The Ablative Case: "From" or "Out Of"
To express coming "from" a place, taking something "out of" a container, or buying something "from" someone, Turkish uses the ablative case suffix. The basic forms are -dan and -den.
As always, vowel harmony dictates the choice:
- Words whose last vowel is a back vowel (a, ı, o, u) take -dan.
- Words whose last vowel is a front vowel (e, i, ö, ü) take -den.
Consonant Mutation: -tan and -ten
When a word ends in a hard consonant (f, s, t, k, ç, ş, h, p — often remembered as Fıstıkçı Şahap), the d in the suffix hardens into a t. This means -dan becomes -tan, and -den becomes -ten.
For example, market ends in a hard consonant (t) and its last vowel is front (e), so it takes -ten.
Common Verbs with the Ablative Case
The ablative case naturally pairs with verbs describing movement away from a source, like returning or exiting.
You also use the ablative case to express receiving, wanting, or taking things "from" someone, such as a satıcı (seller).