EARLY AGES

The history of Turkey tells of a 10,000 year-old civilisation. Anatolia is a melting pot where cultures from Sumer, Babylon and Assyria interacted for centuries

with peoples such as the Hattis, Hittites and Hourrites. The result was a unique Anatolian civilisation which has long inspired the thoughts and legends of the

West. The ancient Bronze Age witnessed the establishment of the first independent city states. At that time, the centre and southeast of Anatolia were

inhabited by the indigenous Hattis.

THE LEGENDARY TROY

Troy was founded around 3000 BC, and played a major role in the importation of tin, vital for the production of bronze.

THE HITTITES ARRIVE

The Hittites arrived in Anatolia towards the second millennium BC. They absorbed much of the Babylonian civilisation and long enjoyed a

monopoly of iron in Asia. This, combined with the use of the chariot, gave the Hittites a military superiority over Egypt and other Mesopotamian states. The victorious raid against Babylon in 1590 BC was the climax of the first Hittite empire, followed by a period of decline. Then, in the first half of the fourteenth century, came a revival of power. This second era saw a Hittite hegemony snatching from the shores of the

Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf

MITANNI KINGDOM

The Mitanni kingdom was a contemporary and the enemy of the Hittites. It was founded by the Hourrites, a people originally from the South Caspian Sea. The Hourrites

exercised considerable influence over the religion of the Hittites, and spread the use of two-wheel chariots and the breeding of horses throughout the Near East.

THE URARTIAN STATE

At the beginning of the first millennium BC, the Urartus created a unified state whose territory extended from the Caucasus to Lake Urmiya, with its capital in the present city of Van. The Urartus were masters in hydraulic works and skilled in irrigation, drainage

and the construction of canals and artificial lakes. They were also known for their horse breeding and formidable cavalry.

THE PHRYGIANS AND KING MIDAS

The Phrygians (750-300 BC) settled in Central and Western Anatolia, in the Afyon-Ankara-Eskisehir triangle, declaring Gordion on the Sakarya river to be their capital. Their civilisation met its apogee in the second half of the 8th century BC, under the

famous King Midas whom, according to the mythology, Apollo ridiculed by having him grow ears of a donkey, and whom Dionysus invested with the power to turn everything

he touched into gold. Gordion fell to Persian domination around 550 BC and was liberated in 333 BC by Alexander the Great.

THE LYDIANS INVENT M O N E Y - SARDES

Around East of Izmir in Sardes, lived another people, the Lydians, thought to have invented money between 800 and 650 BC. In the 6th century BC, Croesus, the King of Lydia, agreed with the advancing Persians to divide Anatolia along the river Kızılırmak. The Persians, however, did not keep this commitment and continued to encroach on

Lydian territory. They remained the sovereign power in Anatolia until the arrival of Alexander the Great in 333 BC.

ANATOLIA CHANGES HANDS AGAIN - PERGAMON

After the death of Alexander the Great, Anatolia became the hub of the Seleucid Empire. Pergamon (Bergama) grew at the expense of its neighbours, and snatched part of

Phrygia in 241 BC. The kingdom became prodigiously rich, the emporium of Anatolia and a brilliant intellectual centre.

THE ROMAN PERIOD BEGINS

The Roman period of Anatolia began with the death of King Attalus III of Pergamon (Bergama) who willed his country to the Romans because he had no direct heir. Anatolia

then lived through a period of peace and prosperity, particularly in the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. The pax Romana proved to be an extraordinary period of urban

development. Ephesus served as the seat of the Roman governor of Asia and as a great commercial and cultural centre

THE ERA OF EASTERN ROMAN EMPIREThe era of Roman Empire is an essential chapter in the history of the region. In 330, Constantine, the Roman emperor, transferred his capital from Rome to Roman Empire. Roman Empire, at that time a small city founded 1,000 years earlier by Greeks on the shores of the Strait was henceforth

called Constantinople. The centre of the Empire thereafter became the Orient, in particular Anatolia, inhabited by the descendants of Hattis, Hittites, Phrygians, Greeks and others. Roman Empire

became the Eastern Roman Empire; its official religion was proclaimed to be Christianity in 380 and in 392 paganism was banned. In 476, Rome collapsed and Constantinople remained the sole

capital of the empire. Roman Empire was both a state and a civilisation, built along the lines of the Roman state, the Greek culture and the Christian faith. The emperor enjoyed divine power and

relied heavily on the Church.

