Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the
capital
Capital may refer to:
Common uses
* Capital city, a municipality of primary status
** List of national capital cities
* Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences
* Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...
of
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...
. Located in the
central part of
Anatolia
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in
Ankara Province,
making it Turkey's
second-largest city after
Istanbul
)
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code = 34000 to 34990
, area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side)
, registration_plate = 34
, blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD
, blank_i ...
.
Serving as the capital of the ancient
Celtic state of
Galatia (280–64 BC), and later of the
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
* Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...
province with the
same name (25 BC–7th century), the city is very old, with various
Hattian,
Hittite,
Lydian,
Phrygian,
Galatian,
Greek,
Persian,
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
* Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...
,
Byzantine
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
, and
Ottoman archeological sites. The Ottomans made the city the capital first of the
Anatolia Eyalet
The Eyalet of Anatolia ( ota, ایالت آناطولی, Eyālet-i Anaṭolı) was one of the two core provinces (Rumelia being the other) in the early years of the Ottoman Empire. It was established in 1393. By Gábor Ágoston, Bruce Alan Masters ...
(1393 – late 15th century) and then the
Angora Vilayet (1867–1922). The historical center of Ankara is a rocky hill rising over the left bank of the
Ankara River
Ankara River ( tr, Ankara Çayı) is a small river (stream) to the west of Ankara, Turkey. It is a tributary of the Sakarya River.
One of its tributaries, the Çubuk Brook, splits Ankara almost in half and crosses through many neighborhoods. T ...
, a tributary of the
Sakarya River. The hill remains crowned by the ruins of
Ankara Castle. Although few of its outworks have survived, there are well-preserved examples of
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
* Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...
and
Ottoman architecture
Ottoman architecture is the architectural style that developed under the Ottoman Empire. It first emerged in northwestern Anatolia in the late 13th century and developed from earlier Seljuk Turkish architecture, with influences from Byzantine ...
throughout the city, the most remarkable being the 20 BC
Temple of Augustus and Rome that boasts the
Monumentum Ancyranum, the inscription recording the ''
Res Gestae Divi Augusti''.
On 23 April 1920, the
Grand National Assembly of Turkey
The Grand National Assembly of Turkey ( tr, ), usually referred to simply as the TBMM or Parliament ( tr, or ''Parlamento''), is the unicameral Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by the Turkish Cons ...
was established in Ankara, which became the headquarters of the
Turkish National Movement during the
Turkish War of Independence
The Turkish War of Independence "War of Liberation", also known figuratively as ''İstiklâl Harbi'' "Independence War" or ''Millî Mücadele'' "National Struggle" (19 May 1919 – 24 July 1923) was a series of military campaigns waged by th ...
. Ankara became the new Turkish capital upon the establishment of the Republic on 29 October 1923, succeeding in this role as the former Turkish capital Istanbul following the
fall of the Ottoman Empire
The dissolution of the Ottoman Empire (1908–1922) began with the Young Turk Revolution which restored the constitution of 1876 and brought in multi-party politics with a two-stage electoral system for the Ottoman parliament. At the same t ...
. The
government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...
is a prominent employer, but Ankara is also an important commercial and industrial city located at the center of Turkey's road and railway networks. The city gave its name to the
Angora wool
Angora hair or Angora fibre refers to the downy coat produced by the Angora rabbit. While the names of the source animals are similar, Angora fibre is distinct from mohair, which comes from the Angora goat. Angora fibre is also distinct from c ...
shorn from
Angora rabbit
The Angora rabbit ( tr, Ankara tavşanı), which is one of the oldest types of domestic rabbit, is bred for the long fibers of its coat, known as ''Angora wool'', which are gathered by shearing, combing or plucking. Because rabbits do not posses ...
s, the long-haired
Angora goat
Angora may refer to:
Places
*Angora, the historic name of Ankara, the capital city of Turkey
*Angora, Philadelphia
** Angora (SEPTA station), a commuter rail station
* Angora, Minnesota
* Angora Township, Minnesota
* Angora, Nebraska
* Angora L ...
