1. Prepared by Mukades Sahin
A Deep Approach to Turkish Teaching and Learning
Wisconsin Center for Education Research, University of Wisconsin-
Madison

2. Riddle
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Cevap: bal
2

3. .
5 6
3

4. .
4

5. 7
9
8
10
5

6. .
6

7. Riddling was an important part of
social life in Istanbul as late as 20th
.
century. In coffee houses in
Istanbul, men competed against each
other in their riddle telling abilities in
front of a sizeable audience.
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They were judged by their
speed, effectiveness, and courage.
These contests would take place
during the month of Ramadan, and
last until the time of early morning
meal of Ramadan, a.k.a. sahur.
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8. In the next couple slides, you will find a number of Turkish
.
riddles. You can
- read them to familiarize yourself with this literary canon,
- listen to the audio files to practice pronunciation, or
- tease your brain to guess the answers to the riddles (they
are given in slide 10).
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9. .
Dudağa değer ucu
Ne getirdin a bacı
Kuruyan ağızların
Hepsi sana duacı
Yarım kaşık
Duvara yapışık
9

10. .
(bardak)
10

11. Here are examples on how riddles are used in
contemporary times.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKFs2r9lYCg
(A blurb from an old Turkish comedy that uses riddles)
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKFs2r9lYCg
(A song entitled Bilmece Bildirmece (1971) by a famous
singer Ajda Pekkan.)
İyi seyirler!
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12. Numaralarına göre fotograflar:
References
1. Yılmaz, Fevziye. Bilmece Bildirmece . İstanbul: Timaş Yayınları, 2005.
2. Edebiyat Defteri. February 15th, 2012 <http://www.edebiyatdefteri.com/yazioku.asp?id=45769>.
3. En Güzel Bilmeceler. İstanbul: 2011.
4. Zeka Geliştirici Bilmeceler Tekerlemeler. Ünlü Yayınevi.
5. Sümer, Mehmet Kadri. Bilmece Bildirmece. Ankara: Ünlü Yayınevi, 2007.
6. Suavi, Cüneyt. Küçük Yaştaki Adamlara Büyük Boyda Bilmeceler. İstanbul: Zafer Yayınları, 2000.
7. Oldfield, A. C. and Tochon, F. V. (2011). Türkçe ve Azeri Arasinda Köprüler Kurmak / Bridging Turkish with Azerbaijani:
Music and Musicians - Azeri Folklore in the 20th Century. Module 13 Advanced Level. Madison, WI: Wisconsin Center for
Education Research (WCER). http://deepapproach.wceruw.org/index.html (February 15th, 2012).
8, 9, 10. Tunç, Y. and Tochon, F.V. (2010). Turkish Cuisine and Culture / Türk Mutfaği ve Mutfak Kültürü. Module
5, Intermediate level. Madison, WI: Wisconsin Center for Education Research
(WCER).http://deepapproach.wceruw.org/index.html (February 15th, 2012).
11. February 14th, <2012 http://www.parkdo.com/default.asp?id=71>.
 Information about Turkish riddles retrieved from the following source
Başgöz, İlhan. "Functions of Turkish Riddles." Journal of the Folklore Institute Vol. 2, No. 2 (Jun., 1965), pp. 132-147 06 1965.
February 14th, 2012 <http://www.jstor.org/stable/3813831>.
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