Turkey

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This article is about the country Turkey. = For other=20 uses, see Turkey = (disambiguation).

*T=C3=BCrkiye=20 Cumhuriyeti* Republic of = Turkey

	=
Flag	Coat of=20 arms

Motto: Turkish:=20 Yurtta Bar=C4=B1=C5=9F, D=C3=BCnyada Bar=C4=B1=C5=9F
(English: = "Peace=20 at Home, Peace in the World") Anthem: = = =C4=B0stikl=C3=A2l=20 Mar=C5=9F=C4=B1
(English: "Independence = March")

Capital Ankara
41=C2=B01=E2=80=B2N=20 28=C2=B057=E2=80=B2E Largest = ;city =C4=B0stanbul Official lan= guages Turkish = (T=C3=BCrk=C3=A7e) Government Secular Republic - Founder Mustafa = Kemal Atat=C3=BCrk - President of = the=20 Republic Ahmet = Necdet=20 Sezer - P= rime=20 Minister Recep = Tayyip=20 Erdo=C4=9Fan = Succession to the Ottoman = Empire=20 according to the Treaty of = Lausanne - War of = Independence 19=20 May 1919 - Formation=20 of Parliament 23=20 April 1920 - Declaration of Republic 29 October 1923 Area - Total 783,562 = km=C2=B2 (37th)
300,948 sq mi - Water (%) 1.3 Pop= ulation - 2005 estimate 72,600,000 (17t= h¹) - 2000 census 67,803,927 - Density= 93/km=C2=B2 (102nd¹)
241/sq mi GDP (PPP) 2006 estimate - Total $612.3 billion (= 17th) - Per capita $8,385 (75th) HDI= (2006) 0.757 (medium) (92nd) Currency New Turkish = Lira² (TRY) Time zone EET (UTC+= 2) - Summer (DST) EEST (UTC+= 3) = Internet=20 TLD .tr Calli= ng=20 code +90 ¹ Population and population = density=20 rankings based on 2005 figures.
² The New Turkish = Lira=20 (Yeni T=C3=BCrk Liras=C4=B1) replaced the old Turkish = Lira on 1=20 January 2005.

A graphical timeline is available = here:=20

History=20 of the Republic of Turkey

Turkey (Turkish:=20 T=C3=BCrkiye), officially the Republic of Turkey (T=C3=BC= rkiye=20 Cumhuriyeti (help=C2=B7= info)), is=20 a Eurasian country that=20 stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in Southwestern Asia and the = Balkan = region of=20 southeastern = Europe.=20 Turkey borders eight countries: Bulgaria to the = northwest, Greece = to the west,=20 Georgia = to the=20 northeast, Armenia, Iran and the Nakhichevan = exclave of Azerbaijan=20 to the east, and Iraq=20 and Syria to the=20 southeast. In addition, it borders the Black Sea to the = north, the Aegean Sea=20 to the west, and the Mediterranean = Sea to=20 the south. Turkey also contains the Sea of Marmara = that is=20 used by geographers to mark the border between Europe and Asia, thus making the = country transconti= nental.[1]

The region comprising modern Turkey has seen the birth of major = civilisations=20 including the Byzantine and = Ottoman = Empires. Owing to=20 its strategic location at the intersect of two continents, Turkey's = culture is a=20 unique blend of Eastern and Western = tradition, often=20 described as a bridge between the two civilisations. With a powerful = regional=20 presence from the Adriatic to China in the Eurasian landbelt between = Russia and=20 India, Turkey has come to acquire increasing strategic significance.^[2]<= SUP=20 class=3Dreference id=3D_ref-Ottoman_Turkey_0>[3]=

