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Questions & Answers about Onun adı aklıma gelmedi.
Why is the verb gelmedi (it did not come) instead of gelmedim (I did not come)?
Even though the sentence means you could not remember something, the literal Turkish translation is His name did not come to my mind. The subject of the sentence is Onun adı (his name), which is third-person singular (it). Therefore, the verb takes the matching ending -di without an extra I ending.
The dictionary word for mind is akıl, so why is it spelled akl- in aklıma?
Turkish has a vowel drop rule for certain two-syllable words, often body parts or concepts like the mind. When you add a suffix that starts with a vowel, the second vowel of the root word drops out. So, akıl plus the possessive suffix -ım becomes aklım instead of akılım.
What are the suffixes attached to aklıma?
There are two suffixes attached to the root word. First, the possessive suffix -ım makes it aklım (my mind). Then, the dative suffix -a (to) is added to the end, making the full word aklıma (to my mind).
Can I use aklıma gelmedi to mean I forgot?
Yes, it is very common! While Turkish has a direct verb for forgetting (unutmak), saying aklıma gelmedi (it did not come to my mind) is a very natural way to express that you could not recall something in that specific moment.