(the source of
mohair), and the
Angora cat
Angora may refer to:
Places
*Angora, the historic name of Ankara, the capital city of Turkey
*Angora, Philadelphia
** Angora (SEPTA station), a commuter rail station
* Angora, Minnesota
* Angora Township, Minnesota
* Angora, Nebraska
* Angora L ...
. The area is also known for its pears, honey and
muscat grapes. Although situated in one of the driest regions of Turkey and surrounded mostly by
steppe
In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes.
Steppe biomes may include:
* the montane grasslands and shrublands biome
* the temperate gras ...
vegetation (except for the forested areas on the southern periphery), Ankara can be considered a
green city
The sustainable city, eco-city, or green city is a city designed with consideration for social, economic, environmental impact (commonly referred to as the triple bottom line), and resilient habitat for existing populations, without compromisi ...
in terms of green areas per inhabitant, at per head.
Etymology
The orthography of the name Ankara has varied over the ages. It has been identified with the
Hittite cult center ''Ankuwaš'',
although this remains a matter of debate.
[Gorny, Ronald L. "Zippalanda and Ankuwa: The Geography of Central Anatolia in the Second Millennium B.C." ''The Journal of the American Oriental Society''. Vol. 117 (1997).] In classical antiquity and during the medieval period, the city was known as ''Ánkyra'' (,
"
anchor
An anchor is a device, normally made of metal , used to secure a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the craft from drifting due to wind or current. The word derives from Latin ''ancora'', which itself comes from the Greek � ...
") in
Greek and ''Ancyra'' in
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
; the
Galatian Celtic name was probably a similar variant. Following its annexation by the
Seljuk Turks in 1073, the city became known in many European languages as ''Angora''; it was also known in
Ottoman Turkish as ''Engürü''. The form "Angora" is preserved in the names of breeds of many different kinds of animals, and in the names of several locations in the US (see
Angora).
History
The region's history can be traced back to the
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...
Hattic civilization
A civilization (or civilisation) is any complex society characterized by the development of a state, social stratification, urbanization, and symbolic systems of communication beyond natural spoken language (namely, a writing system).
...
, which was succeeded in the 2nd millennium BC by the
Hittites
The Hittites () were an Anatolian people who played an important role in establishing first a kingdom in Kussara (before 1750 BC), then the Kanesh or Nesha kingdom (c. 1750–1650 BC), and next an empire centered on Hattusa in north-cent ...
, in the 10th century BC by the
Phrygians, and later by the
Lydians,
Persians,
Greeks
The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, ot ...
,
Galatians,
Romans,
Byzantines, and
Turks (the
Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm
fa, سلجوقیان روم ()
, status =
, government_type = Hereditary monarchyTriarchy (1249–1254)Diarchy (1257–1262)
, year_start = 1077
, year_end = 1308
, p1 = B ...
, the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...
and finally republican
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...
).
Ancient history
The oldest settlements in and around the city center of Ankara belonged to the
Hattic civilization
A civilization (or civilisation) is any complex society characterized by the development of a state, social stratification, urbanization, and symbolic systems of communication beyond natural spoken language (namely, a writing system).
...
which existed during the
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...
and was gradually absorbed c. 2000 – 1700 BC by the
Indo-European
The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Du ...
Hittites
The Hittites () were an Anatolian people who played an important role in establishing first a kingdom in Kussara (before 1750 BC), then the Kanesh or Nesha kingdom (c. 1750–1650 BC), and next an empire centered on Hattusa in north-cent ...
. The city grew significantly in size and importance under the
Phrygians starting around 1000 BC, and experienced a large expansion following the mass migration from
Gordion
Gordion ( Phrygian: ; el, Γόρδιον, translit=Górdion; tr, Gordion or ; la, Gordium) was the capital city of ancient Phrygia. It was located at the site of modern Yassıhüyük, about southwest of Ankara (capital of Turkey), in the ...
, (the capital of
Phrygia), after an earthquake which severely damaged that city around that time. In Phrygian tradition, King
Midas was venerated as the founder of Ancyra, but
Pausanias mentions that the city was actually far older, which accords with present archeological knowledge.
