Learn Hardcore Turkish: Kuyumcu yarın kapalıymış, bugün gitsek iyi olur. - The jeweler will be closed tomorrow; it’s better if we go today.

The suffix -(y)mış is the evidential (reported/inferential) past of the copula. It signals that the speaker learned the information second-hand or is inferring it. So kuyumcu yarın kapalıymış means “apparently/they say the jeweler is closed tomorrow.” It doesn’t necessarily indicate past time; it marks information source and a softer assertion.

Kuyumcu yarın kapalı. Neutral, direct assertion.
Kuyumcu yarın kapalıymış. Reported/apparently.
Kuyumcu yarın kapalı olacak. Will be closed (speaker states it as a fact/plan).
Kuyumcu yarın kapalı olacakmış. Reportedly will be closed (reported future).

Why is there a “y” in kapalıymış?

It’s a buffer consonant added when attaching the copular form -imiş to a word ending in a vowel: kapalı + imiş → kapalıymış. After consonants, no buffer is needed: doktor + imiş → doktormuş. This is the same pattern you see with forms like hastaymış (from hasta + imiş).

Is kuyumcu the person or the shop here?

In Turkish, kuyumcu can mean either “jeweler (person)” or “jewelry shop.” With predicates like kapalı (closed), the default reading is the shop: “The jewelry store is closed.” If you wanted to be explicit, you could say kuyumcu dükkânı for “the jewelry shop.”

Can I put yarın first, like Yarın kuyumcu kapalıymış?

Yes. Word order is flexible. Both are natural:

Kuyumcu yarın kapalıymış. (topic: the jeweler; new info: closed tomorrow)
Yarın kuyumcu kapalıymış. (emphasis on “tomorrow” as the relevant time) The choice slightly shifts emphasis/focus but doesn’t change the core meaning.

What exactly does gitsek mean?

It’s the 1st person plural conditional: git- (go) + -se (if) + -k (we) → “if we go.” In the pattern X-se(k) iyi olur, it expresses a suggestion: “It would be good if we X (we’d better X).”

Other persons:

gitsem (if I go), gitsen (if you go), gitse (if he/she goes), gitsek (if we go), gitseniz (if you pl go), gitseler (if they go)

Why does “would” in English correspond to gitsek … olur (with olur, not “would be”)?

Turkish expresses this “would” sense by combining a conditional clause with the aorist/present of olmak: gitsek iyi olur literally “if we went, it is good,” idiomatically “it would be good if we went.” The conditional provides the hypotheticality; olur supplies the general/result meaning.

What’s the difference between gitsek and gidelim?

gidelim is the 1st person plural imperative/optative: “Let’s go.” It’s direct and stronger.
gitsek (iyi olur) is a softer, more tentative suggestion: “It would be good if we went.” It’s often more polite/indirect.

Can I say gidersek iyi olur instead of gitsek iyi olur?

You can, but the nuance shifts:

gitsek iyi olur is the standard way to make a suggestion (“We’d better go”).
gidersek iyi olur feels more like a neutral conditional about consequences (“If we go, it’ll be good”), and is used more for general conditions, e.g., Erken gidersek yer buluruz (“If we go early, we’ll find seats”). For proposing a plan now, gitsek is the default.

What’s the difference between iyi olur and iyi olurdu?

iyi olur is neutral/present-oriented: “would be good” in a practical, here-and-now sense.
iyi olurdu is more tentative/polite or hypothetically distanced: “would be good (it would’ve been good).” With a present-time adverb like bugün, both are used to soften a suggestion:
- Bugün gitsek iyi olur. We’d better go today.
- Bugün gitsek iyi olurdu. It would be good if we went today (even softer).

Could I say Bugün gitmemiz iyi olur instead of Bugün gitsek iyi olur?

Yes.

Bugün gitsek iyi olur. Suggestion via conditional; conversational.
Bugün gitmemiz iyi olur. Nominalized clause; a bit more formal/neutral: “It would be good for us to go today.”
Bugün gitmek iyi olur. Also possible but less specific about who goes; gitmemiz makes the subject clear.

How would I make it a question like “Should we go today?”

Use the question particle mi:

Bugün gitsek mi? Shall we go today? You can also ask about the evaluation:
Bugün gitsek iyi olur mu? Would it be good if we went today?

How do I say “We’d better not go today”?

Negate the verb in the conditional:

Bugün gitmesek iyi olur. It would be good if we didn’t go today / We’d better not go today. Similarly, as a question:
Bugün gitmesek mi? Shall we not go today?

Is the comma between the two clauses fine in Turkish?

Yes. You can link them with a comma, a semicolon, or with a connector:

Kuyumcu yarın kapalıymış, bugün gitsek iyi olur.
Kuyumcu yarın kapalıymış; bugün gitsek iyi olur.
Kuyumcu yarın kapalıymış, bu yüzden bugün gitsek iyi olur. (therefore) All are idiomatic.

Does -(y)mış always mean “I heard,” or can it also mean “apparently”?

Both. -(y)mış marks non-firsthand information, which can come from:

Report/hearsay: you were told.
Inference: you deduced it from evidence (e.g., lights off, door sign). In either case it softens the claim: kapalıymış ≈ “apparently/it seems/they say it’s closed.”