Ok, so I just started the Beginner´s lessons and have a question. I hope this is the right place to ask? So, the letter "ö" is pronounced as "u" in "urge", right? I´m not a native English speaker so that basically sounds as a shwa to me, is that right?

Anyways, I´m from Bulgaria and we do have the word "göl" in Bulgarian and the "ö" is pronounced as "yo" (so it´s pronounced "gyol") - I was wondering, is that a completely wrong pronounciation? Or are there maybe some Turkish dialects that pronounce it that way?

Yes! And llike the "ö" in Göthe or Goethe (German).

does "Bu çok güzel bir arabaydı." mean: "This was a very beautiful/nice car."?

 Correct ! [Doğru!]

another short question: in the word "yaşındayım" - what´s the "ın"? is that the genitive? so "yaşın" -> "of the age"?

In a simpliest way , it is as you guessed " of " , literally ; At the age of

at =  da

age = yaş

ı =  of

n= buffer letter

-----------------------------------

Yaşında

Example =  Ben 36 yaşındayım ----> I am at the age of 36 [ I am 36 years old ]

in one of the exercises there´s the following example: "benim saatim" - shouldn´t it be "benim saatım"? or is this an exception from the rule (or maybe just a typo)?

Arabic loan words are often an exception what comes to vowel harmony. So is saat. If you are not certain check the word in the dictionary. For instance

saat ,-ti
1. hour.
2. time; time of day.
3. clock; watch; timepiece.
4. (electricity, gas, or water) meter; taximeter; speedometer.
5. an hour´s walk; the distance that can be traveled in an hour.

(www.turkishdictionary.net)

In the word "dükkân" - what´s the meaning of the sign above the letter "a"? In the alphabet lesson there was no mention of that sign...does it change the way "a" is pronounced or something else?

That sign is called " Circumflex accent " [inceltme işareti, uzatma işareti].

"^" may stand over the vowels a,i and u.  [in loanwords]

One of it´s function is; [inceltme]

- Standing over the letter "a" which is preceded by g,k or l, the circumflex indicates that a "y" sound to be pronounced between the consonant and the following "a". In the syllable "la"  the "y" sound is fainter than in the syllable "ga" and "ka".

Gâvur ---> Heathen

Kâr ---> Profit

Lâle ---> Tulip

I will add some further information to Tunci´s answer

I am told this sign is no longer used in modern Turkish.

But some dictionaries  still use this symbol, as it helps to differentiate words that are spelt the same, but have different meanings. The words will sound different when spoken.

For example

Kâr ---> Profit, Kar ---> Snow

Hâlâ ---> still, Hala ---> Paternal Aunt

Hâlâ mı? ---> Is it still going on?

Hâkim ---> dominant, Hakim ---> Wise man

this is a really helpful post

another question, in one of the exercises there´s the following example: "onlar zengindir" -> shouldn´t it be " onlar zenginler"?

"yaşındayım" is incorrect.. this error is so common that even masters often commit it and never realize if it is actually a mistake  

It should be yaşımdayım

yaşım (1st sg)

yaşın (2nd sg)

yaşı (3rd sg)

yaşımız (1st pl)

yaşınız (2nd pl)

yaşları (3rd pl)

Examples:

Bu genç yaşımda hasta oldum.

Bu yaşımda bunlar da mı gelecekti başıma? 

Yaşımı sordu, söylemedim. 

Yaşımı öğrenip ne yapacaksın? 

Sence yaşım kaç?

Ben yaşımı başımı almış bir adamım.

etc... 

Really scalpel this is such a shock for me always I have used yasindayim, and always I have seen it used. It is true you do learn something new every day

Thanks

But when we´re saying how old we are (or someone else) should we use "yaşındayım"? I always thought it works like this:

I am 25 years old => Yirmi beş yaşındayım

Yirmi beş yaşı => Age of 25

Yirmi beş yaşı - n (buffer letter) - da ("in") - y (buffer letter) - ım (I am)  ==> I am in the age of 25

But numbers are adjectives. There is no need for a possessive suffix (and pronominal -n- respectively) in the following word yaş.

It´s more about where the possessive refers, to the person like scalpel says or to the concept of age (like years of age in English).