Turkey is a democratic, secular, constitutional republic whose=20 political system was established in 1923 under the leadership of Mustafa = Kemal=20 Atat=C3=BCrk following the fall of the Ottoman Empire in the = aftermath of World War=20 I. Since then, Turkey has increasingly integrated with the West = while=20 continuing to foster relations with the Eastern world. It is a founding = member=20 of the United = Nations,[4] the Organization=20 of the Islamic Conference,^[5] the = Organisation=20 for Economic Co-operation and Development^[6] and=20 the Organization=20 for Security and Co-operation in Europe,^[7] a=20 member state of the Council of = Europe=20 since 1949,^[8] and = of NATO since = 1952.[9] = Since=20 2005, Turkey is in accession=20 negotiations with the European Union, = having=20 been an associate member since 1963.^[10]

1 Etymology=20
2 History=20
- 2.1 Antiquity=20
- 2.2 History of = Turks and=20 the Ottoman Empire=20
- 2.3 Republican=20 era
3 Government and=20 politics=20
4 Foreign=20 relations=20
5 Military=20
6 Administrative=20 divisions=20
7 Geography and=20 climate=20
8 Economy=20
9 Demographics=20
10 Culture=20
11 See = also=20
12 Notes=20
13 References=20
14 Further = reading=20
15 External = links=20

[edit]=20 Etymology

Main article: Name of=20 Turkey

The name for Turkey in the Turkish = language,=20 T=C3=BCrkiye, subdivides into two words: T=C3=BCrk, = meaning "strong" in Old Turkic = and=20 usually signifying the inhabitants of Turkey or a member of the Turkish or Turkic = peoples,[11] a = later form=20 of "tu-kin", name given by the Chinese to the = people=20 living south of the Altay = Mountains of Central=20 Asia as early as 177 BC;^[12]==20 and the abstract = suffix=20 -iye, which means "owner" or "related to". The term "T=C3=BCrk" = or "T=C3=BCr=C3=BCk" was=20 first used as an autonym in the Orkhon = inscriptions=20 of the G=C3=B6kt=C3=BCr= ks (English: = Sky=20 Turks) of Central Asia. The = English=20 word "Turkey" is derived from the Medieval Latin=20 "Turchia" (c.1369).^[12]=

[edit]=20 History

Main article: History of=20 Turkey

[edit]=20 Antiquity

Main article: History of=20 Anatolia

=20

Portion of the legendary walls of Troy (VII), = identified as=20 the site of the Trojan War, ca. = 1200=20 BCE

The Anatolian peninsula = (also=20 called Asia Minor), comprising most of modern Turkey, is one of the = oldest=20 continually inhabited regions in the world due to its location at the=20 intersection of Asia=20 and Europe. The=20 earliest Neolithic = settlements such as=20 =C3=87ata= lh=C3=B6y=C3=BCk=20 (Pottery Neolithic), =C3=87ay=C3=B6= n=C3=BC (Pre-Pottery= =20 Neolithic A to Pottery Neolithic), Nevali Cori (Pre-Pottery= =20 Neolithic B), Hacilar (Pottery = Neolithic), G=C3=B6bekli = Tepe=20 (Pre-Pottery Neolithic A) and Mersin are considered = to be among=20 the earliest human settlements in the world.^[13]==20 The settlement of Troy starts in the = Neolithic and=20 continues into the Iron Age. Through recorded history, Anatolians have = spoken Indo-Europe= an,=20 Semitic and = Kartvelia= n=20 languages, as well as many languages of uncertain affiliation. In fact, = given=20 the antiquity of the Indo-European Hittite and = Luwian = languages,=20 some scholars have proposed Anatolia as the hypothetical center from = which the=20 Indo-Europea= n=20 languages have radiated.^[=
14]

=20

The Celsus Library = in Ephesus, dating=20 from 135 CE

The first major empire in the area was that of the Hittites, from the = 18th through=20 the 13th century BCE. Subsequently, the Phrygians, an = Indo-European=20 people, achieved ascendancy until their kingdom was destroyed by the Cimmerians=20 in the 7th century BCE.^[15]=20 The most powerful of Phrygia's successor states were Lydia, Caria and Lycia. The Lydians and = Lycians=20 spoke languages that were fundamentally Indo-European, = but both=20 languages had acquired non-Indo-European elements prior to the Hittite = and=20 Hellenic periods.

