In a traditional Turkish family it is normal for the Turkish wife and other members of the family to have their own roles. It was once common for all of the family and the extended family to all live together and share the same house. However these days this is not considered the norm and families tend to live as a nuclear family i.e. simply the wife, husband and their unmarried children who all live together. Within these family units each member will have a specific responsibility to carry out depending upon their age etc. For example the father of the household will usually be the one to provide the income whilst the wife will stay at home to look after the family and the home. Of course these days many women also work and it can be that the husband stays at home to look after the children.
It is common for not just the Turkish wife to look after the house but the children of the family will also be expected to contribute to housework depending on their age. As the children become young adults and old enough to work if they choose to live at home they will often be asked to contribute rent money. It was once thought that the men of the house tended to have the most authority but these days the wife will also have equal rights. Marriage within a Turkish family is seen as a big occasion and by law these have to be civil. In order for the marriage to be legal the female must be older 15 years and the male older then 17.
These days more and more Turkish women hold a job as well as keeping the traditional role of looking after the children and the home. However some of the older generation do not necessarily feel that this is right and that women should in fact remain at home. A Turkish wife may hold high powered jobs just as the men and these can include bank managers, lawyers, medical profession, judges, police and army officers. In fact statistics show that many jobs in the health service as well as a high percentage of lawyers tend to be women rather then men. There has even been a female Prime Minister which shows just how much the roles have changed over the years.