Yes, this is exactly what I wanted to say - I always thought that it is possesive refering to the concept of age (I meant "age of 25", not "25 ages").

And what might actually add to speakers´ uncertainty is the ambiguity of the question

              Kaç yaşındasın?

because it could be

yaş|ın|da|sın = stem + POSS sg2nd + LOC + ´to be´ sg2nd

OR yaş|ı|n|da|sın = stem + POSS sg3rd + -n- + LOC + ´to be´ sg2nd.

Such a shock for me (a native speaker who has never ever used the form "yaşımdayım") as well!

Yes but "25 yaş" means "25 years" as a quantity.

If you want to point out to a specific year youn eed to say "25nci yaş"  meaning "25th year".

"25 yaşı" means "year of 25".

So I would parse it as:

25 yaşındayım = I am at the year of 25.

And by the way "yıl" and "yaş" are both the same word in Turkish meaning "year". The same word mutated over years in different ways.

There are three different interpretations for the reference of the POSS in this thread now.

1. The years belong to the one who lived them says scalpel.

2. The years are earmarked because they appear in a compound says si++.

3. The years belong to an abstract concept of age say tomac and Abla.

tomac, I have a feeling we are going to lose this.

If you google "yaşındayım yaşımdayım" you get many natives´ discussions about this issue. Too complicated for me. I even found a poll about which alternative is correct.

Yes, that´s the gist of the issue.. when an adjective modifies a noun there is no need for the possessive suffix.. 

oda kapı-sı (noun compound) 

Yeşil kapı (adjective compound)

As the numbers are adjective, they should follow the rule..

2 saat

5 hafta

3 yıl

25 yaş

Let´s use them in sentences..

Deney 2 saat sürdü

5 hafta sonra tekrar karşılaştılar

İnşaat 3 yılda bitti

Bedelli askerlik 25 yaşla sınırlı

They may appear in noun compounds.

Bunun (2 saat) i

Sürecin (ilk 5 hafta) sı

İnşaatın (3 yıl) ı

(25 yaş   ı-n-ı bitirme şartı

As you can easily see, the possessive suffix at the end belongs to the noun that is placed at the beginning of the group. (there is an inlaid pronoun in the last sentence: (onların /25 yaş/ ı.. )

From this point of view, "25 yaşı" is grammatically impossible on its own.. and I am wondering how a native with a good grammar knowledge claims it to be so!. 

On the other hand, it is grammatically correct to say "25 yaştayım" which actually means "I am in the age of 25", but we never use it.

Not using 1st person possessive, may cause some problems. For example, 

Ankara´ya ilk kez 5 yaşındayken gittim is deemed to be clear even if it is not yaşımdayken, but 

Ali´yi ilk kez 5 yaşındayken gördüm is not clear.. Whose age is 5? Ali´s? or the speaker´s? Without the context 51% would claim it is Ali´s, and 49% would claim it is the speaker´s..

If it is the speaker´s age, we need to rewrite sentence with using -ım instead of -in..

Ali´yi ilk kez 5 yaşımdayken gördüm.

If using yaşımdayken solved the problem why shouldn´t I use it? What is grammatically wrong with it? We are free to say evimdeyim, for instance, köyümdeyim, sözümdeyim, odamdayım, but not free to say yaşımdayım.. interesting eh? 

Which is grammatically correct

Ali benim yaşında or Ali benim yaşımda?

Those who claim it should be the former, have to explain how 2nd person poss can follow f1st person poss: benim yaşın!

I wonder if they also say benim evin, benim odan, benim fikrin, benim geleceğin, etc, etc, etc,

..

As I said in my first post to this thread, using yaşın instead of yaşım in some cases is a common error and this error is so common that even a grammar man can commit it and never realize if it is actually a mistake..

yaş+ım+ı (never yaşını with 1st p.sg)

yaşımı sorma, yaşımı tahmin et.. 

yaş+ım+da (never yaşında with 1st p.sg)

yaşımda ne varmış? bu yaşımda bunu da gördüm..

* a sentence like, "bu yaşında Ankara´ya gidemem" is incorrect, it should either be "bu yaşta" (in this age) or "bu yaşımda" (in this age of mine) 

* a sentence like, "benim yaşında birisi" is a crime against the Turkish Language

yaş+ım+ın (never yaşının with 1st p.sg)

yaşımın gereği, yaşımın nesi var?

yaş+ım+dan (never yaşından with 1st p.sg)

yaşımdan utandım, yaşımdan sana ne?

