"An Analysis of 'Ne' and Words Beginning with 'Ne+' in Kutadgu Bilig"

Abstract

Written in the 11th century by Yusuf Has Hacib, Kutadgu Bilig is recognized as the first major work of Islamic Turkish literature and a pioneering example of the "mirror for princes" genre. This verse-based composition consists of 6,645 couplets and 173 quatrains embedded throughout the text. Composed in the mesnevi style and following the aruz meter “fe‘ulün / fe‘ulün / fe‘ulün / fe‘ul,” the work stands out for its didactic nature. Through its allegorical structure, it conveys an ideal vision of governance via the characters of Kün Togdı, Ay Toldı, Ögdülmüş, and Odgurmış. The dialogue-based structure of the work lends it a theatrical quality. This study aims to examine the usage of the word "ne" considered to be of Turkic origin and its derived forms as they appear in Kutadgu Bilig within a historical linguistic framework. The main objective is to uncover how "ne" and "ne+" constructs have evolved semantically, morphologically, and etymologically, and to compare their usage across different language stages and Turkic dialects. For this purpose, a textual analysis of Kutadgu Bilig was conducted to identify relevant examples, followed by descriptive and comparative literary examination. The study concludes that the "ne" construction serves not only as an interrogative element but also fulfills emphatic, comparative, and conjunctive functions within the work. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that this structure has been a significant component in shaping the expressive capacity of the Turkish language throughout its historical development.