On the phone and forms of address

Answering the phone

A Turkish phone call opens with hello (on the phone)

alo. The person answering often follows with pardon? yes? (answering)efendim — a word with no single English equivalent. It means roughly yes? or pardon?, and it is used three ways:

• answering a call or a summons — Efendim?
• asking someone to repeat — Efendim, anlamadım.
• as a polite tag after a name — Ayşe Hanım efendim

Addressing people

older brother; friendly address to a manabi literally means *older brother*, but it is used far beyond the family: to a shopkeeper, a taxi driver, any man a little older than you. It is warm and informal.

Agreeing, thanking, apologising

word	use
of course	tabii
of course — agreeing readily
all right then, okay	peki
all right then — accepting, or changing the subject
thanks (informal)	sağ ol
thanks — informal, to one person
sorry, excuse me (informal)	pardon
sorry — for small bumps and interruptions

Personal details

On any form you will meet surname

soyadı (surname), and in conversation from where (of what origin)nereli — where are you from? — asking about origin rather than the place you happen to be.