Phrygian rule was succeeded first by
Lydian and later by
Persian rule, though the strongly Phrygian character of the peasantry remained, as evidenced by the gravestones of the much later Roman period. Persian sovereignty lasted until the Persians' defeat at the hands of
Alexander the Great
Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...
who conquered the city in 333 BC. Alexander came from
Gordion
Gordion ( Phrygian: ; el, Γόρδιον, translit=Górdion; tr, Gordion or ; la, Gordium) was the capital city of ancient Phrygia. It was located at the site of modern Yassıhüyük, about southwest of Ankara (capital of Turkey), in the ...
to Ankara and stayed in the city for a short period. After his death at
Babylon in 323 BC and the subsequent division of his empire among his generals, Ankara, and its environs fell into the share of
Antigonus.
Another important expansion took place under the
Greeks
The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, ot ...
of
Pontos who came there around 300 BC and developed the city as a trading center for the commerce of goods between the
Black Sea ports and Crimea to the north; Assyria, Cyprus, and Lebanon to the south; and Georgia, Armenia and Persia to the east. By that time the city also took its name Ἄγκυρα (''Ánkyra'', meaning ''
anchor
An anchor is a device, normally made of metal , used to secure a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the craft from drifting due to wind or current. The word derives from Latin ''ancora'', which itself comes from the Greek � ...
'' in
Greek) which, in slightly modified form, provides the modern name of ''Ankara''.
Celtic history
In 278 BC, the city, along with the rest of central Anatolia, was occupied by a
Celtic group, the
Galatians, who were the first to make Ankara one of their main tribal centers, the headquarters of the
Tectosages tribe. Other centers were
Pessinus, today's Ballıhisar, for the
Trocmi tribe, and
Tavium, to the east of Ankara, for the
Tolistobogii
Tolistobogii (in other sources Tolistobogioi, Tolistobōgioi, Tolistoboioi, Tolistobioi, Toligistobogioi or Tolistoagioi) is the name used by the Roman historian, Livy, for one of the three ancient Gallic tribes of Galatia in central Asia Minor ...
tribe. The city was then known as ''Ancyra''. The Celtic element was probably relatively small in numbers; a warrior aristocracy which ruled over
Phrygian-speaking peasants. However, the
Celtic language continued to be spoken in Galatia for many centuries. At the end of the 4th century,
St. Jerome, a native of Dalmatia, observed that the language spoken around Ankara was very similar to that being spoken in the northwest of the Roman world near
Trier.
Roman history
The city was subsequently passed under the control of the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...
. In 25 BC, Emperor
Augustus
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pr ...
raised it to the status of a ''
polis'' and made it the capital city of the
Roman province
The Roman provinces (Latin: ''provincia'', pl. ''provinciae'') were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was rule ...
of
Galatia.
Ankara is famous for the ''
Monumentum Ancyranum'' (''Temple of Augustus and Rome'') which contains the official record of the ''Acts of Augustus'', known as the ''
Res Gestae Divi Augusti'', an inscription cut in marble on the walls of this temple. The ruins of Ancyra still furnish today valuable
bas-relief
Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term '' relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...
s, inscriptions and other architectural fragments. Two other Galatian tribal centers,
Tavium near
Yozgat, and
Pessinus (Balhisar) to the west, near Sivrihisar, continued to be reasonably important settlements in the Roman period, but it was Ancyra that grew into a grand metropolis.
An estimated 200,000 people lived in Ancyra in good times during the Roman Empire, a far greater number than was to be the case from after the fall of the Roman Empire until the early 20th century. The small
Ankara River
Ankara River ( tr, Ankara Çayı) is a small river (stream) to the west of Ankara, Turkey. It is a tributary of the Sakarya River.
One of its tributaries, the Çubuk Brook, splits Ankara almost in half and crosses through many neighborhoods. T ...
ran through the center of the Roman town. It has now been covered and diverted, but it formed the northern boundary of the old town during the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman periods. Çankaya, the rim of the majestic hill to the south of the present city center, stood well outside the Roman city, but may have been a summer resort. In the 19th century, the remains of at least one
Roman villa or large house were still standing not far from where the Çankaya Presidential Residence stands today. To the west, the Roman city extended until the area of the Gençlik Park and Railway Station, while on the southern side of the hill, it may have extended downwards as far as the site presently occupied by
Hacettepe University. It was thus a sizeable city by any standards and much larger than the Roman towns of
Gaul
Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...
or
Britannia
Britannia () is the national personification of Britain as a helmeted female warrior holding a trident and shield. An image first used in classical antiquity, the Latin ''Britannia'' was the name variously applied to the British Isles, Grea ...
