Portal:Turkey

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Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Iran to the east; Iraq, Syria, and the Mediterranean Sea to the south; and the Aegean Sea, Greece, and Bulgaria to the west. Turkey is home to over 85 million people; most are ethnic Turks, while Kurds are the largest ethnic minority. Officially a secular state, Turkey has a Muslim-majority population. Ankara is Turkey's capital and second-largest city. Istanbul is its largest city and economic center. Other major cities include İzmir, Bursa, and Antalya.

First inhabited by modern humans during the Late Paleolithic, present-day Turkey was home to various ancient peoples. The Hattians were assimilated by the Hittites and other Anatolian peoples. Classical Anatolia transitioned into cultural Hellenization after Alexander the Great's conquests, and later Romanization during the Roman and Byzantine eras. The Seljuk Turks began migrating into Anatolia in the 11th century, starting the Turkification process. The Seljuk Sultanate of Rum ruled Anatolia until the Mongol invasion in 1243, when it disintegrated into Turkish principalities. Beginning in 1299, the Ottomans united the principalities and expanded. Mehmed II conquered Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul) in 1453. During the reigns of Selim I and Suleiman the Magnificent, the Ottoman Empire became a global power. From 1789 onwards, the empire saw major changes, reforms, centralization, and rising nationalism while its territory declined.

In the 19th and early 20th centuries, persecution of Muslims during the Ottoman contraction and in the Russian Empire resulted in large-scale loss of life and mass migration into modern-day Turkey from the Balkans, Caucasus, and Crimea. Under the control of the Three Pashas, the Ottoman Empire entered World War I in 1914, during which the Ottoman government committed genocides against its Armenian, Greek, and Assyrian subjects. Following Ottoman defeat, the Turkish War of Independence resulted in the abolition of the sultanate and the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne. Turkey emerged as a more homogenous nation state. The Republic was proclaimed on 29 October 1923, modelled on the reforms initiated by its founder and first president, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Turkey remained neutral during most of World War II, but was involved in the Korean War. Several military interventions interfered with the transition to a multi-party system.

Turkey is an upper-middle-income and emerging country; its economy is the world's 16th-largest by nominal and 11th-largest by PPP-adjusted GDP. As the 15th-largest electricity producer in the world, Turkey aims to become a hub for regional energy transportation. It is a unitary presidential republic. Turkey is a founding member of the OECD, G20, and Organization of Turkic States. With a geopolitically significant location, Turkey is a NATO member and has its second-largest military force. It may be recognized as an emerging, a middle, and a regional power. As an EU candidate, Turkey is part of the EU Customs Union.

Turkey has coastal plains, a high central plateau, and various mountain ranges with rising elevation eastwards. Turkey's climate is diverse, ranging from Mediterranean and other temperate climates to semi-arid and continental types. Home to three biodiversity hotspots, Turkey is prone to frequent earthquakes and is highly vulnerable to climate change. Turkey has a universal healthcare system, growing access to education, and increasing levels of innovativeness. It is a leading TV content exporter. With numerous UNESCO World Heritage sites and intangible cultural heritage inscriptions, and a rich and diverse cuisine, Turkey is the fourth most visited country in the world. (Full article...)

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Miniature from the Majma al-Tawarikh by Hafiz Abru circa 1425; which depicts accession to the throne by Alp Arslan

Alp Arslan (Persian: آلپ ارسلان; full name: Muhammad Alp Arslan bin Dawud Chaghri), was the second sultan of the Seljuk Empire and great-grandson of Seljuk, the eponymous founder of the dynasty and the empire. He reigned from 1063 until his assassination in 1072.

Alp Arsan greatly expanded Seljuk territories and consolidated his power, defeating rivals to the south, east, and northwest. His victory over the Byzantines at the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 ushered in the Turkoman settlement of Anatolia. For his military achievements, he earned the name Alp Arslan, which means "Heroic Lion" in Turkish. (Full article...)

