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Bungün Pazar

By Nazim Hikmet - Ottoman Empire, 1902–1963
Transitional | Revolution and Resistance

Bugün pazar.
Bugün beni ilk defa güneşe çıkardılar.
Ve ben ömrümde ilk defa gökyüzünün
bu kadar benden uzak
bu kadar mavi
bu kadar geniş olduğuna şaşarak
kımıldamadan durdum.
Sonra saygıyla toprağa oturdum,
dayadım sırtımı duvara.
Bu anda ne düşmek dalgalara,
bu anda ne kavga, ne hürriyet, ne karım.
Toprak, güneş ve ben…
Bahtiyarım…

 

WORD
DEFINITION
POSSIBLE SYNONYMS
bahtiyarım (adj.) favored by good luck or fortune I'm lucky, I'm fortunate, I'm blessed
ben / beni (pron.) used to refer to the speaker I, me
benden (prep + pron.) away from the speaker from me
bu anda (adv.) referring to a particular moment in time at this moment, in the moment, at that time, at the time, then
bu kadar (adv.) to a great extent so, so much, extremely, remarkably
bugün (n.) literally means "this sun" today, this day, present day
çıkardılar (v.) from the verb çıkarmak—to remove or take out they took me out, they let me out, they brought me out
dalgalara (n.) bodies of water curling into arched forms; large expanse of sea the waves, the ocean, the waters, the deep blue
dayadım (v.) from the verb dayanmak—to lean upon something I leaned, I propped, I rested, I positioned
durdum (v.) from the verb durdur—to come to a stop I kept, I stood, I stayed, I paused
düşmek (adj.) moving downward, typically rapidly and freely without control l falling, rolling, collapsing, plunging, ebbing, tumbling
duvara (n.) a continuous vertical brick or stone structure that encloses or divides an area of land (up against the) wall, barrier, partition, enclosure, rampart, fortification, panel, barricade
geniş (adj.) covering or affecting a large area wide, broad, expansive, spacious, vast, carefree
gökyüzünün (n.) the region of the atmosphere and outer space seen from earth the sky, the heavens, heaven, the firmament, the blue yonder
güneş / güneşe (n.) the natural light of the day sun, sunshine, sunlight, daylight, light of day
hürriyet (n.) the state of not being imprisoned or enslaved freedom, liberty, independence
ilk defa (adv.) the first occurrence of something notable for the first time
karım (adj. + n.) the woman married to the speaker my wife, my spouse, my better half, my woman, my significant other
kavga (n.) a forceful or violent act of confrontation struggle, conflict, fighting, quarreling
kımıldamadan (adj.) not moving or making a sound still, quiet, unmoving, motionless, stock-still, immobile, transfixed, static
mavi (adj.) of a color intermediate between green and violet, as of the sky or sea or sunny day blue, azure, sky blue, powder blue
ne (adv.) used to form a negative no, not, neither
olduğuna (conj.) introducing a subordinate clause expressing a statement or hypothesis that, which
ömrümde (prep. phrase) referring to the entire period of one’s existence in my life
oturdum (v.) the past tense of the verb oturmak—to sit down I sat, I sat down
Pazar / pazar (n.) the first day of the week; market Sunday, market day, market, bazaar, fair
şaşarak (n.) feeling of wonder or surprise amazement, astonishment, wonder, awe
saygıyla (adv.) full of a sense of worth with respect, with esteem, with dignity, respectfully
sırtımı (adj. + n.) the part of the speaker’s body that extends from the neck to the lower end of the spine my back, my spine, my torso
sonra (adv.) immediately or soon afterward then, next, after
toprak / toprağa (n.) the solid surface of the earth earth, dirt, ground, land, soil
ve (conj.) additionally and
uzak (adj.) far off or apart in space distant, remote, far off, faraway

Bio

Nâzım Hikmet was the first great modern Turkish poet. His mother was an artist and his grandmother was a poet. Born in the Ottoman Empire, he went to Moscow at age twenty to study at the university. In 1923 Turkey declared itself a republic after fighting a war for independence. When Hikmet returned to Turkey he was persecuted for his communist ideas. He was imprisoned for a total of fifteen years, often in terrible conditions. He was forced to leave Turkey in 1952 and lived out the rest of his life in exile. In 2009 the Turkish government finally restored citizenship to the late poet.

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