History and Hearsay: The Reported Past with Nouns and Adjectives
To talk about history, legends, or things you only heard about, attach the reported past suffix -(y)mIş directly to nouns and adjectives to state what things apparently were like.
The suffix follows 4-way vowel harmony. If the word ends in a consonant, just attach the suffix:
- Last vowel a, ı → add -mış
- Last vowel e, i → add -miş
- Last vowel o, u → add -muş
- Last vowel ö, ü → add -müş
| That era was apparently difficult but interesting. | O dönem zor ama ilginçmiş. |
| The vizier was apparently a very smart man. | Vezir çok akıllı bir adammış. |
If the noun or adjective ends in a vowel, insert the buffer letter -y- before the suffix (-ymış, -ymiş, -ymuş, -ymüş).
| This history book was apparently very boring. | Bu tarih kitabı çok sıkıcıymış. |
| The former sultan was apparently old and sick. | Eski sultan yaşlı ve hastaymış. |
Negating the Reported Past
To say that something apparently was not, use the negative word değil and attach the reported past suffix directly to it. Because değil ends in the vowel i, "apparently was not" is always expressed as değilmiş.
| The young king was apparently not fair at all. | Genç kral hiç adil değilmiş. |
| The old vizier was apparently not lazy at all. | Yaşlı vezir hiç tembel değilmiş. |
Asking "Who" and "Where"
You can also attach this suffix to question words. Just like with regular nouns, remember to use the buffer -y- if the question word ends in a vowel (like nerede).
| Who was apparently their new sultan? | Onların yeni sultanı kimmiş? |
| Where was the sultan's palace apparently? | Sultanın sarayı neredeymiş? |