Roman Empire knew its first golden age under Justinian. One thousand years of Roman jurisprudence were gathered together in four volumes, a work which had a lasting influence for

many centuries. Justinian was also a great builder. The Basilica of Hagia Sophia (Ayasofya) (AD 532-7) was constructed during his reign. The history of Roman Empire is one of alternating periods

of glory and decay, of religious dissent, of conflicts and wars with Persians, Arabs, Seljuks, Ottomans and peoples of the North.

By the 13th century, Roman Empire was drawing her final breath. After the mortal wound of 1204, when the Crusaders occupied Constantinople, sacked the city, forced the emperor to leave and

established a Latin kingdom, she was a small state. Bulgaria declared her independence and a new maritime power, Venice took for herself the whole Aegean complex of islands. In 1261, the

Byzantines had regained possession of their capital, but there were new threats.

SELJUK AND OTTOMAN TURKS

In the 11th century, under their leader Tugrul, the Seljuk Turks founded the dynasty of great Seljuks reigning in Iran, Iraq and Syria. In 1071, his

nephew Alp Arslan defeated the Byzantines in Malazgirt, near Lake Van. The doors of Anatolia were thus opened to the Turks, and Anatolia went

through a profound transformation ethnically, politically, and in the religious, linguistic and cultural spheres. The Seljuk Sultanate in Anatolia continued until the beginning of the 14th century. The zenith of the Seljuk

civilisation came in the first half of the 13th century with Konya as its political, economic, religious, artistic and literary centre. The Seljuks created a centralised administration organised around the Sultan, his

ministers and provincial governors. Science and literature blossomed, as did mystic poetry. Anatolia was crossed by the great routes linking the east and west, and many of the caravanserais built along these routes still stand today. Agriculture, industry and handicrafts expanded and the country was suddenly rich in mosques, madrasahs (medreses - educational institutions)

and caravanserais (kervansarays - roadside inns COLLAPSE OF THE SELJUK SULTANATE

The Seljuk Sultanate collapsed due to internal dissent and Mongol invasions. Anatolia was again fragmented into rival independent principalities, one of which came under

Ottoman rule. Anatolia, though divided, had been united by language, religion and race, offering an opportunity for statesmanship and courage. This would be the task of Osman

and his successors.

THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE GAINS GROUND

In 1296, Osman declared himself the independent Sultan of the region near Bursa he had hitherto held in fief, and founded the

Ottoman State. During the rule of his son Orhan, Bursa and Iznik were captured and soon the whole south-eastern coast of Marmara was under Ottoman control. The many conquests and diplomatic successes of Orhan were not the only achievements of his

reign. He had encouraged and promoted art, literature, science and commerce. He also established a regular standing army, known as the Janissaries. Well paid and

disciplined, the Janissaries provided the new Ottoman state with a patriotic force of trained soldiers.

Built upon such solid foundations, the Ottoman Empire spread apace. In the reign of Murat, this expansion was still in a westerly direction and it was not until the frontiers were extended to the Adriatic, the Danube and Thessaly, that the Sultan turned his attention towards Eastern Anatolia Now that his rule was established in Europe and Asia, Beyazit turned towards Constantinople in 1402. The city was almost within Iris

grasp when he was called to meet me westward march of Timurlane which delayed the conquest of Istanbul for several decades.

