Idioms, one of the strongest elements of the cultural memory that Turkish has carried for centuries, are today under serious threat due to incorrect usage and mistakes that spread rapidly across digital platforms.
Emphasizing that the misuse of idioms should not be seen merely as a “language mistake,” Üsküdar University Turkish Teaching Application and Research Center (ÜSTÖMER) Director Instructor Selçuk Duman said, “The corruption of idioms is absolutely a cultural and intellectual loss. Every idiom contains behind it a story, a tradition, or a historical event that gave birth to it.”
Stressing that protecting idioms is vital for preserving the identity of Turkish, Instructor Selçuk Duman stated, “Because idioms are the ‘flavor and spice’ of Turkish. You cannot keep a language alive with grammar rules alone. What gives it its taste, scent, and color are idioms.” Duman also added that digital environments function like a factory producing ‘galat-ı meşhur’ (mumpsimus) which means widely accepted but incorrect usages.
Üsküdar University ÜSTÖMER Director and Turkish Language Department Instructor Selçuk Duman made important evaluations regarding the place of idioms in Turkish, the consequences of incorrect usage, and language awareness.
Idioms serve as the backbone of our language
Pointing out that idioms represent one of the richest aspects of the art of “saying much with few words,” Instructor Selçuk Duman said, “Centuries of experience, joy, sorrow, and worldview have been transformed into living words through idioms and have reached the present day. Being able to summarize a complex state of mind or social situation that would otherwise require long explanations with a two or three word idiom demonstrates the practical intelligence of our people and the expressive power of our language. In this respect, idioms in our language function almost as a backbone with their metaphorical and figurative meanings.”
The corruption of idioms means the erasure of cultural memory
Emphasizing once again that the misuse of idioms should not be regarded as merely a linguistic error, Duman stated, “The corruption of idioms is definitely a cultural and intellectual loss. Every idiom carries behind it a story, a tradition, or a historical event. When you distort an idiom, you sever that historical connection and erase cultural codes. To dismiss it as just a linguistic mistake is to underestimate the seriousness of the issue. As a matter of fact, when words disappear, the worldview they carry also disappears.”
Some commonly misused idioms
Providing examples of idioms frequently used incorrectly in daily language, Duman said, “Among the common ones are the incorrect phrase ‘Göz var nizam var’ (There’s order where there’s eye); the correct version is ‘Göz var izan var,’ (it is plain to see/ there’s understanding where there’s eye) where izan means understanding. Another example is the idiom commonly known as ‘Zürafanın düşkünü, beyaz giyer kış günü.’ (The admirer of giraffe wears white on a winter day). The correct saying is ‘Zürefanın düşkünü, beyaz giyer kış günü,’ (The admirer of elegance wears white on a winter day), referring to elegant people. It has nothing to do with the animal giraffe. The phrase ‘Aptala malum olur’ (It becomes known to the fool) is actually ‘Abdala malum olur,’ (It becomes known to the wise) meaning it is revealed to a wise or saintly person. These mistakes erase the knowledge and traditional heritage embedded in the idiom and render the sentence meaningless and devoid of value.”
This is not natural change but linguistic degeneration
Stating that the gradual distortion of idioms should not be considered a natural evolution of language, Duman said, “There is natural change and development in language. However, the corruption of idioms generally stems from ignorance and hearsay usage. Mistakes made by being misled by phonetic similarity without understanding the metaphorical meaning, such as replacing ‘izan’ with ‘nizam’, gradually become widespread and drive out the correct version. This is not natural evolution but degeneration of the language.”
The digital environment produces widely accepted mistakes
Addressing the impact of social media and digital platforms on language, Duman continued, “The digital environment operates like a factory producing ‘galat-ı meşhur,’ meaning widely accepted mistakes. When an incorrect usage becomes popular on social media, even those who know the correct saying may feel doubtful and think, ‘Am I the one who is wrong?’ Instead of institutions that set language standards, the language use of social media influencers begins to dominate, which poses the risk of Turkish becoming ruleless.”
Using idioms without knowing their meaning leads to alienation from the language
Stating that the unconscious use of idioms indicates an individual’s alienation from their own language, Duman said, “Using idioms without knowing their meaning is like steering a ship without knowing its course. In such cases, linguistic accidents are inevitable. Language awareness requires knowing not only the sound of a word but also its spirit and roots. This awareness protects people from speaking by rote and without reflection.”
The younger generation is distancing itself from the world of associations in idioms
Evaluating young people’s relationship with idioms, Duman said, “Unfortunately, I find it weak and disconnected. Young people tend to think and speak more in literal and direct meanings. They have difficulty entering the metaphorical and abstract world of idioms. They prefer to express their emotions and thoughts with emojis or globally popular English expressions. This weakness and disconnection deprive young people of the rich world of associations in Turkish.”
Idioms are the flavor and spice of Turkish
Emphasizing once more that protecting idioms is vital for preserving the identity of Turkish, Duman concluded, “Because idioms are the flavor and spice of Turkish. You cannot sustain a language with grammar rules alone. What give it taste, scent, and color are idioms. A language that does not protect its idioms gradually becomes mechanical, turns into a translation language, and loses its originality. If we want to pass on our identity, humor, and intelligence to future generations, we must learn our idioms correctly, teach them properly, and use them widely.