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General images

The following are images from various Turkey-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Sami Frashëri (1850–1904) and his wife Emine, May 1884. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 2View of Beydağları Coastal National Park (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 3Mount Erciyes near Kayseri (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 4Bronze Age Anatolia (from History of Turkey)
Image 5Mount Ararat (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 6The sultan of the golden age, Suleiman the Magnificent. (from History of Turkey)
Image 7Recaizade Mahmud Ekrem (1847–1914) was another prominent Turkish poet of the late Ottoman era. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 8Ankara (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 9Anıtkabir designed by Emin Halid Onat and Ahmet Orhan Arda (1944–53) (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 10Antalya (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 11Kaçkar Mountains. (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 12Map showing events of the first phases of the Greco-Persian Wars (from History of Turkey)
Image 13Istanbul University Faculty of Science and Faculty of Literature Buildings (1944–52) designed by Sedad Hakkı Eldem and Emin Onat (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 14Istanbul Sapphire (2006–11) is the tallest building in Turkey and 4th in Europe. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 15Thrace and the Thracian Odrysian kingdom in its maximum extent under Sitalces (431-424 BC) (from History of Turkey)
Image 16Istanbul LGBT Pride 2013 at Taksim Square during Gezi Park protests (from History of Turkey)
Image 17Butterfly Valley on the Turkish Riviera. (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 18The Nation's Library of the Presidency, Ankara (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 19Mount Nemrut, Adıyaman (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 20Turkish delight (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 21Map of earthquakes in Turkey 1900–2023 (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 22Mehmed II enters Constantinople by Fausto Zonaro (from History of Turkey)
Image 23Regions of Roman Anatolia (from History of Turkey)
Image 24Turkish national basketball team won the silver medal in the 2010 FIBA World Championship. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 25First Ziraat Bank Headquarters (1925–29) in Ankara designed by Giulio Mongeri is an important symbol of the First National Architectural Movement. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 26A view of Levent from Kanlıca across the Bosporus. (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 27Map of Istanbul by the miniature artist Matrakçı Nasuh (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 28View from Levent district in Istanbul. Istanbul's skyline has changed especially since the early 2000s. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 29Yalikavak Palmarina in Bodrum (2014) designed by Emre Arolat (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 30Atatürk on the cover of the Time magazine, Vol. I No. 4, March 24, 1923. Title: "Mustapha Kemal Pasha" (from History of Turkey)
Image 31View of Dilek Peninsula-Büyük Menderes Delta National Park (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 32Night view of the Taksim Mosque (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 33Fazıl Hüsnü Dağlarca was one of the most prolific Turkish poets of the Turkish Republic with more than 60 collections of his poems published, laureate of the Struga Poetry Evenings Golden Wreath Award. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 34Roosevelt, İnönü and Churchill at the Second Cairo Conference which was held between 4–6 December 1943. (from History of Turkey)
Image 35Ankara Opera House, designed by Şevki Balmumcu (1933–34) and renovation by Paul Bonatz (1946–47). (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 36Originally a church, later a mosque, and now a Grand mosque, the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul was built by the Byzantines in the 6th century. (from History of Turkey)
Image 37An oil wrestling tournament in Istanbul. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 38Turkish coffee (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 39Orhan Pamuk, winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Literature. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 40Istanbul (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 41Selimiye Mosque in Edirne (1568–1574) (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 42Orhan Veli Kanık was the founder of the Garip Movement in Turkish poetry. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 43Köppen climate types of Turkey (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 44Map showing the Anatolian Plate, the North Anatolian Fault and East Anatolian Fault in Turkey. (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 45Namık Kemal was a prominent Turkish poet, novelist, playwright and journalist of the late-19th-century Ottoman Empire. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 46Visit of Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany to Turkey in October 1917. Together with the Mehmed V and Enver Pasha (from History of Turkey)
Image 47Tevfik Fikret (1867–1915) was a prominent Turkish poet of the late Ottoman era. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 48The empire in 555 under Justinian the Great, at its greatest extent since the fall of the Western Roman Empire (its vassals in pink) (from History of Turkey)
Image 49Karagöz and Hacivat are the lead characters of Turkish shadow play, popularized during the Ottoman period. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 50Entrance portal of the Karatay Madrasa in Konya (c. 1251) (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 51Designed by Şekip Akalın, Ankara Central Station (1937) is a notable art deco design of its era. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 52Beaches and marina of Kemer near Antalya on the Turkish Riviera. (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 53The Ottoman Empire in 1683, at the start of the Great Turkish War (1683–1699) (from History of Turkey)
Image 54Lake Van (from Geography of Turkey)

Did you know - show different entries

... that the Turkish tanbur is one of the four musical instruments that make up Turkish classical music's basic quartet? (May 23, 2007)
... that Hagia Sophia (pictured) in Turkey has runic inscriptions left by Vikings? (February 29, 2008) Wikipedia:Recent additions 209
... that the Tigris River's tributary, the Botan in southeastern Turkey, looks during times of peak discharge much bigger than the Tigris? (December 26, 2008) Wikipedia:Recent additions 237
... that an Egyptian army of 1,500 was defeated by 300 women and old men of Diro during the Egyptian Invasion of Mani in 1826? (January 22, 2007) Wikipedia:Recent additions 117
... that Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, the head of the Turkish delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, is also a member of parliament from Antalya Province? (January 24, 2010)
... that Hilton Istanbul Bosphorus
(pictured) in Turkey, established in 1955, is the longest-serving member of the Hilton Hotels chain outside the United States? (February 21, 2013)
... that the Battle of Wawon is considered to be Turkey's first real combat action since the end of World War I? (December 1, 2009)

