New year is just around the corner. Some of us have already started to collect postcards with snow views and snowman theme. Behind these cards we have written our wishes and hopes for the new year. The red -green gift wrappings are also ready. Inside them, they carry gifts that are small in size but big in meaning.

While in big cities, people that don’t know each other welcome the first moments of the new year in the most famous streets, some say ‘ Merhaba*’ to new year with their families. Some prepare a feast and enjoy their favourite show’s new year special episode. And some people come together with friends, steep tea and spend a peaceful night. Though it is celebrated in different ways, almost everyone sees the new year as a passage that some things may change. A passage to read more books, to travel more, to diet healthier, and for a better ‘ me’. And this is true in a way. New year is a chance.

We can add more meaning to the new year than a couple of changing numbers. Just like people who come from different races, cultures and backgrounds and try to find and navigate their ways in life, people in Turkey also celebrate new year maybe in different ways but with similar hopes.

Here Are Your Options If You’re In Turkey

If you’re going to celebrate this new year in Turkey and you don’t have a plan yet, don’t worry. You can certainly find a suitable one out of all the options. Join the open air concerts in big cities like Istanbul and celebrate the first minutes of new year with fireworks. If you’d like to have your way a little more snowy, you can celebrate a white new year in ski centers in Uludağ, Bursa. Not to mention the fireplaces and fires outside that will warm you. If the crowded big cities are not for you, you can also join the new year celebrations that take place in nature friendly little cities and towns. Ağva which is connected to Şili/ Istanbul can be a suitable example for this. With the green of nature, the red of the fireplace that will make you warm and white snow, you can say hello to new year.

 How Can I Say ‘’ Happy New Year’’ in Turkish?

So, how can we say ‘ Happy New Year! ‘ to the people we meet in this of the year? Let us share the most common two sentences with you. The first one is ‘ Yeni Yılınız Kutlu Olsun !*’ and the other one is ‘ Mutlu Yıllar!*’ . Both express a wish that we hope to be real for the person we are speaking to. And thus you can come together on a shared moment and common ground with people you have just met. A mother saying to celebrate new year is ‘Yeni Yılınız Bolluk Bereket Getirsin!*’. By saying this, we express our hope from new year to bring goodness, health and good fortune for us all.

Now, It is time to take a deep breath, count down from ten and say ‘’ Hoş Geldin*’’ to new year!

Turkish4 family wishes you a happy new year!

* Merhaba means ‘’Hello ‘’ in Turkish.

*Yeni Yılınız Kutlu Olsun and Mutlu Yıllar both mean ‘ Happy New Year!’

* Yeni Yılınız Bolluk Bereket Getirsin means that we hope from new year to bring us abundance both materially and spiritually.

*Hoşgeldin means ‘’ Welcome’’ in Turkish.

Translator: Esra Nur Elmas

For those who are learning Turkish we recommend you to read the article again by comparing the Turkish one to improve your Turkish!