.
Ancyra's importance rested on the fact that it was the junction point where the roads in northern Anatolia running north–south and east–west intersected, giving it major strategic importance for Rome's eastern frontier.
The great imperial road running east passed through Ankara and a succession of emperors and their armies came this way. They were not the only ones to use the Roman highway network, which was equally convenient for invaders. In the second half of the 3rd century, Ancyra was invaded in rapid succession by the
Goths
The Goths ( got, 𐌲𐌿𐍄𐌸𐌹𐌿𐌳𐌰, translit=''Gutþiuda''; la, Gothi, grc-gre, Γότθοι, Gótthoi) were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medieval Euro ...
coming from the west (who rode far into the heart of
Cappadocia
Cappadocia or Capadocia (; tr, Kapadokya), is a historical region in Central Anatolia, Turkey. It largely is in the provinces Nevşehir, Kayseri, Aksaray, Kırşehir, Sivas and Niğde.
According to Herodotus, in the time of the Ionian Revo ...
, taking slaves and pillaging) and later by the
Arab
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
s. For about a decade, the town was one of the western outposts of one of Palmyrean empress
Zenobia
Septimia Zenobia ( Palmyrene Aramaic: , , vocalized as ; AD 240 – c. 274) was a third-century queen of the Palmyrene Empire in Syria. Many legends surround her ancestry; she was probably not a commoner and she married the ruler of the cit ...
in the
Syrian Desert, who took advantage of a period of weakness and disorder in the Roman Empire to set up a short-lived state of her own.
The town was reincorporated into the Roman Empire under Emperor
Aurelian in 272. The
tetrarchy, a system of multiple (up to four) emperors introduced by
Diocletian (284–305), seems to have engaged in a substantial program of rebuilding and of road construction from Ancyra westwards to Germe and
Dorylaeum (now
Eskişehir).
In its heyday, Roman Ancyra was a large market and trading center but it also functioned as a major administrative capital, where a high official ruled from the city's Praetorium, a large administrative palace or office. During the 3rd century, life in Ancyra, as in other Anatolian towns, seems to have become somewhat militarized in response to the invasions and instability of the town.
Byzantine history
The city is well known during the 4th century as a center of Christian activity (see also
below
Below may refer to:
*Earth
* Ground (disambiguation)
*Soil
*Floor
* Bottom (disambiguation)
*Less than
*Temperatures below freezing
*Hell or underworld
People with the surname
*Ernst von Below (1863–1955), German World War I general
*Fred Below ...
), due to frequent imperial visits, and through the letters of the pagan scholar
Libanius.
Bishop
Marcellus of Ancyra
Marcellus may refer to:
* Marcellus (name)
* Marcus Claudius Marcellus, Roman commander
Places
* Marcellus, Lot-et-Garonne, France
* Marcellus Township, Michigan
** Marcellus, Michigan, a village in Marcellus Township
** Marcellus Community ...
and
Basil of Ancyra were active in the theological controversies of their day, and the city was the site of no fewer than three church synods in
314
__NOTOC__
Year 314 ( CCCXIV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Rufius and Annianus (or, less frequently, year 1067 ''Ab ...
, 358 and 375, the latter two in favor of
Arianism.
The city was visited by Emperor
Constans I (r. 337–350) in 347 and 350,
Julian (r. 361–363) during his Persian campaign in 362, and Julian's successor
Jovian (r. 363–364) in winter 363/364 (he entered his
consulship while in the city). After Jovian's death soon after,
Valentinian I (r. 364–375) was acclaimed emperor at Ancyra, and in the next year his brother
Valens (r. 364–378) used Ancyra as his base against the usurper
Procopius.