Coastal Anatolia, which came to be known as Ionia, was meanwhile = settled by=20 the Ionians.=20 The entire area was conquered by the Achaemenid = Empire=20 during the 6th and 5th centuries and fell to Alexander the = Great=20 in 334 BCE.^[1=
6]=20 Anatolia was subsequently divided into a number of small Hellenisti= c=20 kingdoms (including Bithynia, Cappadocia, Pergamum, and Pontus), all of which = had=20 succumbed to Rome by the mid-1st century BCE.^[17]=20 In 324 CE, the Roman emperor Constantine I = chose Byzantium to=20 be the new capital of the Roman Empire, = renaming it=20 Constantinople = (now =C4=B0stanbul). After = the fall of the Western Roman = Empire, it became the capital of the Eastern Roman or Byzantine = Empire.[18]

[edit]=20 History of Turks and the Ottoman = Empire

Main articles: Turkic = migration, Histo= ry of=20 the Turkish people, Seljuk Empire, = and Ottoman=20 Empire

=20

The Ottoman Empire at the height of its power=20 (c.1680)

The House of Seljuk was a branch of the Kinik O=C4=9Fuz=20 Turks who in the 9th century lived = on the=20 periphery of the Muslim world, north of = the Caspian and Aral = seas in=20 the Yabghu Khaganate of the = O=C4=9Fuz=20 confederacy.^[19] In = the 10th=20 century, the Seljuks migrated from = their=20 ancestral homelands into the eastern Anatolian regions that had been = an area=20 of settlement for O=C4=9Fuz Turkic tribes since the end of the first = millennium.

= =20

The Sultan Ahmet = Mosque=20 (Blue Mosque) is one of the most famous architectural = legacies of the Ottoman Empire

Following their victory over the Byzantine = Empire in the=20 Battle of = Manzikert=20 in 1071, the Turks began to abandon their nomadic roots in favour of a = permanent=20 role in Anatolia, bringing rise to the Seljuk = Empire.[20] The = empire was=20 not to last however, by 1243 the Seljuk armies were defeated by the Mongols and the = power of=20 the empire slowly disintegrated. In its wake, one of the Turkish = principalities=20 governed by Osman=20 I was to evolve into the Ottoman Empire, = thus=20 filling the void left by the collapsed Seljuks and Byzantines.[21]

The Ottoman Empire interacted with both Eastern and Western = cultures=20 throughout its 623-year history. In the 16th and 17th centuries, it was = among=20 the world's most powerful political entities, often locking horns with = the=20 powers of eastern Europe in its steady advance through the Balkans and = the=20 southern part of the Poli= sh-Lithuanian=20 Commonwealth.^[3]= Follo= wing=20 years of decline, the Ottoman Empire entered the World War I = through the Ottoman-Ger= man=20 Alliance in 1914 - a war in which it was ultimately defeated. After = the war,=20 the victorious Allied = Powers=20 sought the = dismemberment=20 of the Ottoman state through the Treaty of=20 S=C3=A8vres.^[21]

[edit]=20 Republican era

Main articles: H= istory=20 of the Republic of Turkey and Atat=C3=BC= rk's=20 reforms

=20

The first Grand National Assembly of the modern = Republic of=20 Turkey, during its inauguration in 1920 in Ankara

The occupation = of=20 =C4=B0stanbul and =C4=B0zmir= by the=20 Allies in the aftermath of World War I prompted the establishment=20 of the Turkish national movement.^[3]==20 Under the leadership Mustafa Kemal = Pasha,=20 a military commander who had distinguished himself during the Battle of = Gallipoli,=20 the Turkish= War of=20 Independence was waged with the aim of revoking the terms of the Treaty of=20 S=C3=A8vres.^[2] = By=20 September 18, 1922, the occupying armies were repelled and the country = saw the=20 birth of the new Turkish state. On November 1, 1922, the the= newly=20 founded parliament formally abolished the Sultanate, thus ending 623 = years=20 of Ottoman rule. The Treaty of = Lausanne of=20 1923 led to the international recognization of the sovereignty of the = newly=20 formed "Republic of Turkey" as the successor = state of the=20 Ottoman Empire, and the republic was officially proclaimed on October = 29, 1923,=20 in the new capital of Ankara.^[3]=