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Image 1The ancient Lake Abant Nature Park in Bolu
Image 2Lake Akdoğan in Muş
Image 31. picture on portal: The prominent towers of Dayro d-Mor Gabriel; 15th December 2005
Image 4Mount Nemrut
Image 5Kemer
Image 6Rize
Image 7Flag of Turkey, from flowers
Image 8the Bosphorus Bridge
Image 9Antalya
Image 10An airplane with a nazar boncuğu symbol that is said to offer protection from the "evil eye".
Image 11A tram in Istanbul
Image 12Aydilge Sarp; Turkish singer, songwriter and novelist
Image 13Safranbolu
Image 14Tünel, Istanbul
Image 15Cappadocia
Image 16Atatürk praying
Image 17the Selimiye Mosque in Edirne
Image 18Iznik, 16th-century vase
Image 19A faculty of Sakarya University
Image 20Lahmacun
Image 21A Kocek
Image 22The Temple of Athena at Priene, an ancient site near Turunçlar in Aydın province.
Image 23Tarkan with Hungarian fans
Image 24Ölüdeniz
Image 2518th-century Ottoman barber's apron
Image 26The tughra of Mahmud II. "Mahmud Han bin Abdulhamid muzaffer daima" ("Mahmud Khan son of Abdulhamid is forever victorious").
Image 27The sun setting over the Golden Horn in the city of Istanbul.

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Undated coin struck by Junayd during his second reign.

Juneyd or Junayd Bey (Turkish: İzmiroğlu Cüneyd Bey; fl. 1402 – 1425) was the last ruler (bey) of the Aydınid principality in what is now central western Turkey. His exact relationship with the Aydınid dynasty is unclear. His father was a long-time and popular governor of Smyrna under the Ottoman sultan Bayezid I. This allowed Junayd to consistently rely on the loyalty of the area's populace.

Bayezid was defeated by Timur at the Battle of Ankara, beginning a civil war for succession between his sons – a period known as the "Ottoman Interregnum". Taking advantage of the situation, Junayd attacked the Aydınid brothers, Isa and Umur II, who had been restored by Timur. By early 1406, Isa and Umur were dead and Junayd was the undisputed ruler of the former Aydınid domains. Like all the rulers of the region, Muslim and Christian alike, Junayd was also an active participant in the civil war between Bayezid's sons İsa, Süleyman, Musa and Mehmed, in which he changed his allegiance several times. He supported İsa against Mehmed, and became a vassal of Süleyman. His persistent attempts to exploit the conflict to broaden his power and independence forced Süleyman to send him as provincial governor of Ohrid in Rumeli in 1410. After Süleyman's overthrow and death in 1411 at the hands of his brother Musa, Junayd returned to Anatolia and seized Smyrna, but had to recognize the suzerainty of Mehmed. During Mehmed's absence in Rumeli to campaign against Musa, Junayd reclaimed his independence and attacked his neighbouring rulers. As a result, in 1414 Mehmed led a regional coalition against Junayd. Junayd's mother was able to save his life, but once again Junayd was dispossessed and sent to Rumeli as governor of Nicopolis. From there, he joined the unsuccessful rebellion of Mustafa Çelebi, until the Byzantines agreed to intern him and Mustafa in 1416. (Full article...)

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U.S. President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey speak to the media after the two leaders met at the White House, December 7, 2009

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“

Heroes who shed their blood and lost their lives! You are now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore rest in peace. There is no difference between the Johnnies and Mehmets to us where they lie side by side here in this country of ours. You, the mothers, who sent their sons from far away countries wipe away your tears; your sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace. After having lost their lives on this land they have become our sons as well.

”

1934 ~ Mustafa Kemal Atatürk

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Turkish proverbs in Wikiquote

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Recognized content

	Alanya, Byzantine Empire, SMS Goeben, The Turk, List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire, Istanbul, Italian War of 1521–1526, Italian War of 1542–1546, List of battleships of the Ottoman Empire, Rhodes blood libel
	2004 Istanbul summit, 2008 Turkish Grand Prix, Battle of Manzikert, Battle of Marash, Battle of Vaslui, Church of St. Polyeuctus, First Crusade, Great Zab, Hood event, Limyra Bridge, Siege of Szigetvár, Night Attack at Târgoviște, Third Perso-Turkic War, Walls of Constantinople, Gallipoli Campaign, Battle of Lone Pine