When the province of Galatia was divided sometime in 396/99, Ancyra remained the civil capital of Galatia I, as well as its ecclesiastical center (
metropolitan see
Metropolitan may refer to:
* Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories
* Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England
* Metropolitan county, a t ...
).
Emperor
Arcadius (r. 383–408) frequently used the city as his summer residence, and some information about the ecclesiastical affairs of the city during the early 5th century is found in the works of
Palladius of Galatia and Nilus of Ancyra.
In 479, the rebel
Marcian attacked the city, without being able to capture it.
In 610/11,
Comentiolus, brother of Emperor
Phocas
Phocas ( la, Focas; grc-gre, Φωκάς, Phōkás; 5475 October 610) was Eastern Roman emperor from 602 to 610. Initially, a middle-ranking officer in the Eastern Roman army, Phocas rose to prominence as a spokesman for dissatisfied soldie ...
(r. 602–610), launched his own unsuccessful rebellion in the city against
Heraclius (r. 610–641).
Ten years later, in 620 or more likely 622, it was captured by the
Sassanid Persians during the
Byzantine–Sassanid War of 602–628. Although the city returned to Byzantine hands after the end of the war, the
Persian presence left traces in the city's archeology, and likely began the process of its transformation from a
late antique city to a medieval fortified settlement.
In 654, the city, also known in Arabic sources as ''Qalat as-Salasil'' ("fortress of the chains"), was captured for the first time by the
Arabs
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
of the
Rashidun Caliphate, under
Muawiyah, the future founder of the
Umayyad Caliphate
The Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE; , ; ar, ٱلْخِلَافَة ٱلْأُمَوِيَّة, al-Khilāfah al-ʾUmawīyah) was the second of the four major caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. The caliphate was ruled by th ...
.
At about the same time, the
themes were established in Anatolia, and Ancyra became capital of the
Opsician Theme, which was the largest and most important theme until it was split up under Emperor
Constantine V (r. 741–775); Ancyra then became the capital of the new
Bucellarian Theme.
The city was captured at least temporarily by the Umayyad prince
Maslama ibn Hisham in 739/40, the last of the Umayyads' territorial gains from the Byzantine Empire. Ancyra was attacked without success by
Abbasid
The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Mutta ...
forces in 776 and in 798/99. In 805, Emperor
Nikephoros I (r. 802–811) strengthened its fortifications, a fact which probably saved it from sack during the
large-scale invasion of Anatolia by Caliph
Harun al-Rashid
Abu Ja'far Harun ibn Muhammad al-Mahdi ( ar
, أبو جعفر هارون ابن محمد المهدي) or Harun ibn al-Mahdi (; or 766 – 24 March 809), famously known as Harun al-Rashid ( ar, هَارُون الرَشِيد, translit=Hārūn ...
in the next year.
Arab sources report that Harun and his successor
al-Ma'mun (r. 813–833) took the city, but this information is later invention. In 838, however, during the
Amorium campaign, the armies of Caliph
al-Mu'tasim (r. 833–842) converged and met at the city; abandoned by its inhabitants, Ancara was razed to the ground, before the Arab armies went on to besiege and destroy
Amorium reaching as far as
Smyrna.
In 859, Emperor
Michael III (r. 842–867) came to the city during a campaign against the Arabs, and ordered its fortifications restored.
In 872, the city was menaced, but not taken, by the
Paulicians under
Chrysocheir
Chrysocheir ( el, Χρυσόχειρ), also known as Chrysocheres, Chrysocheris, or Chrysocheiros (Χρυσόχερης/Χρυσόχερις/Χρυσόχειρος), all meaning "goldhand", was the second and last leader of the Paulician principali ...
.
The last Arab raid to reach the city was undertaken in 931, by the Abbasid governor of
Tarsus,
Thamal al-Dulafi Thamal al-Dulafi ( ar, ثمل الدلفي, Thamal al-Dulafī; ) was an Abbasid military commander and longtime governor (''wali'' or ''amir'') of Tarsus and the borderlands with the Byzantine Empire in Cilicia (). A former Dulafid slave, he comma ...
, but the city again was not captured.