=20

Mustafa Kemal Atat=C3=BCrk - Founder and first President = of the=20 Republic of Turkey

Kemal Pasha became the republic's first president and subsequently = introduced=20 many = radical=20 reforms with the aim of founding a new secular republic from the = remnants of=20 its Ottoman past.^[3]==20 According to the Law on Family Names, the Turkish parliament presented = Mustafa=20 Kemal with the honorific name "Atat=C3=BCrk" (English: = Father of=20 the Turks) in 1934.^[2]<= /P>

Turkey entered World War II on = the side of=20 the Allies = in the=20 later stages of the war as a ceremonial gesture and became a charter = member of=20 the United Nations = in=20 1945.^{[4]=20
Difficulties faced by Greece after the war in quelling a communist rebellion, =
along=20
with demands by the Soviet Union for =
military=20
bases in the Turkish =
Straits,=20
prompted the United States to declare the Truman =
Doctrine in 1947.=20
The doctrine enunciated American intentions to guarantee the security of =
Turkey=20
and Greece, and resulted in large scale US military and economic =
support.[22]}

After participating with United Nations forces in the Korean conflict, = Turkey=20 joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1952, becoming a = bulwark=20 against Soviet expansion into the Mediterrenean. Following a decade of=20 intercommunal violence on the island of Cyprus and the subsequent=20 Athens-inspired coup, Turkey intervened militarily, resulting in the = breakaway=20 Turkish = Republic of=20 Northern Cyprus recognised only by Turkey.^[23]

Following the end of the single=20 party period in 1945, the multi-party=20 period witnessed tensions over the following decades, and the period = between=20 the Sixties and the Eighties was particularly marked=20 by periods of political instability that resulted in a number of military coups=20 d'=C3=A9tats in = 1960,=20 1971, 198= 0 and=20 a pos= t-modern=20 coup d'=C3=A9tat in 1997.^=
[24]=20 The liberalization of the Turkish economy that started in the 1980s = changed the=20 landscape of the country, with successive periods of high growth and = crises=20 punctuating the following decades.^[25]=

[edit]=20 Government and politics

Main articles: Politics of = Turkey,=20 Constitution= of=20 Turkey, and Elections in = Turkey

=20

The Grand Chamber of the Grand National Assembly of = Turkey in=20 the capital, Ankara

Turkey is a parliamentary<= /A> representa= tive=20 democracy. Since its foundation as a Republic in 1923, Turkey has = developed=20 a strong tradition of secularism.^[26]= Turkey'=20 constitution governs the legal framework of the country. It sets out = the=20 main principles of government and establishes Turkey as a unitary = centralized=20 state. The current constitution was ratified by referendum in 1982 and = has been=20 amended numerous times in recent years.^[27]

The head of State is = the Presid= ent of=20 the Republic, though he exercices a largely ceremonial post. The = president=20 is elected for a seven-year term by the parliament but he is not = required to be=20 one of its members. The current President, Ahmet Necdet = Sezer,=20 was elected on May 16, 2000, after having served as the President of the = Cons= titutional=20 Court. The executive = power is=20 exercised by the P= rime=20 Minister and the Council of Ministers that make up the government, = whereas=20 the legislative power = is vested=20 in the unicameral parliament, G= rand=20 National Assembly of Turkey. The judiciary is = independent of=20 the executive and the legislature, and the Constitutional Court is = charged with=20 ruling on the conformity of laws and regulations with the constitution. = The Council = of=20 State is the court of last resort for administrative cases, and Hig= h Court=20 of Appeals for all others.^[27]