* a sentence like, "bu yaşından sonra Ankara´da yaşayamam" is incorrect, it should either be "bu yaştan" or "bu yaşımdan".

yaş+ım+a (never yaşına with 1st p.sg)

yaşıma bakma, yaşıma göre dinçim..

* a sentence like, "bu yaşına kadar Ankara´da yaşadım" is incorrect, it should either be "bu yaşa" or "bu yaşıma".

...

Last words for the learners.. I just explained which is grammatically correct.. but, of course, you are free to make your choice  

I guess it shold be me. So I should explain.

If it is claimed "25 yaşım" to be grammatically correct then "25 yaşı" should be correct as well right?

Both of them have a possessive suffix in the end.

And nobody can deny the existence of the following verb:

x yaşında olmak = to be x years old

Just apply personal endings to it:

x yaşında-yım = I am x years old

x yaşında-sın = you are x years old

x yaşında = he/she/it is x years old

x yaşında-yız = we are x years old

x yaşında-sınız =you are x years old

x yaşında-lar = they are x years old

I don´t think I have ever said "x yaşımdayım" so far and I don´t think I ever will. My brain just doesn´t work that way.

If it is claimed "25 yaşım" to be grammatically correct then "25 yaşı" should be correct as well right?

Both of them have a possessive suffix in the end.

Good point.. Let´s see where it will lead us to

First, remember,  I said "on its own"..

No adjective compound takes a possessive suffix.. unless modified by a noun..

For example, it is always "yeşil kapı"..

If you say "yeşil kapım", you have to accept that there is this 1st p.poss.adj "benim" (inlaid or not) modifying the group:

benim /yeşil kapı/ m. 

And this is no more an adjective compound but a noun compound..

Likewise, "yeşil kapısı" needs "onun" : onun yeşil kapısı

Good.. now, let me go back to "25 yaş"..

Of course, 25 yaşı is possible too..

But the thing you forget is this 3rd p.poss. adj that you need to use to modify the group: onun..

In other words, "(onun) 25 yaşı" is for 3rd.person singular. 

This is where it leads us to  And you think 3rd p.poss can be applied to 1st person?

Ali 25 yaş-ı-n-da  (n is buffer letter)

Let´s see how it works with 2nd p.sg:

Sen 25 yaş-ın-da-sın (-ın is poss for 2nd person)

So, it is expected that 1st p.sg should take its own suffix: -ım

Ben 25 yaş-ım-da-yım

Q- Why 1st p.sg sould take -ı or -ın but not -ım which is its own?

And nobody can deny the existence of the following verb:

x yaşında olmak = to be x years old

No, there is no verb listed in the dictionaries as "x yaşında olmak" 

Don´t make up a new verb to describe/support your idea

x yaşındasın = you are x years old

x yaşında = he/she/it is x years old

x yaşındasınız =you are x years old

x yaşındalar = they are x years old

What confuses you all is that "yaşında" is used for both 2nd and 3rd person..

But as I explained above.. this resemblance is in appearance..

2nd p.=> yaş-ın-da- 

3rd p. => yaş-ı-n-da 

I don´t think I have ever said "x yaşımdayım" so far and I don´t think I ever will. 

You don´t (and will never) say "yaşımdayım", but you say "yaş-ım" and "yaş-ım-da" ? 

Q- If the answer is yes, what is wrong with adding "-y-ım" to it? (yaş-ım-da-y-ım )

If the answer is no, I will be really looking for your explanation that I´m sure it will be very interesting..

My brain just doesn´t work that way.

I think, it´s nothing to do with brain.. if it was up to the brain/knowledge of grammar, we all would know it´s an error.. but apparently most of us don´t know..

There must be a reasonable explanation for why we often prefer "yaşındayım" to "yaşımdayım"..

But just because it is preferable doesn´t make it grammatically correct.. that´s my point..  

What if the common use of 3^rd person POSS here is a result of ellipsis:

                            (hayatımın/yaşamımın/yaşlarımın) 25 yaşındayım ?

