Learn Turkish: Aktarda renk renk, çeşit çeşit baharat var. - There are colorful, various spices at the herbalist.

Aktarda renk renk, çeşit çeşit baharat var.

There are colorful, various spices at the herbalist.

Breakdown of Aktarda renk renk, çeşit çeşit baharat var.

herbalist / spice seller

Questions & Answers about Aktarda renk renk, çeşit çeşit baharat var.

How does repeating words like renk renk and çeşit çeşit change their meaning here?

This is a common pattern in Turkish called an ikileme (reduplication). By repeating a noun like renk (color) or çeşit (kind/variety), it transforms into an adjective describing abundance or variety. So renk renk means "of many different colors" and çeşit çeşit means "of many different kinds."

Since there are many spices, why isn't the word for spice pluralized as baharatlar?

In Turkish, when a noun is preceded by numbers or expressions that already indicate plurality (like these repeated words), the noun itself must stay singular. Because çeşit çeşit already tells us there are many kinds, adding -lar to baharat would be a grammar mistake.

What exactly is an aktar?

An aktar is a traditional Turkish herbalist or spice shop. While you can buy packaged spices at a normal supermarket, an aktar specializes in selling loose spices, dried herbs, natural remedies, and loose-leaf teas out of large sacks or jars.

Is the word baharat (spice) related to the word bahar (spring)?

Yes, it is! The word comes from Arabic, where it originally referred to sweet-smelling plants, and baharat is actually the Arabic plural form. Turkish borrowed this word to mean "spices" as a collective category, but modern Turkish treats it grammatically as a normal singular noun.