The Prime Minister is elected by the parliament through a vote of = confidence=20 in his government, and he is generally the head of the party that has = won the=20 elections. The current Prime Minister is the former mayor of = =C4=B0stanbul, Recep = Tayyip=20 Erdo=C4=9Fan, whose Islamic conservative AKP=20 won an absolute majority of parliamentary seats in the 20= 02=20 general elections that was organized in the aftermath of the = economic crisis=20 of 2001.^[28]^[29] = Neither the=20 Prime Minister nor the Ministers have to be members of the parliament; = though in=20 most cases they are (one notable exception was Kemal = Dervi=C5=9F, who was=20 the Minister of Finance following the financial crisis of 2001;[30] he = is=20 currently the president of the UN = Development=20 Programme).^[31]

The members of parliament are elected for a five-year term by = mitigated proport= ional=20 representation with a national election = threshold of=20 10%. There are 85 electoral districts that represent the 81 = administrative provinces of = Turkey=20 (=C4=B0stanbul is divided into three electoral districts whereas Ankara = and =C4=B0zmir are=20 divided into two each because of their large populations). To avoid a hung=20 parliament and its excessive political fragmentation, only parties = that win=20 at least 10% of the national vote in a national parliamentary election = gain the=20 right to parliamentary representation. As a result of this threshold, = only two=20 parties were able to obtain that right during the last elections.[32] = Independent=20 candidates may run, however they must also win at least 10% of the vote = in their=20 circonscription to be elected.^[33]=20 Universal = suffrage=20 for both sexes has been applied throughout Turkey since 1933 and every = Turkish=20 citizen that has turned 18 years of age has the right to vote. As of = 2004, there=20 were 50 registered political=20 parties in Turkey, whose ideologies range from the far-left to the far-right.[33]=20 Nevertheless, the Constitutional Court can strip the public financing of = political parties that it deems anti-secular or separatist, or ban = their=20 existence altogether.^[34]^[35]

The military has traditionally been a politically powerful = institution,=20 considered as the guardians of Atat=C3=BCrk's Republic. The protection = of the Turkish=20 Constitution and the unity of the country is given by law to the Turkish Armed = Forces and it therefore plays a formal political role via the National=20 Security Council (NSC) as the guardian of the secular, unitary nature = of the=20 republic and the reforms of Atat=C3=BCrk.^=
[24]=20 Through the NSC, the army contributes to recommendations for defense = policy=20 against any threat to the country, including those pertaining to ethnic=20 separatism or religious extremism. In recent years, reforms led to = efforts to=20 extinguish the military's constitutional responsibilities, under the = program of=20 compliance with the EU demands and an increased civilian presence on the = NSC.^{[36]=20
Despite its perceived alleged influence in civilian affairs, the =
military owns=20
strong unequivocal support from the nation and is considered to be =
Turkey's most=20
trusted institution.^[37]}

[edit]=20 Foreign relations

=20

Roosevelt= , =C4= =B0n=C3=B6n=C3=BC=20 and Churchill at = the=20 Second Cairo Conference on December 4-6, 1943

Main articles: Foreign= =20 relations of Turkey and Accession=20 of Turkey to the European Union

Turkey's main political, economic and military relations have = remained rooted=20 within the West since the foundation of the republic. Turkey has = manifested an=20 Atlantist=20 approach in many regional and international affairs since the Second = Cairo=20 Conference, its participation in the Korean War, and its subsequent = adhesion=20 to NATO = in 1952.[22]=20 It remained a bulwark against the Eastern bloc = during the Cold = War, and=20 has participated in many NATO-led peacekeeping missions since the fall = of the=20 Berlin Wall. For many historical and cultural reasons, this has led to a = certain=20 mix of trends in Turkey's foreign policy. Turkey is the only OIC member which is also a = member of=20 NATO; and its = relations with=20 Israel constitute one of the key partnerships in the Middle East.[38] = Owing to its=20 secular traditions, Turkey has always viewed suspiciously certain = countries in=20 the region and this has caused tensions in the past, particularly with its = largest=20 neighbour, Iran.^[39]= Since=20 the end of the Cold War, Turkey has actively been building strong = relations with=20 former Communist countries in Eastern Europe = and Central=20 Asia, and this has concretized in many reciprocal investments and = migratory=20 currents between these states and Turkey.^[40]