In 1453, under Mehmet the Conqueror, the Ottomans took Constantinople, a momentous event for the whole world and a great feat of arms. But the banner of Ottoman success was to be raised much higher and by the late l6th century the

Ottomans were deep into Europe. In the following centuries, however, the Ottoman Empire lost its momentum, entered a period of stagnation and then gradually a period of

decline.

WORLD WAR ONE

The final blow to the Empire came with the First World War, during which The Ottoman Empire was on the losing side with Germany. Great Britain reversed the policy she had followed until then, and undertook with France, Russia and Italy,

forming the Allied Forces. At the end of the war in 1918, the Ottoman government, under the occupation of the Allied Forces, choose not to further resist a peace

treaty embodying the partition of Turkey.

THE VISIONS OF ATATÜRK AND REPUBLIC OF TURKEY

Against this challenge, the Turkish nation engaged in a struggle to restore her territorial integrity and

independence, to repulse foreign aggressors, to create a new state, to disassociate Turkey from the crumbling Ottoman dynasty, to eradicate an old and

decrepit order and to build a modern country dedicated to political, social and economic progress.

This was the vision of Atatürk, a general in the Ottoman army who had distinguished himself in the defence of Gallipoli (Çanakkale) against the Naval

Forces of Britain, France, Australia and New Zealand. The Ottoman victory over the Allies at

Gallipoli renewed Turkey's visions for the empire Atatürk wanted a clean break with the past, to unite

the nation in the quest for modernism and to lift Turkey to the level of European countries. On

October 29 1923, the republic was proclaimed and Atatürk was elected president. Secularism was

established by separating religious and state affairs. The Latin alphabet replaced the Arabic script and

women were given the right to vote and to be elected as members of parliament. These reforms, as well as

many others in all aspects of social life, put Turkey on the track towards becoming a thoroughly modern

country.

A PROUD NATION

When Atatürk died in 1938, he left a legacy of which the Turkish people today are proud. A nation that had regained confidence in itself after the independence war; a society

determined to preserve the political, intellectual, cultural and social values he had bequeathed. The Turkish Republic has now been a member of the international

community for over 80 years. During this period, great changes have occurred and many difficulties have been encountered. But the country remains firmly attached to the

policies initiated by Ataturk. It has established a democratic multi-party political system, developed a vibrant civil society, and embarked on the path of industrialisation and

market economy. It has consolidated its ties with the west and with the European Union through membership in NATO and the Council of Europe and Customs Union. These trends mark a radical change from the days of the Ottoman Empire. Yet there is also

continuity. The Turks have inherited both from the Islamic past and their Ottoman past. They have also inherited from their western past, as well as forming a part of the

Western present. All these heritages, Eastern and Western, Asian and European, are intermingled in the civilisation of modem Turkey. A symbol of this union is the two

bridges that span the Istanbul Strait, linking the two continents with many pasts and one future.

 

TURKISH LIFESTYLE

Turkish lifestyle is a vivid mosaic; juxtaposing the West and the East, the modern and the ancient

Life in Turkey is a rich variety of cultures and traditions, some dating back centuries and others or more recent heritage. The visitor to Turkey will find a great deal that

is exotic, and also much that is reassuringly familiar. The intriguing blend of East and West makes up the

Turkish lifestyle.

LANGUAGE

The official language of the country, Turkish is spoken by 220 million people and is the world's

5th most widely used language. Today's Turkish has evolved from dialects known since

the 11th century and is one of the group of languages known as Ural-Altaic which includes

Finnish and Hungarian.

Turkish is written with the Latin alphabet with the addition of 6 different characters. Turkish is completely phonetic - each letter of the alphabet has only

one sound-, so each word sounds exactly how it is written. During Ottoman times Turkish was written in Arabic script, that a limited number of people were

able to write. In order to improve literacy and therefore to overcome the difficulties of learning and reading Turkish using Arabic script, Turkey switched

to the Latin alphabet following the initiative started by Atatürk in 1928. ,

English has replaced French and German as the chief secondary language taught in school and is becoming

more widespread. English is widely spoken and understood by many throughout Turkey. German, Russian and French are also spoken especially in

popular holiday destinations.

