Çorum Praises, Curses, Oaths and Comparisons

Compiled by Can Yoksul and published in 2013 as a culture publication of the Çorum Municipality, Çorum Yöresi Sözlü Kültürü (“The Oral Culture of the Çorum Region”) includes, alongside proverbs and idioms, categories such as praise, curses (imprecations, maledictions), oaths and comparisons; the book contains more than 27,000 sayings arranged from A to Z (Çorum Yöresi Sözlü Kültürü, p. VII). For details on how the book was compiled and its scope, see Çorum Proverbs and Idioms. This page presents only a small sample selected from the book, divided into four categories.

Praises

In the Çorum dialect, compliments about a person or thing were often sealed with “maşallah,” an expression warding off the evil eye:

• Bayram koçu gibi süslenmişsin maşallah. — “You’re decked out like a festival ram, God bless you (maşallah).” (p. 120)
• Civan gibi delikanlı maşallah. — “A young man like a civan [a handsome, vigorous youth], God bless.” (p. 194)
• Eti budu yerinde maşallah. — “Well-built and healthy, God bless.” (p. 296)
• Kırk bir kere maşallah! — “God bless him forty-one times over!” (p. 448)
• Maşallahı var gencin, tam bir akıl kutusu. — “God bless the young man, he’s a real box of wisdom.” (p. 493)
• Pırlanta gibi bir evladınız var maşallah. — “You have a child like a diamond, God bless.” (p. 542)
• Turp gibi maşallah, sağlığı çok yerinde. — “Fresh as a radish, God bless, his health is excellent.” (p. 611)
• Aslan gibi delikanlı. — “A young man like a lion.” (p. 71)

Curses

• Allah belanı versin, acılardan kıvrım kıvrım kıvrılasın. — “May God curse you, may you writhe in coils of pain.” (p. 39)
• Allah cami gibi dert, minare gibi fitil versin. — “May God give you trouble as big as a mosque, and torment as long as a minaret.” (p. 40)
• Allah seni kahretsin! — “God damn you!” (p. 47)
• Allah ocağını batırsın. — “May God ruin your household.” (p. 46)
• Allah sana katar katar düşman versin. — “May God give you enemies in endless lines.” (p. 47)
• Allah sana uyuz versin de tırnak vermesin. — “May God give you mange but no nails to scratch it.” (p. 47)
• Allah sırtına yorgan vermesin, boynuna urgan versin. — “May God not give a quilt for your back, but a rope for your neck.” (p. 47)
• Allah seni yerin dibine batırsın. — “May God sink you into the depths of the earth.” (p. 47)

Oaths

• Vallahi billahi. — “By God, by God” — an emphatic oath formula. (p. 626)
• Yemin billah etsen de inanmam sana. — “Even if you swear by God, I won’t believe you.” (p. 650)
• Yemini çok edenin yalanı da çoktur. — “One who swears a lot also lies a lot.” (p. 650)
• Doğru söz yemin istemez. — “A true word needs no oath.” (p. 248)
• Tanrı, Muhammet, Ali üzerine yemin eder misin? — “Will you swear by God, Muhammad and Ali?” (p. 597)
• Bütün kutsal kitaplar üzerine yemin ederim ki… — “I swear on all the holy books that…” (p. 173)
• Yemin etsem başım ağrımaz. — “Even if I swear, it won’t hurt me [i.e. I won’t hesitate to swear].” (p. 650)

Comparisons

• Barut fıçısı gibisin gene. — “You’re like a barrel of gunpowder again.” (p. 110)
• Çengelli iğne gibisin, yakaladığın elinden kurtulamıyor. — “You’re like a safety pin — whatever you grab can’t get free.” (p. 206)
• Çakmak taşı gibisin, vurdukça kıvılcım saçıyorsun. — “You’re like a flint stone — the more you’re struck, the more sparks you throw.” (p. 198)
• Kaf Dağı’nın buzları gibisin, hiç eriyip aktığın yok. — “You’re like the ice of Mount Kaf [a mythical mountain] — you never melt or flow.” (p. 416)
• Mola taşı gibisin, olduğun yerden kıpırdamıyorsun. — “You’re like a mola taşı — you never budge from where you stand.” The book glosses mola taşı as “a resting-stone once set at street corners for porters to lean on while resting.” (p. 499)
• Fırıldak gibisin, rüzgârın esişine göre dönüyorsun. — “You’re like a weathervane, turning with whichever way the wind blows.” (p. 309)
• Kurbağa gibi hem karadasın hem sudasın. — “Like a frog, you’re on land and in water at once.” (p. 472)
• Deve gibi hantallaştı iyice. — “He’s grown as clumsy as a camel.” (p. 237)

Related Pages

• Çorum Proverbs and Idioms
• Çorum Dictionary
• Birth and Marriage Traditions in Çorum

Sources

• Can Yoksul, Çorum Yöresi Sözlü Kültürü (The Oral Culture of the Çorum Region), Çorum Belediyesi Kültür Yayını, Çorum 2013, ISBN 978-605-64210-0-6, pp. VII, 39-40, 46-47, 71, 110, 120, 173, 194, 198, 206, 237, 248, 296, 309, 416, 448, 472, 493, 499, 542, 597, 611, 626, 650. https://www.corum.bel.tr/public/uploads/2023/05/corum-yoresi.pdf

Frequently asked questions

What is a beddua (curse/imprecation)?

In folk culture, a beddua is a spoken imprecation wishing harm or punishment on someone. In Çorum Yöresi Sözlü Kültürü, this type of saying is listed under 'Beddualar (İlençler-Kargışlar)' (curses, imprecations, maledictions).

Does this page cover every example in the book?

No. The book contains over 27,000 sayings; this page offers only a small sample of praises, curses, oaths and comparisons.

Does the book contain crude or degrading language?

According to editor İbrahim Gösterir's foreword, profanity was excluded from the collection. This page likewise contains no crude, sexist or degrading sayings.