Breakdown of Kilisenin nerede olduğunu biliyor musun?
nerede
where
bilmek
to know
mi
question particle (mı/mi/mu/mü)
kilise
church
Questions & Answers about Kilisenin nerede olduğunu biliyor musun?
Why is the subject Kilisenin with a genitive ending instead of just Kilise?
In Turkish indirect questions using the -dığı structure, the subject of the embedded clause takes the genitive case (like the English 's). It pairs with the possessive ending on the verb to form a possessive construction. Literally, this translates to 'Do you know the church's being where?'.
Why do we use a form of olmak (olduğunu) here when the direct question Kilise nerede? doesn't have a verb?
To make an indirect question using the -dığı structure, you must attach the suffix to a verb. Since a simple location sentence like Kilise nerede? (Where is the church?) doesn't have a standard verb, we use olmak (to be) as a helper verb so we have something to attach the -dığı suffix to.
What are all the suffixes at the end of olduğunu?
It breaks down like this: ol (verb root) + -duk (factive clause suffix, where the 'k' softens to 'ğ') + -u (3rd person possessive, linking back to the church) + -n- (buffer letter) + -u (accusative case). The final accusative case is there because the entire embedded clause is the direct object of the main verb biliyor musun (Do you know what?).
Can I just say Kilise nerede, biliyor musun? instead?
Yes, in casual spoken Turkish, people often string two direct questions together like that (Where is the church, do you know?). However, using the -dığı structure shown in this sentence is the proper way to form a single, integrated indirect question, which you will need for written and standard Turkish.
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