Ecclesiastical history
Early Christian martyrs of Ancyra, about whom little is known, included Proklos and Hilarios who were natives of the otherwise unknown nearby village of Kallippi, and suffered repression under the emperor
Trajan (98–117). In the 280s we hear of Philumenos, a Christian corn merchant from southern Anatolia, being captured and martyred in Ankara, and Eustathius.
As in other Roman towns, the reign of
Diocletian marked the culmination of the persecution of the Christians. In 303, Ancyra was one of the towns where the co-emperors Diocletian and his deputy
Galerius
Gaius Galerius Valerius Maximianus (; 258 – May 311) was Roman emperor from 305 to 311. During his reign he campaigned, aided by Diocletian, against the Sasanian Empire, sacking their capital Ctesiphon in 299. He also campaigned across th ...
launched their anti-Christian persecution. In Ancyra, their first target was the 38-year-old Bishop of the town, whose name was Clement. Clement's life describes how he was taken to Rome, then sent back, and forced to undergo many interrogations and hardship before he, and his brother, and various companions were put to death. The remains of the church of
St. Clement can be found today in a building just off Işıklar Caddesi in the Ulus district. Quite possibly this marks the site where Clement was originally buried. Four years later, a doctor of the town named Plato and his brother Antiochus also became celebrated martyrs under Galerius.
Theodotus of Ancyra is also venerated as a saint.
However, the persecution proved unsuccessful and in 314 Ancyra was the center of
an important council of the
early church; its 25 disciplinary canons constitute one of the most important documents in the early history of the administration of the
Sacrament of Penance. The synod also considered ecclesiastical policy for the reconstruction of the
Christian Church after the persecutions, and in particular the treatment of ''
lapsi''—Christians who had given in to forced
paganism (sacrifices) to avoid
martyrdom
A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...
during these persecutions.
Though paganism was probably tottering in Ancyra in Clement's day, it may still have been the majority religion. Twenty years later, Christianity and
monotheism had taken its place. Ancyra quickly turned into a Christian city, with a life dominated by monks and priests and theological disputes. The town council or senate gave way to the bishop as the main local figurehead. During the middle of the 4th century, Ancyra was involved in the complex theological disputes over the nature of Christ, and a form of
Arianism seems to have originated there.
In 362–363, Emperor Julian passed through Ancyra on his way to an ill-fated campaign against the Persians, and according to Christian sources, engaged in a persecution of various holy men.
The stone base for a statue, with an inscription describing Julian as "Lord of the whole world from the British Ocean to the barbarian nations", can still be seen, built into the eastern side of the inner circuit of the walls of Ankara Castle. The Column of Julian which was erected in honor of the emperor's visit to the city in 362 still stands today. In 375, Arian bishops met at Ancyra and deposed several bishops, among them
St. Gregory of Nyssa.
In the late 4th century, Ancyra became something of an imperial
holiday resort
A resort ( North American English) is a self-contained commercial establishment that tries to provide most of a vacationer's wants, such as food, drink, swimming, lodging, sports, entertainment, and shopping, on the premises. The term '' ...
. After
Constantinople
la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه
, alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...
became the
East Roman capital, emperors in the 4th and 5th centuries would retire from the humid summer weather on the
Bosporus to the drier mountain atmosphere of Ancyra.
Theodosius II (408–450) kept his court in Ancyra in the summers. Laws issued in Ancyra testify to the time they spent there.
The
Metropolis of Ancyra
The Metropolis of Ancyra ( gr, Μητρόπολις Ἀγκύρας) was a Christian ( Eastern Orthodox after the East–West Schism) bishopric in Ancyra (modern Ankara, Turkey) and metropolitan see of Galatia Prima. The see survived the Selju ...
continued to be a residential
see of the
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via ...
until the 20th century, with about 40,000 faithful, mostly Turkish-speaking, but that situation ended as a result of the 1923
. The earlier
Armenian genocide put an end to the residential eparchy of Ancyra of the
Armenian Catholic Church
, native_name_lang = hy
, image = St Elie - St Gregory Armenian Catholic Cathedral.jpg
, imagewidth = 260px
, alt =
, caption = Cathedral of Saint Elias and Saint Gregory the Illumina ...
