Questions & Answers about Bir milyar, bin milyon.
Where is the word for 'is' in this sentence?
In Turkish, basic statements like 'A is B' don't always need a verb. The comma separates the subject (Bir milyar) from the description (bin milyon). While you could add the formal 'is' suffix -dur at the end to make it bin milyondur, it is completely natural to leave it off in everyday Turkish.
Why is 'a thousand' just bin and not bir bin?
In Turkish, you never put bir (one/a) in front of yüz (hundred) or bin (thousand) to say 'one hundred' or 'one thousand'. You simply say yüz or bin.
If you don't say bir bin, why do you say bir milyar for 'a billion'?
That is a special rule for the very big numbers. While yüz and bin do not take bir, the words milyon (million) and milyar (billion) always need a number before them. Because of this, you must say bir milyon and bir milyar.