Learn Hardcore Turkish: Broşürü okurken sloganı hemen fark ettim; akılda kalıcı. - While reading the brochure, I noticed the slogan immediately; it is memorable.

Formation: verb root oku-
- aorist -r
  - -ken → okur-ken → okurken.
You may also hear okuyorken (present continuous stem okuyor
- -ken), which makes the ongoing nature of the action a bit more explicit. Both are natural; okurken is very common and idiomatic.

Why are broşürü and sloganı marked with the -ı/-ü ending?

That is the definite accusative, used for specific, definite direct objects.

broşür → broşürü (“the brochure” as a specific object)
slogan → sloganı (“the slogan” as a specific object) Without the accusative, they would be indefinite (“a brochure,” “a slogan”): broşür okurken, bir slogan fark ettim.

Could sloganı mean “his/her/its slogan”? How do I tell?

The form sloganı is ambiguous out of context: it can be

accusative “the slogan,” or
nominative with 3rd person possessive “his/her/its slogan” (as a subject or topic), e.g., Onun sloganı çok kısa. In your sentence, after a verb, sloganı is clearly the definite object (“the slogan”). If you wanted “I noticed his slogan,” you’d say: Onun sloganını fark ettim (possessive + accusative).

Why is fark ettim written as two words, and why the double t?

Fark etmek is a light-verb compound (“to notice”), written as two words. When conjugated:

etmek → ettim/etti/ettin (the t doubles before past tense suffixes). Common errors to avoid: don’t write farketmek or farkettim as one word. Correct: fark etmedim, fark ettin mi?

What’s the role and position of hemen?

Hemen means “immediately/right away.” It most often appears before the verb or just before the object:

Sloganı hemen fark ettim (very common)
Hemen sloganı fark ettim (also fine; slightly more emphasis on “immediately”) Note: hemen hemen together means “almost/nearly,” which is a different meaning.

Why is there a semicolon before akılda kalıcı? Could it be a period?

Yes, a period would also be fine. The semicolon links two closely related independent clauses. The second clause is a nonverbal sentence with an implied subject (“It is memorable”). You could also write:

Akılda kalıcı. (casual, present-time assessment)
Akılda kalıcıydı. (if you want past-time consistency: “it was memorable”)
Akılda kalıcıdır. (more formal/assertive)

What does akılda kalıcı literally mean?

Literally “staying in the mind,” hence “memorable.”

akıl = mind
-da = in/at (locative)
kal- = to stay/remain
-ıcı = adjectival/agentive suffix Together: akıl-da kal-ıcı → “mind-in staying,” i.e., memorable.

Why is there no explicit “I” or “it” in the sentence?

Turkish is pro-drop: verb endings show the subject, so fark ettim already means “I noticed.” In the second clause, akılda kalıcı is a nonverbal predicate; the subject “it (the slogan)” is understood from context and the previous clause.

Who is understood to be doing the reading in broşürü okurken?

By default, the subject of the -ken clause is the same as the main clause: “While I was reading the brochure, I noticed…” If you need a different subject, you can state it:

Sen uyurken, ben çalışıyordum. = While you were sleeping, I was working. You can also add a pronoun for clarity: Ben broşürü okurken…

Could I use okuduğumda or okuyunca instead of okurken?

Yes, but they’re not identical:

okurken = “while reading” (simultaneous/overlapping action).
okuduğumda = “when/at the time that I read” (more event-pointed).
okuyunca = “when/once I read” (often implies immediate consequence). Your sentence focuses on simultaneity, so okurken is the most natural.

Do objects inside a -ken clause still take accusative?

Yes. Verbal -ken clauses are still verbal environments, so definite direct objects take the accusative:

Broşürü okurken (definite: the brochure)
Broşür okurken (indefinite: a brochure / brochure-reading in general)

How flexible is the word order here?

Turkish word order is flexible for emphasis. Natural variants include:

Broşürü okurken sloganı hemen fark ettim.
Sloganı hemen, broşürü okurken fark ettim. (emphasizes the object first)
Hemen sloganı fark ettim, broşürü okurken. (afterthought style) The neutral, smooth flow is adverbial clause → object → adverb → verb, as in your sentence.

How do I pronounce the tricky vowels and consonants in akılda kalıcı and elsewhere?

ı (dotless i) = a back unrounded vowel, like the final sound in English “roses” [ɯ].
c = English “j” sound.
ş = “sh.” So: akılda [a-kɯl-da], kalıcı [ka-lɯ-jɯ], sloganı [slo-ga-nɯ].

Is there a difference between fark etmek and farkına varmak?

Both mean “to notice/realize,” often interchangeable.

fark etmek: very common and neutral for “notice.”
farkına varmak: slightly more “to become aware/realize,” sometimes a bit more formal or cognitive. Another common alternative is dikkatimi çekti (“it caught my attention”).

Could I fold the second clause into one sentence like “a memorable slogan”?

Yes. For an attributive use: akılda kalıcı bir slogan (“a memorable slogan”). A rephrased version: Broşürü okurken akılda kalıcı bir sloganı hemen fark ettim. Note that this uses an indefinite pattern (“a memorable slogan”), so you’d typically drop the accusative or make context clear; with -ı, it’s specific (“that memorable slogan”).

Why is there an r in okurken? I expected just oku-ken.

The -r comes from the aorist stem. For many verbs, the aorist is formed with -r/-Ar, and the -ken converb attaches to that:

oku-r-ken → okurken (read)
yürü-r-ken → yürürken (walk)
bak-ar-ken → bakarken (look)