The European Union = remains=20 Turkey's biggest trading partner and the presence of a well-established = Turkish = diaspora in=20 Europe has contributed to the development of extensive relations between = the two=20 parties over the years. Turkey became a member of the Council of = Europe in=20 1949, applied for associate membership of the EEC= =20 (predecessor of the EU) in 1959 and became an associate member in 1963. = After=20 decades of political negotiations, Turkey applied for full membership of = the EEC=20 in 1987, reached a Customs=20 Union agreement with the EU in 1995 and has officially begun accession=20 negotiations on October 3, 2005.^{[10] It=20
is believed that the accession process will take at least 15 years =
because of=20
Turkey's size and the depth of disagreements over certain issues.[41]}

Historically, relations = with=20 neighbouring Greece have known periods of tension. The long divided = island=20 of Cyprus and the=20 disputes over the air and sea boundaries of the Aegean Sea remain the main=20 issues of disagreement between the two neighbours.^[42] = Recently, the=20 issue of Cyprus = has=20 become one of the main points of contention in Turkey's accession = negotations=20 with the EU since Turkey is refusing to open its ports to Greek=20 Cypriot traffic.^[43] = Nonetheless,=20 following the consecutive earthqua= kes of=20 1999 in Turkey and Greece, and = the=20 prompt response of aid and rescue teams from both sides, the two = nations=20 have entered a much more positive period in their relations, with Greece = actively supporting Turkey's candidacy to enter the European Union.[44]

Even though Turkey participated in the NATO-led peacekeeping mission = in Afghanistan after = Septem= ber=20 11, the Iraq war faced strong = domestic=20 opposition in Turkey, and the Turkish Parliament failed to reach the = necessary=20 majority of approval votes for allowing US troops to attack Iraq from Turkey's = south-eastern=20 border, with 264 approval votes and 250 against.^[45] = This led to a=20 cooling in relations betw= een the=20 US and Turkey and fears that they might have been damaged as a = result of the=20 situation in Iraq.^[46] = Turkey is=20 particularly cautious about an independent Kurdish state arising from a=20 destabilised Iraq; it=20 has previously fought an insurgent war on its own soil, in which an = estimated=20 37,000 people lost their lives, against the PKK = (listed as a=20 terrorist=20 organization by a=20 number of states and organisations, including the USA and the = EU).[47]^[48] = This led the=20 Turkish government to put pressure on the US to clamp down on insurgent = training=20 camps in northern Iraq, without much success.^[39]=

[edit]=20 Military

=20

TAI-built=20 F-16 = fighter jets=20 belonging to various Turkish Air Force squadrons

Main articles: Turkish = Armed=20 Forces and Conscription= in=20 Turkey

The Turkish Armed = Forces consists of the Army, the Navy=20 and the Air Force. = The Gendarmerie= and the=20 Coast = Guard operate=20 as parts of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in peacetime; whereas they = are=20 subordinated to the Army and Navy Commands respectively in wartime, = during which=20 they have both internal law enforcement and military functions.[49]<= /A>

The = Chief of=20 the General Staff is appointed by the President, and he is = responsible to=20 the Prime Minister. The Council of Ministers is responsible to the = parliament=20 for matters of national security and the adequate preparation of the = armed=20 forces to defend the country. However, the authority to declare war and = to=20 deploy the Turkish Armed Forces to foreign countries or to allow foreign = armed=20 forces to be stationed in Turkey rests solely with the parliament.[49]<= /A>=20 The actual Commander of the armed forces is the Chief of the General = Staff General=20 Ya=C5=9Far B=C3=BCy=C3=BCkan=C4=B1t who succeeded General Hilmi = =C3=96zk=C3=B6k on=20 August 26, 2006.^[50]

=20

F-247 TCG KemalReis is a SalihReis class frigate of the Turkish = Navy

The Turkish Armed Forces is the second largest standing armed=20 force in NATO,=20 after the United = States=20 Armed Forces, with a combined strength of 1,043,550 uniformed = personnel=20 serving in its five branches.^[51]^{[36] Every=20
fit heterosexual male Turkish citizen is required to serve in the =
military for=20
time periods ranging from one to fifteen months, depending on his =
education and=20
job location (homosexuals have the right to be exempt, if they =
request).[52]}

