Breakdown of Bu hikâyede şeytanın kim olduğunu anlamadım.
bu
this
kim
who
anlamak
to understand
hikâye
story
şeytan
devil
Questions & Answers about Bu hikâyede şeytanın kim olduğunu anlamadım.
Why do we use olduğunu here instead of just saying şeytan kim?
Because this is an indirect question. Instead of asking a direct question like "Who is the devil?", you are turning it into the object of the verb anlamadım (I didn't understand). To do this in Turkish, we use the factive suffix -dık on the verb olmak (to be). You are essentially saying "I didn't understand the devil's being who."
Why does şeytan have the genitive suffix -ın?
In an embedded clause using -dık or -acak, the subject of that clause takes the genitive case (like -ın, -in). It works together with the possessive suffix on the verb to create a possessive relationship. Just like benim arabam (my car), we say şeytanın ... olduğu (the devil's ... being).
Let's break down the suffixes in olduğunu. What does the final -nu do?
olduğunu comes from ol (be) + duk (factive suffix) + u (possessive suffix matching "the devil's") + n (buffer letter) + u (accusative case). The final -u is the accusative case marker. We need it because the entire clause "who the devil is" is the specific direct object of the verb anlamadım.
Why does the question word kim go in the middle of the phrase?
In Turkish, question words like kim (who), ne (what), or nerede (where) are typically placed immediately before the verb to give them focus. Even inside an embedded indirect question, kim naturally sits right in front of the embedded verb olduğunu.
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