The Gerund (verbal modifier) - iken - while..
There are various ways of describing time relationships in English, consider:
- When I saw him, I waved at him
- When I see him,I shall wave at him
- As soon as I see him I shall wave at him
- Whenever I see him I wave at him
- Every time I see him I wave at him
- If I see him, I shall wave at him
It can be seen from above that the Adverbial Clause of time has a slightly different sense in relation to tense, time and duration.
The Adverbial Clause of Time are best studied by example, as it is sometimes rather difficult at first to relate the English Constructions to the corresponding Turkish ones.
Turkish uses the Relative Adjectival Participles widely and at first sight they may be difficult to analyze.
They are logical constructions however, and as such a little reading and study will be rewarding in hastening understanding.
Some uses of iken or -ken or -yken - while..
iken can stand alone or be suffixed as -ken (when added to consonants) or -yken (when added to vowels).
It is invariable and does not follow the rules of vowel harmony. It is indeclineable and does not take further suffixes.
iken is used when the verb action is continuous at a point in time. It may also follow an adjective.
Use of iken with the Present Tenses
-ken is always suffixed to the verb tense sign.
As the subject is not always evident, then it is normally stated as in the examples below.
- Ben kasabaya yürürken, onu gördüm
- I saw him while (I was) walking to town
- Ben, onu kasabaya yürürken, gördüm
- I saw him while he was walking to town
- Biz kasabaya yürüyorken, onu gördüm
- I saw him while we were walking to town
- Siz dans ediyorken, dinleneyim
- Let me rest while you are dancing
- Onlar dans ederken, dinlenelim
- Let's rest while they dance
In the first three examples above it can be seen that the Personal Subject Pronouns have to be used to point to the subject, as iken can not be suffixed to pronouns.
The last two examples show a slight difference in meaning due to the differing use in the Wide Tense (Geniş Zaman) and Present Continuous Tenses
Use of iken with Adjectives
iken can be used with adjectives, in this case it can stand alone or be suffixed:
- Ben, hasta iken (hastayken), uyurum - I sleep while (when) I am ill
- Biz, o hastayken, merak ettik - While he was ill, we worried
- Onlar, siz uykuda iken, meşgul olacaklar - They will be busy while you are asleep
- Uykudayken, soyuldular - They were robbed while they were asleep - (the 3rd Person Plural comes from the last verb - it been in the Passive Mood thus states the subject)
Note the use of the Subject Pronouns to make the meaning clear
Use of iken with the Past Tenses
If the action is continuous in the past then iken can be translated into English: - As ....were ..ing
Consider some of the examples above:
- As I was going to town I saw him.
- As we were going to town I saw him.
- Ben İngiltere'deyken, yağmur yağdı - Past Definite Tense
- While I was in England, it rained
- Biz İngiltere'ye giderken, yağmur yağıyordu. - Past Continuous Tense
- As we were going to England it was raining
iken - Used to translate - just as...
A further construction with iken is - just as.. or right at the moment that...
This construction uses the word - tam - complete - to introduce the Adverbial Clause at the point in time:
- Biz tam evden çıkarken, yağmur yağmağa başladı
- Just as we were leaving the house it started to rain.
- Onlar tam kapıyı açarken, anahtar koptu.
- Just as they were opening the door the key broke
The use of - iken - with the Future Tense
This means - just as I was about to... or instead of..
When attached to the Future Tense the meaning of iken becomes instead of...
- İngiltere'ye gidecekken, Türkiye'de kaldık.
- Instead of going to England we stayed in Turkey
This may seem difficult to understand but it can be analyzed that iken - as/while - is suffixed to the Future Participle - gidecek meaning - that about to go/which will go - and the Turkish aspect becomes apparent.
We, while about to go to England, did something different - (ie. We stayed in Turkey.)
This sense is best translated into English as: instead of... -ing
- Türkiye'de kalacakken, İngiltere'ye gidelim.
- Instead of staying in Turkey let's go to England.
iken - Used with the Negative Wide Tense (Geniş Zaman)
This means: though not... or while it isn't..
Example for -mezken.. -mazken..
(Note: This is kind of a little official language . You can only hear these sentences in news or commercials.)
Example 1
- Galatasaray'ın yıldız futbolcularından Necati Ates, kendilerine ödeme yapılamazken, bazı yabancı oyuncuların alacaklarının verildiğini duymanın üzüntü verici oluğunu söyledi.
- One of the star players of Galatasaray, Necati Ates, has said that it was disappointing to hear that some foreign players' debts had been paid while there can not be a payment for themselves.
Example 2
- Konu hakkinda henüz herhangi bir bilgiye ulaşılamazken, araştırmaların devam ettiği bildirildi.
-
Here is the "Turkish" English.
- It has been told that the investigations keep on while any information can't be reached yet about the subject .
-
Here is the "English" English.
- Although as yet no information can be communicated about the subject, it has been stated that investigations are continuing.
We can see some differences of tense and negation in the change from "Turkish" English to "English" English.
This is because of:
(A) Basic Grammatical Structure Differences between the two languages.
(B) The Difference in Local daily usage of each language.
(C) It also underlines the fact that literal translation between the two languages is often difficult - and it is better to arrive a suitable translation in one's own language.
Of course the above examples could be translated into English in a different way whilst still retaining the intended meaning in Turkish.
Usually a positive statement follows this negative form..
The Conversational Method
In order to get the meaning for - Though not... or while it isn't..
- Çalışmazken susuzum
- Sürmezken yolu bilirim.
In order to get the meaning for - though not... or while it isn't..
We use - a rağmen - in spite of..
We should use these sentences:
- Çalışmamama rağmen susuzum.
- Ben sürmememe rağmen yolu bilirim.
Explanation
Sür-me-me-m-e - (1st -me is negation suffix, 2nd -me is noun producing suffix, -m is suffix for 1st sing. Person. -e is suffix for dative case). Conversational stress is on the first syllable, preceding the negation suffix.
Further Expanation
So let us look at this construction more closely - bilmememe ragmen - means - Although I dont/didnt know - and this is correct (although it may seem a little strange.)
Let us break it down..... Bilmek - to know (something)
- Bil : know
- Bilme : (do)not know
- but also : knowing (that someone knows)
- Bilmem : I dont know
- but also : My knowing (that I know)
- Bilmeme : Not knowing (that someone doesnt/didnt know)
- Bilmemem : My not knowing (that I dont/didnt know)
- -e ragmen : In spite of...
- Bilmememe ragmen : In spite of my not knowing - Although I dont/didnt know
iken - Used with Past Participle in -miş
This means - having done...
- Aklıma gelmişken, söyleyeyim.. - Having come to (my) mind, Let me tell you..
- Hazır gelmişken bir kahveni içelim... - Having already come, let us drink a coffee of yours..