In 1998, Turkey announced a modernization programme worth some $31 = billion=20 over a period of ten years in varying projects including tanks, = helicopters and=20 assault rifles.^[53] = Turkey is=20 also a level three contributor to the Joint Strike = Fighter=20 (JSF) program, gaining an opportunity to develop and influence the = creation of=20 the next generation fighter spearheaded by the United = States.[54]

In addition to its participation in the Korean War, Turkey has = maintained=20 forces in international missions under the United Nations and NATO since = 1950,=20 including peacekeeping = missions,=20 various missions in the former Yugoslavia, and = support to=20 coalition forces in the First Gulf War. = Turkey=20 maintains 36,000 troops in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and = has had=20 troops deployed in Afghanistan as = part of the=20 US=20 stabilization force and the UN-authorized, NATO-commanded International=20 Security Assistance Force since 2001.^[55]^[56] In = 2006, the=20 Turkish parliament deployed a peacekeeping force of Navy patrol vessels = and=20 around 700 ground troops as part of an expanded United=20 Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in wake of the = Israe= li-Lebanon=20 conflict.^[57]

[edit]=20 Administrative divisions

Main articles: Regions of = Turkey,=20 Provinces of = Turkey, Districts of = Turkey, and List of = cities in=20 Turkey

The territory of Turkey is subdivided into 81 provinces = for=20 administrative purposes. In turn, each province is divided into districts, = for a=20 total of 923 districts. Provinces usually bear the same name as their = provincial=20 capitals, also called the central district; exceptions to this are the = provinces=20 of Hatay (capital: = Antakya), Kocaeli = (capital: =C4=B0zmit) and Sakarya = (capital: Adapazar=C4=B1).= Provinces=20 with the largest populations are the provinces of =C4=B0stanbul= (+10=20 million), Ankara (+4 = million), =C4=B0zmir = (+3.4=20 million), Konya (+2.2 = million), Bursa (+2.1 = million) and=20 Adana (+1.85=20 million).

The provinces are organized into 7 regions for = census=20 purposes, however they do not represent an administrative structure.

The capital city of = Turkey is=20 Ankara; however,=20 the biggest city and the pre-Republican capital of =C4=B0stanbul is the = financial,=20 economic and cultural heart of the country.^{[58] Other=20
important cities include =C4=B0zmir, Bursa, Adana, Trabzon, Malatya, Gaziantep, Erzurum, Kayseri, =C4=B0zmit, Konya, Mersin, Eski=C5=9Fehir, =
Diyarbak=C4=B1r=
, Antalya and Samsun. =
An estimated=20
67% of Turkey's population live in urban centers.^[59]=20
In all, 12 cities have populations that exceed 500,000 and 48 cities =
have more=20
than 100,000 inhabitants.}

<= IMG=20 height=3D244 alt=3D""=20 src=3D"http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/BlankMapT= urkeyProvinces.png/500px-BlankMapTurkeyProvinces.png"=20 width=3D500 longDesc=3D/wiki/Image:BlankMapTurkeyProvinces.png>