Although 99% of the population is Muslim, religion is seen as strictly a private matter in Turkey. In fact, Turkey is the only secular country in Islamic world. Secularism is

enshrined in the constitution that religion has no place whatsoever in governing of the country. Like other European countries, the weekly holiday is Sunday - not Friday as many are mistaken- and the Gregorian calendar is used in Turkey. The constitution

secures the freedom of belief and worshiping. During the time of the Ottoman Empire, people of many different faiths lived together in peace, and since then this diversity has been preserved. Today there are 236 churches and 34 synagogues open for worship

in Turkey.

RELIGION

Tourists visiting Turkey are unlikely to see much evidence that they are in a Muslim country, except for the call to prayer which can be heard 5 times a

day. People wear contemporary dresses like any western country, and

especially in big cities and popular holiday destinations, one can easily

spot many who are closely observing fashion of Paris, London, Milan. There is probably no difference between the

way in which people dress in especially large cities in Turkey and the rest of

Europe.

It is only in smaller villages, more remote areas and the east of the country that dress codes are more local. It is quite common for village women to wear

headscarves but this is generally as much out of practical and cultural than religious considerations.

.

The only time when you need to worry about dress codes is when visiting a mosque. Everyone should wear clothes which cover their legs, so no shorts for either sex.

Women should also make sure that their shoulders and head are covered. Shoes should be removed before entering a mosque. There is usually a rack or storage area where

they can be left or you can carry them with you in a bag. Mosques are usually closed to visitors during prayer times.

,

HOSPITALITYVisitors to Turkey are often pleasantly

surprised by the friendliness of the Turkish people, who will go out of their way to assist and happily spend time

chatting. Hospitality is a cornerstone of Turkish culture, and Turks believe that visitors should be treated as “Guests

sent by God”. This attitude has survived to the 21st century and does not appear to have been diminished by mass tourism. In fact, quite the reverse, most Turks welcome the

opportunity to meet foreign visitors, learn about different cultures and practice their language skills. It is

usual for Turks - even the men - to greet each other by kissing on both

cheeks. As a tradition, Turkish people treat their national flag as sacred.

Therefore one should avoid insulting or showing disrespect to the Turkish

flag.

Turkish cuisine is renowned as one of the world's best. It is considered to be one of the three main cuisines of

the world because of the variety of its recipes, its use of natural ingredients, its flavours and tastes which appeal

to all palates and its influence throughout Europe, Asia, the Middle

East and Africa. The cuisine originated in central Asia, the first

home of the Turks, and then evolved with the contributions of the inland and Mediterranean cultures with which Turks interacted after their

arrival in Anatolia.

FOOD

Turkish cuisine is in a sense a bridge between far-Eastern and Mediterranean cuisines, with the accent always on enhancing the natural taste and flavour of

the ingredients. There is no one dominant element in Turkish cuisine, like sauces in French and pasta in Italian cuisines.

While the Palace cuisine was developing in İstanbul, local cuisines in Anatolia were multiplying in several regions, all displaying different geographical and climactic

characteristics. These cuisines, after remaining within regional borders for centuries, are now being transplanted to the big cities and their suburbs as a consequence of large scale urbanisation and migration towards new urban centres. As a result, the national Turkish cuisine has been enriched by the contribution of a great number of

local recipes.Turkey is self-sufficient in food production and produces enough for export as well. This means that Turkish food is usually made from fresh, local ingredients and is all

the tastier for it.A main meal will usually start with soup and the meze, a variety of small cold and hot

dishes which are made for sharing.

In many restaurants a waiter will bring these round on a tray for you to inspect and make your choice. Tarama salad, cacik (taziki), dolma (vine leaves or peppers stuffed with

rice), börek (pastries) , arnavut ciğeri (cubes of fried liver) are amongst the many types of mezes found in most of the restaurants.