Would it make any sense? I mean only in this particular idiomatic case where age is told. There has to be an explanation why so many natives feel it’s ok even though there is a grammatical problem in it.

...but then it would be: yirmibeşinci =>25th

Hayatımın 25. yaşındayım (hayatımın yirmibeşinci yaşındayım)

I agree.. "there has to be.."

But nobody (from the other camp) has yet come up with a good explanation  

It´s right there! And everybody using it. Just google "yaşında olmak" and you will see many hits.

My brain can sense the difference between "yaşımdayım" and "yaşındayım". But it just prefers "yaşındayım" automatically. Doesn´t bother with the other. Never!

Coçuk sigara bulamadığında ise etrafa saldırıyor.

  WHY is there both da and ise ?

 attached suffix "da" onto the verb works as " when, whenever"

            VERB + DIK [DİK,DUK,DÜK] + I [U,Ü,İ] + [buffer N] +  PERSON + DA, DE

Buraya   gel    + dik + i + m + de   kimse yoktu.

Buraya   geldiğimde kimse yoktu. ---> There was nobody when I came [arrived] here.

m --> I

de --> when

The sentence above refers past tense.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

 Ankara´ya  gittiğimde annemi ziyaret edeceğim.-> I will visit my mom when I go to Ankara.

The sentence above refers future tense.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Okuldan mezun olduğumuzda iş tecrübemiz hiç yoktu.--> When we graduated from school ,we had no work experience at all.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

"ise" here  means " in the case that" , it refers to a specific situation.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

So, your sentence would be ;

Çocuk sigara bulamadığında ise etrafa saldırıyor.

The kid attacks around [everywhere] [in the case that] when he can´t  find [have] cigarettes.

 in the sentence above, the tense is sort of Aorist tense, as the kid does the habitual [addictive] act when he is lack of cigarette.

This type of errors are like a cancer cell.. it metastasize and consume its host..

Anyway, let´s go on with a grammar lesson for the learners then.. They never comment, but clearly they are there..reading.. and sometimes enjoying  

The following words are of the same blood type as "yaşında."

peşinde, gününde, ardında, kıvamında, sözünde, başında, havasında, tadında, izinde, kararında, niyetinde, umurunda, derdinde, modunda (I hate this one)..

Here is how we use them:

1. (X-in) + (Y-i(n)-de-y-im)

 There is always an X (=something/somebody) forming a noun compound with Y. For example, işin peşi)

Yeni bir (işin peşi)ndeyim

Hemen (senin ardın)dayım

Henüz (işin başındayım

(Atatürk´ün izi)ndeyim

Oraya (gitmeme kararındayım

Ankara´ya (gitme niyeti)ndeyim

(Kimin umuru)ndayım?

(Tatil modu)ndayım

2. (noun-im-de-y-im)

Inlaid or not there is always kendi/benim in the sentence

Merak etme hâlâ sözümdeyim

Bu aralar tam havamdayım

Şanslısın bugün iyi günümdeyim

Ben kendi derdimdeyim

Which group do you think "25 yaşı?dayım" should be in?

It is clear that it should be in the latter group: yaşımdayım.. (I explained it in one of my previous post that we always say: yaşım, yaşıma, yaşımı, yaşımda, yaşımdan, yaşımın, but when it comes to "yaşımdayım" the brains of the majority stop working.. )  

Dear learners, you can follow this error as well and say "xx yaşındayım".. Nobody would blame you for that.. but you should never use yaşın, yaşına, yaşını, yaşının, yaşında, yaşından for the 1st person (see post 23).. 

There it is, the reason. It´s analogy. Many analogic formings have ended up grammatical when they have spread wide enough.

As a linguist I sometimes wonder the level of scholarship of some commonmen here (scalpel is not a linguist, though, is he?). It´s kind of depressing to see that what you studied and what you know is general knowledge for some people. This material could with a little more effort be edited and published as a linguistic article.

I really,sincerely appreciate the work you all have come out with here. As some commentators say, this might be a piece of a linguist´s article with a tiny effort. As a linguist,I thank you for your contribution to both languages. Keep it up y´all!

You have made clear that you prefer

25 yaşımdayım

to

25 yaşındayım

OK? Let us consider height similar to age.