, which had been established in 1850.
[Bull ''Universi Dominici gregis''](_blank)
, in Giovanni Domenico Mansi, ''Sacrorum Conciliorum Nova et Amplissima Collectio'', vol. XL, coll. 779–780[F. Tournebize, v. ''II. Ancyre, évêché arménien catholique'', i]
''Dictionnaire d'Histoire et de Géographie ecclésiastiques''
, vol. II, Paris 1914, coll. 1543–1546 It is also a titular metropolis of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.
Both the Ancient Byzantine Metropolitan archbishopric and the 'modern' Armenian eparchy are now listed by the
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...
as
titular see
A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbi ...
s, with separate
apostolic successions.
Seljuk and Ottoman history
After the
Battle of Manzikert in 1071, the
Seljuk Turks overran much of Anatolia. By 1073, the Turkish settlers had reached the vicinity of Ancyra, and the city was captured shortly after, at the latest by the time of the rebellion of
Nikephoros Melissenos in 1081.
In 1101, when the
Crusade under
Raymond IV of Toulouse
Raymond IV, Count of Toulouse ( 1041 – 28 February 1105), sometimes called Raymond of Saint-Gilles or Raymond I of Tripoli, was a powerful noble in southern France and one of the leaders of the First Crusade (1096–1099). He was the Count o ...
arrived, the city had been under
Danishmend control for some time. The Crusaders captured the city, and handed it over to the Byzantine emperor
Alexios I Komnenos
Alexios I Komnenos ( grc-gre, Ἀλέξιος Κομνηνός, 1057 – 15 August 1118; Latinized Alexius I Comnenus) was Byzantine emperor from 1081 to 1118. Although he was not the first emperor of the Komnenian dynasty, it was during ...
(r. 1081–1118).
Byzantine rule did not last long, and the city was captured by the Seljuk
Sultanate of Rum at some unknown point; in 1127, it returned to Danishmend control until 1143, when the Seljuks of Rum retook it.
After the
Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243, in which the
Mongols
The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member ...
defeated the Seljuks, most of Anatolia became part of the dominion of the Mongols. Taking advantage of Seljuk decline, a semi-religious cast of craftsmen and trade people named ''
Ahiler'' chose Angora as their independent city-state in 1290.
Orhan I, the second
Bey of the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...
, captured the city in 1356.
Timur defeated
Bayezid I at the
Battle of Ankara in 1402 and took the city, but in 1403 Angora was again under Ottoman control.
The
Levant Company maintained a factory in the town from 1639 to 1768. In the 19th century, its population was estimated at 20,000 to 60,000. It was sacked by
Egyptians under
Ibrahim Pasha in 1832.
From 1867 to 1922, the city served as the capital of the
Angora Vilayet, which included most of ancient Galatia.
Prior to
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, the town had a
British consulate
A consulate is the office of a consul. A type of diplomatic mission, it is usually subordinate to the state's main representation in the capital of that foreign country (host state), usually an embassy (or, only between two Commonwealth co ...
and a population of around 28,000, roughly of whom were Christian.
Turkish republican capital
Following the
Ottoman defeat in
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, the Ottoman capital
Constantinople
la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه
, alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...
(modern Istanbul) and much of
Anatolia
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
was occupied by the Allies, who planned to share these lands between
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''O ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
,
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wi ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
and the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
, leaving for the Turks the core piece of land in central Anatolia. In response, the leader of the Turkish nationalist movement,
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, established the headquarters of his
resistance movement in Angora in 1920. After the
Turkish War of Independence
The Turkish War of Independence "War of Liberation", also known figuratively as ''İstiklâl Harbi'' "Independence War" or ''Millî Mücadele'' "National Struggle" (19 May 1919 – 24 July 1923) was a series of military campaigns waged by th ...
was won and the
Treaty of Sèvres was superseded by the
Treaty of Lausanne (1923), the Turkish nationalists replaced the Ottoman Empire with the
Republic of Turkey on 29 October 1923. A few days earlier, Angora had officially replaced Constantinople as the new Turkish capital city, on 13 October 1923,
and Republican officials declared that the city's name is Ankara.
