Turkey

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This article is about the country. For the bird, see Turkey (bird). For other uses, see Turkey (disambiguation).

Republic of Turkey Trkiye Cumhuriyeti

Flag

Motto: "Egemenlik, kaytsz artsz Milletindir" (Turkish) [1]

Capital

Ankara
3955N 3250E

Largest city

Istanbul
411N 2857E

Official languages Ethnic groups ([2])

Turkish

7075% Turks 18% Kurds 712% others

Demonym Government - President - Prime Minister - Speaker of the Parliament - President of the Constitutional Court Legislature

Turkish Unitary parliamentaryconstitutional republic Abdullah Gl Recep Tayyip Erdoan Cemil iek

Haim Kl

Grand National Assembly Succession to the Ottoman Empire

- Treaty of Lausanne - Declaration of Republic

24 July 1923 29 October 1923

Area - Total 783,562 km2 (37th) 302,535 sq mi - Water (%) 1.3 Population - 2013 estimate - Density 75,627,384[3] (18th) 97/km2 (108th) 239.8/sq mi GDP (PPP) - Total - Per capita GDP (nominal) - Total - Per capita Gini (2010) 2012 estimate $1.358 trillion[4][5] (15th) $18,348[5] (54th) 2012 estimate $789.257 billion[5] (17th) $10,666[5] (64nd) 40.0[6] medium 58th HDI (2013) 0.722 high 90th Currency Time zone Turkish liraa (TRY) EET (UTC+2)

- Summer (DST) Date format Drives on the Calling code ISO 3166 code Internet TLD
a.

EEST (UTC+3) dd/mm/yyyy (AD) right 90 TR .tr

The Turkish lira (Trk Liras, TL) replaced the Turkish new lira on 1 January 2009.

Turkey (Turkish: Trkiye), officially the Republic of Turkey(

Trkiye Cumhuriyeti (helpinfo)), is

a transcontinental country, located mostly onAnatolia in Western Asia and on East Thrace in Southeastern Europe. Turkey is bordered by eight countries: Bulgaria to the northwest; Greece to the west; Georgia to the northeast; Armenia, Iran and the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhchivan to the east; and Iraq and Syria to the southeast. The Mediterranean Sea is to the south; theAegean Sea is to the west; and the Black Sea is to the north. The Sea of Marmara, the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles (which together form the Turkish Straits) demarcate the boundary between Thrace and Anatolia; they also separate Europe and Asia. [7] Turkey's location at the crossroads of Europe and Asia makes it a country of significant geostrategic importance. [8][9][10] The area now called Turkey has been inhabited since the Paleolithic,[11] including various Ancient Anatolian civilizations and Thracian peoples.[12][13][14][15] AfterAlexander the Great's conquest, the area was Hellenized, which continued with theRoman rule and the transition into the Byzantine Empire.[14][16] The Seljuk Turksbegan migrating into the area in the 11th century, starting the process of Turkification, which was greatly accelerated by the Seljuk victory over the Byzantines at the Battle of Manzikert in 1071.[17] The Seljuk Sultanate of Rm ruled Anatolia until the Mongol invasion in 1243, upon which it disintegrated into several small Turkish beyliks. Starting from the late 13th century, the Ottoman beylik united Anatolia and created an empire encompassing much of Southeastern Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. After the Ottoman Empire collapsed following its defeat in World War I, parts of it were occupied by the victorious Allies. The Turkish War of Independence, initiated byMustafa Kemal Atatrk and his colleagues, resulted in the establishment of the modern Republic of Turkey in 1923, with Atatrk as its first president. Turkey is a democratic, secular, unitary, constitutional republic with a diverse cultural heritage. The country's official language is Turkish, a Turkic language, which is spoken by approximately 85% of the population as mother tongue.[18] Turks constitute 70% to 75% of the population. Minorities include Kurds (18%) and others (712%).[2] The vast majority of the population is Muslim. Turkey is a member of the Council of Europe,NATO, OECD, OSCE and the G-20 major economies. Turkey began full membership negotiations with the European Union in 2005, having been an associate member of the European Economic Community since

1963 and having joined the EU Customs Union in 1995. Turkey is also a member of the Turkic Council, Joint Administration of Turkic Arts and Culture, Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and the Economic Cooperation Organisation. Turkey's growing economy and diplomatic initiatives have led to its recognition as a regional power.[10][19][20]

Aspendos Theatre

flickr/Ruslik

Aspendos boasts one of the best preserved ancient theatres of antiquity. The theatre of Aspendos was build in 155 AD during the rule of the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius and could seat between 15,000 and 20,000 spectators. Because the stage area was later used as a caravanserai (a roadside inn) in Seljuk times, it was continuously repaired and maintained. Thus, the Aspendos Theatre has been able to survive to this days without losing almost any of its original qualities.

Patara Beach

flickr/tomkellyphoto

At 14 kilometers (9 miles), Patara is one of the longest stretches of sandy beach found anywhere in the Mediterranean. The beach is backed only by ancient Lycian and Roman ruins and swooping dunes with no buildings visible except of a small caf. Patara Beach is also the breeding ground of the endangered Loggerhead turtle. The nearby village of Patara was the birthplace of St Nicholas, the 4th-century Byzantine bishop who later passed into legend as Santa Claus.

Pamukkale

flickr/+anaraquel+

Pamukkale, meaning cotton castle in Turkish, is an unreal landscape in western Turkey, famous for its white terraces. The terraces are made of travertine, a sedimentary rock deposited by water with a very high mineral content from the hot springs. People have bathed in its pools for thousands of years. The ancient Greek city of Hierapolis was built on top of the hot springs by the kings of Pergamon. The ruins of the baths, temples and other Greek monuments can be seen at the site.

Bodrum Castle

flickr/calflier001

Located in the city of Bodrum in southwest Turkey, Bodrum Castle was built by the Crusaders in the 15th century as the Castle of St. Peter. It is one of the worlds best preserved monuments d ating back to medieval times. The castle now operates as a museum, with the focus on the Museum of Underwater Archaeology. It overlooks the internal marina of Bodrum filled with millions of dollars worth of sailing crafts.

Mount Nemrut

flickr/borderlys

Nemrut is a 2,134 meter (7,001 ft) high mountain in southeastern Turkey, near the city of Adiyaman. In 62 BC, King Antiochus I Theos of Commagene built a tomb-sanctuary flanked by huge statues of himself, two lions, two eagles and various Greek, and Persian gods on the mountain top. Since their construction, the heads have toppled from the bodies and lay scattered throughout the site. The summit of Mount Nemrut provides a great view of the surrounding mountains. The main attraction is to watch the sunrise from the eastern terrace which give the bodyless heads a beautiful orange hue and adds to the sense of mystery of the place.