Ankara

K=C4=B1rkl= areli

Edirne

Tekirda=C4=9F=

=C3=87anakk= ale

Bal=C4=B1ke= sir

Bursa

Yalova

=C4=B0stanbu= l

Kocaeli

<= /DIV>

Sakarya

<= /DIV>

D=C3=BCzce<= /DIV>

Zonguldak

Bolu

Bilecik

<= /DIV>

Eski=C5=9Fe= hir

K=C3=BCtahya<= /A>

Manisa

=C4=B0zmir<= /DIV>

Ayd=C4=B1n<= /DIV>

Mu=C4=9Fla<= /DIV>

Denizli

<= /DIV>

Burdur

U=C5=9Fak

Afyon

Isparta

<= /DIV>

Antalya

<= /DIV>

Konya

Mersin

Karaman

<= /DIV>

Aksaray

<= /DIV>

K=C4=B1= r=C5=9Fehir

K=C4=B1= r=C4=B1kkale

=C3= =87ank=C4=B1r=C4=B1

Karab=C3=BCk<= /A>

Bart=C4=B1n

Kastamonu

Sinop

=C3=87orum<= /DIV>

Yozgat

Nev=C5=9Fehi= r

Ni=C4=9Fde<= /DIV>

Adana

Hatay

Osmaniye

K.=20 Mara=C5=9F

Kayseri

<= /DIV>

Sivas

Tokat

Amasya

Samsun

Ordu

Giresun

<= /DIV>

Erzincan

Malatya

<= /DIV>

Gaziantep

Kilis

=C5=9E= anl=C4=B1urfa

Ad=C4=B1yama= n

G= =C3=BCm=C3=BC=C5=9Fhane

Trabzon

<= /DIV>

Rize

Bayburt

<= /DIV>

Erzurum

<= /DIV>

Artvin

Ardahan

<= /DIV>

Kars

A=C4=9Fr=C4= =B1

I=C4=9Fd=C4= =B1r

Tunceli

<= /DIV>

Elaz=C4=B1= =C4=9F

Diyarbak=C4= =B1r

Mardin

Batman

Siirt

=C5=9E=C4= =B1rnak

Bitlis

Bing=C3=B6l

Mu=C5=9F

Van

Hakkari

<= /DIV>

Major Cities:

=C4=B0stanbul - 9,085,599=20
Ankara - 3,540,522=20
=C4=B0zmir - 2,409,000=20
Bursa - 1,195,000=20
Adana - 1,130,710=20
Gaziantep - 854,000=20
Konya - 743,000=20
Antalya - 603,000

(Population figures are given according to the 2000 census)^[60]<= /P>

[edit]=20 Geography and climate

Main articles: Geography of = Turkey and Envi= ronmental=20 issues in Turkey

=20

Resort town of Fethiye in the Mu=C4=9Fla = Province, on=20 the Mediterranean coastline

The territory of Turkey is more than 1,600kilometers (1,031mi) long and 800km = (497mi) wide,=20 giving it a roughly rectangular shape.^{[58]=20
Turkey's area, inclusive of lakes, occupies 779,452 square kilometers =
(km=C2=B2)=20
(300,948mi=C2=B2), of =
which 755,688km=C2=B2=20
(291,773mi=C2=B2) are in Western Asia and =
23,764km=C2=B2=20
(9,175mi=C2=B2) in Europe,^{[58] thus=20
making Turkey a transconti=
nental=20
country. Turkey's size makes it the world's 37th-largest=20
country (after Mozambique). It is =
somewhat=20
bigger than Chile=20
or the US state of Texas. Turkey is =
encircled by seas=20
on three sides: Aegean Sea to the =
west, the=20
Black Sea=20
to the north and the Mediterranean =
Sea to=20
the south. Turkey also contains the Sea of Marmara =
in the=20
northwest.^[61]}}

The European section of Turkey, in the northwest, is Eastern Thrace, = and forms=20 the borders of Turkey with Greece and Bulgaria. The Asian part of the = country,=20 Anatolia=20 (also called the Asia Minor), consists of a high central plateau with = narrow=20 coastal plains, in between the K=C3=B6ro=C4=9Flu and East-Black Sea = mountain range to the=20 north and the Taurus = Mountains to the=20 south. Eastern Turkey has a more mountainous landscape, and is home to = the=20 sources of rivers such as the Euphrates, Tigris and Aras, and contains = Lake = Van and=20

Turkey

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Contents

[edit]=20 Etymology

[edit]=20 History

[edit]=20 Antiquity

[edit]=20 History of Turks and the Ottoman = Empire

[edit]=20 Republican era

[edit]=20 Government and politics

[edit]=20 Foreign relations

[edit]=20 Military

[edit]=20 Administrative divisions

[edit]=20 Geography and climate