DYK? Naim Suleymanoglu is a 3 time Olympic gold medalist looking for his fourth in 2000 Sydney, Australia. Naim Suleymanoglu (aka "Pocket Hercules") brings honor to Turkey and has brought much interest in weightlifting to the young. Here is another nice article about Naim Suleymanoglu at the
1996 Atlanta Olympics site.
DYK? The first cannons used in warfare were used by the Turks in the
15th century.
DYK? Turkish archers were able to
shoot 60 arrows in 1 minute (That's 1 arrow per second!), while riding
their horse at full gallop & facing the rear.
DYK? The record for the farthest distance (over 900 yards) that an arrow
has been shot by a human in the conventional manner is held by an Ottoman
Turk Khan almost 200 years ago. Even with all our scientific &
mathematical advancements, modern archers are still not able to reach
over 850 yards. Archers have recently started to develop similar arrow
shafts with man-made materials to achieve their goal. We shall see ;) Here
is an informative article on
Turkish
flight arrows by the Journel of the Society of
Archers-Antiquaries
DYK? Tulips are the flowers of the Turks. They are called "Lale."
Dutch merchants found these flowers in the Ottoman Khan's palace and when
they asked, "what are they called?" the translator thought the Dutch
merchant was interested in the name of the turban headgear which in
Turkish is "Tulbend". So, from then on the flower known to all the Turks
from Turkiye to China as "Lale" was taken and made famous to the world
by the Dutch as the
TULIP
DYK? Miniature art often called "islamic
art" by Europeans is an old Turkish art form dating back to the Uygur
Turks (744-1038 AD)
DYK? The Crescent Moon & Sun found on the
Turkish flag are ancient Turk symbols of celestial gods and not Islamic
symbols.
DYK? Coffee
and Paprika and many other spices and foods were
introduced to Europe by the Turks during their long seiges of the city of
Vienna, Austria.
DYK? Yogurt
is a Turkish word and the food was invented by the nomadic, Turk horsemen
of the Asian Steppe. The milk of their cattle, sheep, and horse were
found to be best kept for longer durations of time in the cold weather
in the form of yogurt. It is still a main staple of the Turks even today.
DYK? Turkish food is among the 3 cuisines of the world. (Chinese,
French, & Turkish)
DYK? The actor named
David Chokachi ("Cody" on "Baywatch") is half Scandinavian & half
Turkish.
DYK? The lead singer (Ali Campbell) of the
UB40 reggae
music group is a Turk. Click to the UB40 site (he's the 5th from the
left and his brother is on the farthest right of the photo)
DYK? The first military band in history was created by the Ottoman
Turks? They gave great morale on marches, during battle, and were also
known to distract defending soldiers of a seiged city.
DYK? The Ottoman Turk military band's light & airy tempos and
instruments influenced great 18th century classical composers such as
Mozart, Haydin, & Beethoven.
DYK? Christmas's loveable figure "Santa Claus" had a TAN!!! "Santa
Claus" is based on a real life man named
Saint Nicholas who lived in Southern Turkey. He was not
only the patron saint of children but also of travelers.
DYK? The Virgin Mary lived the last years of her life in Western
Turkiye.
DYK? Trousers (pants) were created by the nomadic horsemen Turks of
Central Asia? Unlike sedentary "city people" who wore robes or skirts to
cover their legs, the horse riding Turks had to have clothing that would
not be an inpedement to riding horses so the Baggy Trouser was created.
DYK? The croissant was created by the French bakers to symbolize the
Turkish crescent moon. So when they ate the croissant they could feel a
sort of victory over the Turk which they could not get on the battle field
during those days :)