The main course is usually meat or fish. Turks always eat bread with their meal and main courses are usually served with rice. Typically çoban salatası, a salad made of tomato, cucumber, parsley and onion, dressed with olive oil and lemon juice, will be

offered as a side dish. Lamb is the most popular meat and prepared in a variety of ways, including “şiş kebap” (grilled cubes of seasoned meat on skewer). “Köfte”, which are like

small lamb burgers are well worth trying. Those who prefer something hot and spicy should try “Adana kebap”, which is made of minced lamb but with the addition of hot peppers and spices formed around a flat skewer. There are numerous variations and

regional specialities of kebap.

Somewhat rich but very tasty, is the İskender or Bursa kebab, named respectively after Alexander the Great and the town in which it is originated, which is slices of döner meat laid over small bites of a freshly cooked flat bread and covered with tomato sauce and

hot butter all served with yoghurt. Turks traditionally are fond of stews called sulu yemek or ev yemeği (home cook) and therefore there are many restaurants offering these foods

which are usually displayed in the entrance of the restaurant in large containers.Fish and seafood restaurants are widely found in Istanbul, in the other big cities and in

the coastal resorts. Mostly fish is simply grilled to bring out its natural flavour and there is a wide variety of seafood meze including midye tava (fried mussels), kalamar (calamari),

midye dolma (mussels in shells stuffed with seasoned rice). It is worth asking for recommendations but some of the tastiest are levrek (sea bass), çupra (sea bream) and

kalkan (turbot). Fish is also sold by weight in specialist restaurants where some customers prefer to make their choice from the fishes offered on a large display. 

GEOGRAPHY

Turkey is a vast peninsula, covering an area of 814,578 square kilometres or 314,510 square miles and linking Asia to Europe through the Sea of Marmara and the Straits of Istanbul and Çanakkale. Across the Sea of Marmara, the triangular shaped Trace is the

continuation of Turkey on the European continent. Anatolia is rectangular in outline, 1500 kilometres long and 550 kilometres wide.

It is characterised by a central plateau surrounded by chains of mountains on the north, west and

south and a rugged mountainous region in the east with an average elevation of 1050 metres. In the west, the mountains descend gently towards the sea. The northern Anatolia mountain range, and

the Taurus range in the south, stretches like arcs, becoming ever denser in the east. Turkey's

highest mountain peak at 5165 metres or 16,946 feet is Ağrı Dağı (Mount Ararat), situated in the

north east. It is believed to have been the resting place for Noah's Ark.

Turkey has a quite large river system that allows for important hydroelectric power generation and irrigation. The country's longest rivers, the Sakarya,

the Kızılırmak and the Yeşilırmak, flow from the Central Anatolia towards the

Black Sea.

The famous Dicle (Tigris) and Firat (Euphrates) flow from the eastern Anatolia south into Syria and Iraq.

Four other rivers: the Büyük Menderes and Gediz flow from the Anatolian Plateau into the Aegean Sea; the Meric, which forms the

border between Turkey and Greece; and the Seyhan, which runs from the eastern highlands all the way

into the Mediterranean, all round out the major rivers of Turkey. Seyhan River

Turkey has over 300 natural and 130 artificial lakes. In terms of numbers of

lakes, the Eastern Anatolian region is the richest including Lake Van, (the largest of

the country with its 3,713 square kilometres surface), and the lakes of Ercek, Cildir and

Hazar.

There are also many lakes in the West Taurus Mountains area: the Beysehir and Egirdir lakes, Burdur and Acigoller lakes. The lakes of Sapanca, Iznik, Ulubat, Manyas,

Terkos, Kucukcekmece and Buyukcekmece are in Marmara

region, and the second largest lake of Turkey, Tuzgolu and The lakes of

Aksehir and Eber are located in the Central Anatolia region. A number of dams have been constructed during

the past thirty years, which have resulted in the formation of several

large dam lakes including the Atatürk, Keban and Karakaya.

Turkey is like a mosaic made up of many different reliefs and formations: parallel mountain ranges, extinct volcanoes, plateaux

fissured by valleys and plains.