So which one do you say?

1.80 boyundayım

1.80 boyumdayım

Please feel welcome on the site, emreteacher. If you do some digging you will find some excellent grammar threads. At least I remember one about impersonal passive and one about modality not so long ago. I have a feeling good language threads were even more before my times. Unfortunately sometimes the headlines mislead you. If you follow the history of these gentlemen, for instance, you will find things that may inspire your thoughts also.

When a good discussion is on I may wake up at night at it is on my mind, or turn back in the street to check if had understood someone correct or not. It´s called happiness.

Here is a discussion :  http://www.turkcedersi.gen.tr/modules/newbbex/viewtopic.php?topic_id=195&forum=8

I agree with scalpel. I cant believe that

Don´t be ashamed of this...you are not alone! 

***

Gokuyum, may I ask if you don´t mind why did you edit this "short message" four times in 25 minutes?  

By the way, thank you for the link you gave, I went there and really got surprised to see the poor level of the contributors (I can´t believe they all are Turkish teachers!!!) May Allah protect our children from those teachers!!!

I think you decided to support me after seeing those guys´ incorrigible ignorance on Turkish grammar  da? nyet?

Thank you for asking this question..

No, I don´t say "1.80 boyundayım" but "1.75 boyundayım"  joking aside.. it is always "boyundayım"

Why? 

It is simple and clear..

"Ben 1.80 [metre boy-u]-n-da-y-ım" .. 

[metre boyu] is a noun compound..

So while the "metre" might not be there in word, it is there in meaning..

1.80 boyundayım..  

Likewise..

We say

75 kilo ağırlığındayım

[kilo ağırlığ-ı] is a noun compound

So there is no close relation between yaşımdayım and boyundayım/ ağırlığındayım

As Abla said the guilty is analogy 

"25 yaşımda, 1.80 boyunda, 75 kilo ağırlığındayım" => "25 yaşında, 1.80 boyunda, 75 kilo ağırlığındayım"

I think it is now totally clear..

I made some explanations on matter. But after reading previous posts I understood there was no need for further explanations and I deleted them.

You don´t need to be clear to me. I am clear and I am in "yaşındayım" camp. You´re totally confusing for learners.

25 yaş is a cardinal number (i.e. a quantity). If you want to say to be at/in something you need to use an ordinal number (birinci, ikinci, etc).

25 yaş = 25 years

25inci yaş = 25th year

25inci yaşımdayım = I am in my 25th year

If we talk about years we usually say

2000 yılı = year (of) 2000

or as in Azeri

2000inci yıl =2000th year

Similarly

25 yaşı = year of 25 (of someone)

or 25inci yaş  25th year (of someone)

So if you want to say you are 25 years old you either need to say

25 yaşı-n-dayım ( -n- = pronomial-n )

or

25inci yaş-ım-dayım ( -ım- = 1st sing. person possesive suffix )

 Thank you all for teaching Turkish, your devotion is extremely beautiful

Yet another example showing your ignorance about this type of usage.

"2000 yılı" is the short form of "miladi 2000 yılı" (miladi year of 200

miladi = miladın = of milat (Anno Domini A.D. )

The modifier is not 2000 but miladi..

When it comes to, for example, to "islam takvimi" (islamic/hijri calendar), not to cause a problem, we always use the word hicri

Hicri 1433 yılı (hijri year of 1433)

Don´t we?

That´s why they are always 3rd p.sing: yıl-ı

If it belonged to you, you would say "benim 2000 yılım"

If the root was "25 yaşı" as you claim,

we would say

"25 yaşı sendromu" but not "25 yaş sendromu" Right?

Here is what we say (according to the google search):

25 yaşı sendromu => 0 (ZERO)

25 yaş sendromu => 74.900

Open your eyes and look at it once more to see if it is "25 yaş" or "25 yaşı"..

Cardinal or pope or ordinal or whatever the modifier, an adjective compound is unsuffixed:

25 yaş

25inci yaş 

Why do you make "25 yaşı" look possible without 3rd.p. poss.adj "onun"?

This is what you know about "noun compounds"?

 If,by anology, a learner would say,

[25 yaşı]=>

25 yaşı sendromu

25 günü sonra

25 defası söyledim

I am sure you would give a long lecture about why they should be unsuffixed..

