not sure whether to use hayat, ömür or yaşam, if you have any. 



jaxlarus said:


> _Çok tesekkürler, abi _
> _(Now that I think about it, can I really call you __abi__, since you’re younger than me?)_


That's fine, jaxlarus, it just means "man", "mate", "dude" in this sense.


----------



## avok

Hi, the differences among these three words are so subtle, so for a start just use "hayat" which is the most common one, you shall learn when and how to use the other words by time...


----------



## Milletperver

*Sometimes hayat means a "comfortable life" and sometimes "to be alive"
 ömür is "lifetime"
 yaşam is synonymous of "hayat"
*


----------



## Honour

A few examples for you:

Hayat'ın anlamı: meaning of life (other words are not possible)
Raf ömrü*: shelf life (other words are not possible)
Yaşam sürmek=hayat sürmek: to live (in period sense)
Rahat bir hayat (yaşam) sürmek: to live prosperously
Hayatta kalmak: to survive (other words are not possible)
Allah uzun ömürler versin: may god give you a long life (other words are not possible)

*: Ömür > (indicative) ömür+ü > ömrü

Selamlar


----------



## ameana7

Honour said:


> A few examples for you:
> 
> *Hayat'ın anlamı: meaning of life (other words are not possible)*
> Raf ömrü*: shelf life (other words are not possible)
> Yaşam sürmek=hayat sürmek: to live (in period sense)
> Rahat bir hayat (yaşam) sürmek: to live prosperously
> Hayatta kalmak: to survive (other words are not possible)
> Allah uzun ömürler versin: may god give you a long life (other words are not possible)
> 
> *: Ömür > (indicative) ömür+ü > ömrü
> 
> Selamlar



Honour, in your first example, why do you think that the other words cannot be used? I mean we can also say "yaşamın anlamı". I agree with you in the other examples though.


----------



## jaxlarus

Ok, firstly a big *thank you* for your efforts here...

Your definitions and examples helped me quite a lot to distinguish between the synonyms, but I sense that it'll probably take long practice in a Turkish speaking environment to fully comprehend and consolidate them, something way difficult for me at the time, maalesef.

I haven't really studied the language in a proper environment, like a private class or something, and this makes things even more difficult. My closest contact with spoken Turkish is the (scholarly) news bulletin of the state channel, my rare encounters with Turkish Cypriots, who try to speak as simply possible - and use the _Gibrislija_** *instead - and finally the Turkish pop songs, which are really of great help.

Of the three terms, what I fully understood is that *ömür *refers to _a lifetime_, _the period of time one is alive_, rather than _the phenomenon of life_, _existence _or the _life style_, which is expressed by *hayat *(mostly) or *yaşam*.

By all means, I'm not even close to done with the terms, so any further suggestions will be greatly welcome. Let me try to guess which one of the three I'd use to express some phrases, and please correct me, or even translate them for me:

A luxurious life - Konforlu bir *hayat */ *yaşam*
For a lifetime - Bir *ömür *boyu
I'd give my life for you -  Senin için *hayat*ımı verecektim
Life in Turkey - Türkiye'de  *hayat*
Living my life - *Hayat*ımı yaşıyorum
That's [how] life [is] - *Yaşam* bu
Sacrifice my life - *Hayat*ımı bağışlamak
Once in a lifetime - *Ömür*de bir defa / kez [?]
Everlasting life - Sonsuz / ebediyen  *yaşam

* *en . wikipedia.org/wiki/Gibrizlija


----------



## ameana7

jaxlarus said:


> A luxurious life - Konforlu bir *hayat */ *yaşam*
> For a lifetime - Bir *ömür *boyu
> I'd give my life for you - Senin için *hayat*ımı verirdim.
> Life in Turkey - Türkiye'de *hayat / yaşam*
> Living my life - *Hayat*ımı yaşıyorum (You cannot use yaşam here because the verb "yaşamak" comes from "yaşam", and it doesn't be heared good)
> That's [how] life [is] - *Yaşam* bu /*hayat* bu
> Sacrifice my life - *Hayat*ımı bağışlamak
> Once in a lifetime - *Hayatta *bir defa / kez (you can also use "yaşam" here too, but mostly we use "hayat")
> Everlasting life - Sonsuz / *ebedi **yaşam /hayat*


 
Dear Jaxlarus,

You are well done wtih the examples . "Ebedi" is the adjective form, and it is a little bit old. We genereally prefer "sonsuz". "Ebediyen" is the adverb form. You can say "ebedi hayat", and "ebediyen yaşamak".