Surrounded on its three sides by warm seas,Turkey falls in the temperate climate zone. The climate varies considerably however from region to region: a temperate climate in

the Black Sea Region, a Mediterranean climate on the southern coast and the Aegean, a continental and arid climate on the central plateau and a harsh mountain climate in

eastern Turkey. Because of these variations in climate, the fauna and flora are some of the richest in Europe and the Middle East.

Turkey is separated into seven geographical regions, which are, in order of size: East Anatolia (21 %), Central Anatolia (20%), Black Sea (18%), Mediterranean (15%),

Aegean (10%), Marmara (8.5%) and Southeast Anatolia (7.5%).

There are more than 10,000 species of plants in Turkey, 20% of which are found only in these lands. The abundant rainfall in the Black Sea region allows the growth of rich forest vegetation. The Çanakkale Strait forms a transition between the Black Sea and the Aegean regions and therefore has a mixture of temperate and Mediterranean type of vegetation. Thrace has fine forests which are subject to the continental influence of

the Balkans.

The coasts of the Aegean and the Mediterranean, from the

Çanakkale Strait to the Gulf of İskenderun, have typically Mediterranean vegetation

which extends to the plains and western slopes of

mountains as high as 1000 metres. The southern coast

has very hot and dry summers and the vegetation in some places is subtropical with

banana trees and date palms. In the Taurus Mountains, the vegetation consists of pine

and cedar forests, with even junipers at higher altitudes.

Central and eastern Anatolia are isolated from all maritime

influence by mountains.

Turkey has a great variety of wild animals, with over 114 species of mammals. The forest belt in the north is home to grey hears and in the south to wild goats. Sea turtles

and seals play in the waters of the Mediterranean and the Aegean, just as in other parts of the world, some species have become extinct or on the verge of extinction such as the wild Asian donkeys, lions and tigers. Some 400 species of indigenous or migratory

birds live in Turkey, some of which are extinct in Europe such as the black vulture.

Turkey is an important stopover for birds migrating between Africa, Asia and Europe, with the predatory birds stop in these places before continuing on Istanbul Strait and Artvin being the preferred sites. According to the International Office of Aquatic Birds

and Areas, there are some 800 aquatic species in Turkey spanning sixty different areas. The shores of Lake Manyas near Balıkesir are home to over 200 species of

indigenous or migratory aquatic birds. This lake is considered to be one of Europe s richest aquatic bird centres.

Turkey has a very ancient folk dance tradition which varies from region to region, each dance being colourful, rhythmic, elegant and stylish. The

following are among the most popular: “Çayda Çıra” from the Sivas region in

Central Anatolia is performed by young girls dressed in silver and gold

embroidered kaftans who dance in the dark with lighted candles in their hands.

TURKISH ART AND CULTURE

In the “Silifke Yoğurdu” from the Mersin region in the South Mediterranean, dancers click wooden

spoons together above their heads. “Şeyh Şamil" from the Kars region in the East, is a beautifully dramatised legend of a Caucasian hero. "Kılıç

Kalkan” is an epic dance performed with swords and shields from the region of Bursa, and “Zeybek” from Izmir is another epic and vigorous folk dance performed, by male dancers who bang their knees

on the floor in between steps.

Turkish music evolved from the original folk form into classical through the emergence of a Palace culture. It attained its highest point

in the 16th century through the composer “Itri”. Great names in Turkish classical music include “Dede Efendi”, “Hacı Arif Bey” and

“Tamburi Cemil Bey”. It is a form that continues to be professionally performed

and one that attracts large audiences. Turkish music, locally called Turkish

Classical Music, is a variation of the national musical tradition, played with instruments such as the tambur, kanun, ney and ud.

Turkish theatre is thought to have originated from the popular Karagöz shadow plays, a cross between moralistic Punch and Judy and the slapstick Laurel and Hardy. It then

developed along an oral tradition, with plays performed in public places, such as coffee houses and gardens, exclusively by male

actors.