If, by analogy, a learner would say,

[Ben 25 yaşın(dayım)] =>Benim yaşın 25

You would teach them that it should always be: benim (noun)im 

But, if the learner would say,

Bu benim 25 yaşındaki resmim

You would say, CORRECT! 

And the learner, by analogy, would say,

Bu benim evindeki resmim

You would jump on your feet and scream, INCORRECT!

It is you who “are totally confusing for learners”

Is it really so hard for you to accept "yaşındayım" is grammatically incorrect?

Everything in a language should be grammatically correct?

You can say "xx yaşındayım" like most of us do, but you shouldn´t try to make it look grammatically correct.. I think the best way is to accept it as an exception..

"Grammatically correct" is a question of agreement. Learned (wo)men sit around a table, talk about it thoroughly and come to a decision. Probably it has happened in this case also and one of the forms has been recommended by language planners.

The learners are not children here. It is not a problem if teachers disagree about some details. To the opposite: I guess this thread has learned many of us something about compounds and numeric expressions. And every time we tell our age no matter how we do it we feel we are making an important decision...

Abla, I know you don´t mind, so I want to correct your (normally excellent) English.

"I guess this thread has learned taught many of us something about compounds and numeric expressions."

I also agree with your thoughts.

Sana katılıyorum 

I am not trying to make it correct or anything else. It´s what it is and I only tried to describe it and while doing it, I do not see any incorrectness in it.

I bet you also say "xx yaşındayım" at the times you do not make yourself force to use "xx yaşımdayım" form.

Thank you, Henry, it didn´t escape your sharp eye. I wonder how it didn´t ring any bell in me. Maybe I do the same mistake all the time. I must confess I mix gitmek and gelmek also.

By the way, in Swedish teaching and learning are expressed with the same verb, except that when used for learning a reflexive pronoun belongs to the package. Thus, lära ´to teach´ and lära sig ´to teach oneself > to learn´. I like the thought.

It is the same in Polish:

to teach - uczyć (alternative: nauczać )

to learn - uczyć się (literally it could be translated as "to teach yourself"; although I wouldn´t be sure if word "się" in Polish always makes verb reflexive).

Also Cahit Sıtkı disagrees with you on this..

Or you think it should be "Otuz Beş Yaşı"?

Here is the poem

OTUZ BEŞ YAŞ

Yaş otuz beş*; yolun yarısı eder.
Dante gibi ortasındayız ömrün.
Delikanlı çağımızdaki cevher,
Yalvarmak, yakarmak nafile bugün,
Gözünün yaşına bakmadan gider.
Şakaklarıma kar mı yağdı ne var?
Benim mi Allahım bu çizgili yüz?
Ya gözler altındaki mor halkalar?
Neden böyle düşman görünürsünüz,
Yıllar yılı dost bildiğim aynalar?
Zamanla nasıl değişiyor insan;
Hangi resmime baksam ben değilim.
Nerde o günler, o şevk, o heyecan?
Bu güler yüzlü adam ben değilim;
Yalandır kaygısız olduğum yalan.
Hayal meyal şeylerden ilk aşkımız;
Hatırası bile yabancı gelir.
Hayata beraber başladığımız,
Dostlarla da yollar ayrıldı bir bir;
Gittikçe artıyor yalnızlığımız.
Gökyüzünün başka rengi de varmış;
Geç farkettim taşın sert olduğunu.
Su insanı boğar, ateş yakarmış;
Her doğan günün bir dert olduğunu,
İnsan bu yaşa** gelince anlarmış.
Ayva sarı nar kırmızı sonbahar;
Her yıl biraz daha benimsediğim.
Ne dönüp duruyor havada kuşlar?
Nerden çıktı bu cenaze? ölen kim?
Bu kaçıncı bahçe gördüm tarumar?
Neylersin ölüm herkesin başında.
Uyudun uyanamadın olacak.
Kimbilir nerde, nasıl, kaç yaşında?
Bir namazlık saltanatın olacak,

 Taht misali o musalla taşında. 

*There is no need for a detailed explanation as the title of the poem and the first line of it tell everthing:

Otuz Beş Yaş,

Yaş otuz beş...

What is age?