----------



## cynicmystic

Hi Jaxlarus,

Quite an interesting question you have raised up. Well, I should start by clarifying that both 'hayat & omur' are of Arabic origin, and 'yasham' is of Turkic origin. It comes from the root word 'yash/yesh'. Yash, also, means 'age' as well as 'wet' in Turkish, and the same yash/yesh root resurfaces in disguise as yeshil (green), which comes from yesh+ol. Additionally, yesh+er+mek (used for plants) is also from the same origin, and so is yash+a+mak (to live), from which yash+am (life) is derived. Following the same line of logic the same yesh/yash root is used for asking someone how old they are... Kac yash+in+da+sin? Yash+in kac?

The primary distinction regarding the general functions of these words lies in the fact that 'yasham' can serve as a noun and a verb, whereas hayat & omur can never take a verbal form. 

Although one can say 'yash+a+mak', there are no equivalents as in 'omur+mek or hayat+mak'. Aside from this, there are no solid set of rules that govern the use of these words in Turkish. You could say, for example:

Ben Omrumde boyle sey gormedim. / I have never seen such a thing in my life.
Ben hayatimda boyle sey gormedim. / I have never seen such a thing in my life.

However, when you attempt to say 'ben yashamimda boyle sey gormedim', you would risk sounding a bit non-native. In contrast to that, you could freely say 'yashami boyunca, omru boyunca & hayati boyunca' meaning the same thing and sounding native. Hence, the general use of these words depends on one's style, where as the etymology distinguishes 'yasham' as a native Turkic word.

I hope that this may help a bit.


----------



## Honour

ameana7 said:


> Honour, in your first example, why do you think that the other words cannot be used? I mean we can also say "yaşamın anlamı". I agree with you in the other examples though.


 
Actually, i don't know . It only sound weird to me. Yaşamın anlamı hımm... I always hear it as hayatın anlamı. What's your opinion?


----------



## ukuca

Honour said:


> Actually, i don't know . It only sound weird to me. Yaşamın anlamı hımm... I always hear it as hayatın anlamı. What's your opinion?



For example, lyrics of "Yüzünü dökme küçük kız" by Bülent Ortaçgil


----------



## F84

Honour said:


> Actually, i don't know . It only sounds weird to me. Yaşamın anlamı hımm... I always hear it as hayatın anlamı. What's your opinion?


 


ukuca said:


> For example, lyrics of "Yüzünü dökme küçük kız" by Bülent Ortaçgil


 

It sounds okay for me, I use it frequently.


----------



## ameana7

Hi again,

Jaxlarus, the mail which notifies me about new mails, says that you are asking another question about "verirdim", but I cannot see the thread in this page. Thus, if you can ask it one more time, we can explain you.

Chazz, Dear Alaturka Moderatör, I cannot see a post which is deleted, so what is the problem here?


----------



## jaxlarus

ameana7 said:


> [...] you are asking another question about "verirdim", but I cannot see the thread in this page. Thus, if you can ask it one more time, we can explain you.



Hi, Ameana!
Chazz created a new thread for that question of mine. Go to the Turkish forum and look for a thread named '*verirdim / verecektim*'.

I really appreciate what you're all doing


----------



## ameana7

jaxlarus said:


> Hi, Ameana!
> Chazz created a new thread for that question of mine. Go to the Turkish forum and look for a thread named '*verirdim / verecektim*'.
> 
> I really appreciate what you're all doing


 
I understand now, thanks.


----------