Literature has long been an important component of Turkish cultural life, reflecting the history of the people, their legends, their mysticism, and the political and social

changes that affected this land throughout its long history. The oldest literary legacy of the pre-Islamic period are the Orhon inscriptions in northern Mongolia, written in 735 on two large stones in honour of a Turkish king and his brother. During the Ottoman period, the prevailing literary form was poetry, the dominant dialect was Anatolian or Ottoman, and the main subject beauty and romance. The Ottoman Divan literature was highly influenced by Persian culture and written in a dialect which combined Arabic, Persian and Turkish. Separate from the aristocratic Divan literature, folk literature continued to dominate Anatolia where troubadour-like poets celebrated nature, love and God in simple Turkish language. Towards the 20th century, the language of Turkish literature became simpler and more political and social in

substance. The great and politically controversial poet, Nazım Hikmet, inspired by the Russian poet Mayakowski, introduced free verse in the late 1930s. Nowadays, the irrefutable master of the Turkish popular novel is Yaşar Kemal, with his authentic, colourful and forceful description of Anatolian life. Young Turkish writers tend to go beyond the usual social issues, preferring to tackle problems such as feminism and

aspects of die East-West dichotomy which continues to fascinate Turkish intellectuals.

LITERATURE

The only city in the world located on two continents is Istanbul, which has been the

capital of three great empires, Roman, Byzantine and

Ottoman for more than 2,000 years.

ABOUT TURKEY

The world’s oldest known settlement is in

Catalhoyuk in central Anatolia, Turkey, and

dates back to 6,500 BC.

The Virgin Mary spent her last days in Selcuk, İzmir, near the ancient

city of Ephesus.

Julius Caesar proclaimed his celebrated words “Veni. Vedi, Veci”

(I came, I saw, I conquered) in Turkey when he defeated Pontus, a

formidable Kingdom in the Black Sea Region of Turkey.

The first known University in history is in Harran, Southeast

Turkey.

Homer (Homeros) was born in Izmir on the west coast of Turkey and he depicted Troy, which is

north of Izmir, in his Epic

the Iliad.

The famous Trojan Wars took place in

western Turkey, around the site where

a wooden model of the Trojan Horse has been erected at the

site.

Alexander the Great conquered a

large territory in what is now Turkey

and cut the Gordion Knot in the

Phrygian capital (Gordium) not far

from Turkey's present-day capital

(Ankara).

One of the seven wonders, The Temple of

Artemis at Ephesus (today only base ruins

remained in Selcuk, Izmir)

One of the seven wonders, The Mausoleum at

Halicarnassus today only base ruins

remained in Bodrum, Mugla.

According to the Legend of Great Flood, after the

withdrawal of the waters, Noah's Ark

landed on Mount Ağrı in eastern Anatolia.

Anatolia is the birthplace of many historical figures

such as the Phrygian King

Midas, the father of history Herodotus

and St Paul

One of the first most accurate world maps were drawn by the well-known Turkish cartographer and

navigator Piri Reis in 16th century.

Contrary to popular opinion, tulip originated not in Holland but on the Asian steppes. The Turks first gave the Dutch their famous tulips that started the craze for the flower in

England and the Netherlands. There is a period of elegance and

amusement in 17th century is named "The Tulip Age" in Ottoman

Empire.

The Seven Churches referred in

the Book of Revelation are all found in Turkey:

Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia

and Laodicea.

The most valuable silk carpet in the

world is in the Mevlana Museum in

Konya, Turkey. Marco Polo's journeys in the

thirteenth centuries took him here, and he remarked that

the "best and handsomest of

rugs" were to be found in Turkey.

Göbekli Tepe /Sanliurfa is the oldest human-made place of

worship yet discovered.Dated to

7500 - 6000 BC.

The number of archaeological

excavations going on in Turkey every year

is at least 150.

The Amazons originated in

Turkey's Northeastern

region.