=>35

What is 35?

=>age

There is no need for poss. -ı

If there was,

** insan bu yaş-a gelince

should have been written as

insan bu yaş-ı-n-a gelince

As for the part

Uyudun uyanamadın olacak.
Kimbilir nerde, nasıl, kaç yaş-ın-da?
Bir namazlık saltanat-ın olacak,

 It is clear from the personel ending -n and the possessive suffix -ın that it is second person...

I admit it is a bit impolite but we can also say "yaş kaç?".. can´t we?

kaç yaş <=>yaş kaç

If it was with poss.-ı, it would indicate 3rd person in both version: 

kaç yaşı <=> yaşı kaç

Likewise

otuz beş yaş <=> yaş otuz beş

If it was with poss.-ı, it would indicate 3rd person in both version:

otuz beş yaşı <=> yaşı otuz beş

...

Yaş otuz beş = years are 35 (meaning I lived 35 years)

So what?

Here´s a final wrap up on my side.

yıl and yaş both mean year.

35 yaş = 35 years

35 yaşım = my 35 years

35 yaşımda = in my 35 years

35 yaşımdayım = I´m in my 35 years

35inci yaş = 35th year

35inci yaşımda  = in my 35th year

35inci yaşımdayım = I´m in my 35th year (i.e. I´m 35 years old)

35 yaşı = year of 35

35 yaşında = in the year of 35

35 yaşındayım = I´m in the year of 35 (i.e. I´m 35 years old)

I have tried to read carefully everything that natives have said in this thread. To sum up everything as I have understood it I noticed the following:

The problem about the structure 35 yaş|ı|n|da|yım was the adjective nature of Turkish numerals. In a compound they don’t demand a POSS in the next noun. For a while I was suspecting this because all adjectives as a matter of fact can be used as nouns. But it seems that numbers are especially sensitive adjectives: they hardly ever stand on their own, there has to be a noun after them (tane, kişi). The problem remains.

As the POSS in yaş|ı|n|da|yım can’t be motivated by the compound it has to be motivated by something else. I think there are two alternatives that have been mentioned in the course of this discussion. Actually one of them has been shot down already but I still try to rise it up:

1. Analogy of cases where the expression of measure is between the numeral and the quality, like 1.80 (meter) boy|u|n|da|yım.

2. Ellipsis.

a) There is something that we can’t see between 35 and yaşındayım. A measure. yil, yaş? In this case yaş in yaşındayım wouldn’t mean ‘year’ but ‘age’ (which is its first equivalent in some dictionaries). The structure would be like in the boy thing in nr 1.

b) There is something that we can’t see before 35. A genitive marked noun: something like yaşın, yıllarımın, zamanın… I suggested this but scalpel said in that case the numeral should be the ordinal 35inci. Is it impossible to imagine that it once was ordinal but it was simplified? In other languages I have seen processes like this. It seems like a very logical development because the ordinal marker is nothing but a burden from the point of view of information. But if something like this really happened there should be marks of it in old litteral language, I suppose.

My knowledge is limited but a learner can speculate as much as she wants. If she has the guts.

A simple explanation try of me:

25 yaş-ı-n-da-y-ım

As you know we can use possive -ı if it is a part of noun clouse. There are two options here:

1)Definite noun clause:

If there is a possesive -ı in the sentence it belongs to 3.person. If we put "onun" into this sentence. It doesnt make sense.

2)Indefinite noun clause:

It is also not an idefinite noun clause like kapı kolu, araba tekeri because 25 functions as an adjective here.

Another theory:

If it is 25 (yıl) yaşındayım than it is correct. I looked at google and i found "yıl yaşında"

http://www.google.com.tr/#hl=tr&sclient=psy-ab&q=y%C4%B1l+ya%C5%9F%C4%B1nda&oq=y%C4%B1l+ya%C5%9F%C4%B1nda&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&gs_l=serp.3...595l2779l2l3424l5l5l0l0l0l1l1781l6027l6-2j2j1l5l0.frgbld.&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.,cf.osb&fp=d651b3bd1e9eca4c&biw=1138&bih=464

Result: I am not sure anymore.

Super. gokuyum, this is approximately what I suggested in 2a.

