Nouns: Genitive Case

01

The Possessor Suffix: -(n)in/ın/un/ün

The first noun in the phrase, the possessor, takes a genitive suffix. The specific vowel used in the suffix is determined by the last vowel of the noun, following four-way vowel harmony.

• If the last vowel is e or i, use -in.
• If the last vowel is a or ı, use -ın.
• If the last vowel is o or u, use -un.
• If the last vowel is ö or ü, use -ün.

• evin

  of the house

• adamın

  of the man

• doktorun

  of the doctor

• sürücünün

  of the driver

If the noun already ends in a vowel, a buffer letter n is added before the suffix.

• araba + ın → arabanın

  of the car

• kedi + in → kedinin

  of the cat

• ütü + ün → ütünün

  of the iron

An exception to this rule is the word su (water), which uses the buffer letter y instead of n.

• su + un → suyun

  of the water

02

The Possessed Suffix: -(s)i/ı/u/ü

The second noun in the phrase, the item being possessed, must take a third-person possessive suffix. This also follows four-way vowel harmony.

• If the last vowel is e or i, use -i.
• If the last vowel is a or ı, use -ı.
• If the last vowel is o or u, use -u.
• If the last vowel is ö or ü, use -ü.

If this noun ends in a vowel, a buffer letter s is added before the suffix.

• araba + ı → arabası

  his/her/its car

• kapı + ı → kapısı

  his/her/its door

• pencere + i → penceresi

  his/her/its window

03

Putting It All Together

To form a complete possessive phrase, you combine the two parts: [Possessor + Genitive Suffix] + [Possessed + Possessive Suffix].

• evin kapısı

  the house's door (literally: of the house, its door)

• arabanın anahtarı

  the car's key

• okulun müdürü

  the school's director

Note that when a possessive suffix starting with a vowel is added to a noun ending in p, ç, t, or k, these consonants often soften to b, c, d, and ğ respectively.

• kitap → öğretmenin kitabı

  the teacher's book

• ağaç → bahçenin ağacı

  the garden's tree

04

Genitive Case with Pronouns

Personal pronouns also have genitive forms, which are used to express "my," "your," "his/her/its," etc.

• ben → benim (my)
• sen → senin (your)
• o → onun (his/her/its)
• biz → bizim (our)
• siz → sizin (your, plural/formal)
• onlar → onların (their)

These act as the possessor in a possessive phrase.

• onun adı

  his/her name

• benim arabam

  my car

• sizin eviniz

  your house