It is possible. Because we say:

60 kilo ağırlık-ı-ndayım.

1.70 metre boy-u-ndayım. (We dont say metre often. We say 1.70 boyundayım)

60 santim en-i-ndeyim.

But the question is why we dont say 25 yıl yaşındayım? In English there is yıl (year). I am 25 years old.

So the question is:

Did we use "yıl" before "yaş" in the past? We should examine old texts.

Finally you admit that "xx yaşımdayım" is possible too

A big step..

But I disagree with the translation..

"yaş" means "age" in English..

(Senin) ülkende çocuklar hangi yaşta (or kaç yaşında) okula başlarlar? at what age do children start school in your country?

35 yaşımdayım = I´m in my age of 35 (not I´m in my 35 years)

benim yaşım = my age

senin yaşın= your age

yaşın kaç? (or hangi yaştasın? or  kaç yaşındasın?)= what is your age?

senin yaşında oğlum var = I have a son your age

ben, senin yaşındayken = when I was your age

This is how it is in Turkish:

35 yaşımdayım -- I am in my age of 35

35 yaşındasın -- you are in your age of 35

35 yaşında --s/he is in her/his age of 35

...

yaş = age

(benim) yaşım = my age

(benim) yaşımda = in my age

* benim yaşımda bir adam = a man in my age

* bu yaşımda = in this age of mine

...

Gokuyum, you are wise enough not to be trapped by this word "old"..

It has nothing to do with "yaş"

My baby is 3 weeks old => Bebeğim 3 haftalık

My son is 4 months old => Oğlum 4 aylık

We use "haftalık" for "weeks old", and "aylık" for "months old"

But we don´t use "yıllık" for "years old"

If we did, we would say:

25 yıllık+ım => 25 yıllığım

But we don´t..

It may appear in such sentences as follows:

25 yıllık meslek hayatımda... = ...in my 25 years of career 

...

Starting from a wrong premise leads you to a wrong conclusion..

As I said in my previous post, yaş = age

yaş= lenght of time a person has lived or a thing has existed.

Yaşım 35 = My age is 35

Onların yaşları 4, 7 ve 9 => Their ages are 4,7 and 9

Bu eski caminin yaşı ne? => What is the age of this old mosque?

We often prefer "kaç yaşında"(in what age of its) to "yaşı ne" 

Bu eski cami kaç yaşında?

...

"From where did he leave this funeral? Who is dying?"

Hope this won´t derail the train. I hear this phrase alot in Turkish just from various things, like TV, Turkish pop music and now here in that poem. individually i understand what each word means, but not so much the context, hence my simplistic trying the obvious translations first.

Don´t make false conclusions.

I only provided a translation for readers in order to show them that it is weird.

35 yaşımdayım = I am in my 35 years.

35 years is  a quantity here. You cannot be in your years. But you can be in your 35th year for example.

"Yaş" and "yıl" were the same word in old Turkish. They mean "year". Over time they mutated in different directions.

can i interrupt your discussion with a fast question? ;p

in the sentence: "Dışarısı soğuk mu?" - why do you say "dışarısı"? what´s the role of that "-sı" at the end?

There is some talk about it in this thread. Look what tunci has answered to a similar question:

                      http://www.turkishclass.com/forumTitle_53283

I was about to apologize you, Ivo_G, because your thread has changed into a long discussion about this and that. It happens sometimes. Feel free to open a new thread if it bothers you.

ok, i think i get it...so it´s like saying: "ev dışarısı soğuk" but since "ev" is understood from the context it´s omitted and we are left with "dışarısı soğuk", right?

another question...in the following sentence: "Ankara´da çok turist var" - why "turist" is not plural? can we do that with all nouns? let´s say: "Ankara´da çok araba var" -> would that be correct?

p.s. oh and no - i don´t mind you hijacking my thread as long as you don´t mind me interrupting your discussion from time to time with my questions )))

Turkish numbers plus a bunch of pronouns like kaç ´how many´, birkaç ´a few´, her ´every´, az ´few´, biraz ´little´, çok ´much, many´  -  maybe someone can provide you with a complete list  -  always take a singular noun. It´s a rule which you can and must generalise:

               Ankara´da çok/bir milyon/kaç... araba/turist/kedi... var

as you suggested.