After Ankara became the capital of the newly founded Republic of Turkey, new development divided the city into an old section, called ''Ulus'', and a new section, called ''Yenişehir''. Ancient buildings reflecting Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman history and narrow winding streets mark the old section. The new section, now centered on
Kızılay Square
July 15 Kızılay National Will Square ( tr, 15 Temmuz Kızılay Millî İrade Meydanı), originally Kızılay Square (''Kızılay Meydanı''), is one of the most important centers and junction points of Ankara, Turkey.
Geography
The square at ...
, has the trappings of a more modern city: wide streets, hotels, theaters, shopping malls, and high-rises.
Government offices and foreign embassies are also located in the new section. Ankara has experienced a phenomenal growth since it was made Turkey's capital in 1923, when it was "a small town of no importance". In 1924, the year after the government had moved there, Ankara had about 35,000 residents. By 1927 there were 44,553 residents and by 1950 the population had grown to 286,781. Ankara continued to grow rapidly during the latter half of the 20th century and eventually outranked
Izmir as Turkey's second-largest city, after
Istanbul
)
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code = 34000 to 34990
, area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side)
, registration_plate = 34
, blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD
, blank_i ...
. Ankara's urban population reached 4,587,558 in 2014, while the population of
Ankara Province reached 5,150,072 in 2015.
After 1930, it became known officially in Western languages as Ankara. After the late 1930s the public stopped using the name "Angora".
The
Presidential Palace of Turkey is situated in Ankara. This building serves as the main residence of the president.
Economy and infrastructure
Ankara has long been a productive agricultural region in Anatolia. In the Ottoman period, Ankara was well known for producing grain, cotton, and fruits.
The city has exported
mohair (from the
Angora goat
Angora may refer to:
Places
*Angora, the historic name of Ankara, the capital city of Turkey
*Angora, Philadelphia
** Angora (SEPTA station), a commuter rail station
* Angora, Minnesota
* Angora Township, Minnesota
* Angora, Nebraska
* Angora L ...
) and
Angora wool
Angora hair or Angora fibre refers to the downy coat produced by the Angora rabbit. While the names of the source animals are similar, Angora fibre is distinct from mohair, which comes from the Angora goat. Angora fibre is also distinct from c ...
(from the
Angora rabbit
The Angora rabbit ( tr, Ankara tavşanı), which is one of the oldest types of domestic rabbit, is bred for the long fibers of its coat, known as ''Angora wool'', which are gathered by shearing, combing or plucking. Because rabbits do not posses ...
) internationally for centuries. In the 19th century, the city also exported substantial amounts of
goat
The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the a ...
and cat skins,
gum,
wax,
honey, berries, and
madder root
''Rubia'' is the type genus of the Rubiaceae family of flowering plants, which also contains coffee. It contains around 80 species of perennial scrambling or climbing herbs and subshrubs native to the Old World. The genus and its best-known spe ...
. It was connected to
Istanbul
)
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code = 34000 to 34990
, area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side)
, registration_plate = 34
, blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD
, blank_i ...
by railway before the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, continuing to export mohair, wool, berries, and
grain.
The
Central Anatolia Region is one of the primary locations of grape and
wine production in Turkey, and Ankara is particularly famous for its
Kalecik Karası
Kalecik Karası is a Turkish grape variety and a Turkish wine produced from this grape. This grape and wine are called by the name of area, the Kalecik district of Ankara Province, Turkey. Kalecik Karası grows successfully near Kalecik. In its ...
and
Muscat grapes; and its
Kavaklıdere wine, which is produced in the
Kavaklıdere neighborhood within the
Çankaya district of the city. Ankara is also famous for its pears. Another renowned natural product of Ankara is its indigenous type of
honey (''Ankara Balı'') which is known for its light color and is mostly produced by the
Atatürk Forest Farm and Zoo
Atatürk Forest Farm and Zoo ( tr, Atatürk Orman Çiftliği ve Hayvanat Bahçesi, in short ''AOÇ'') is an expansive recreational farming area, which houses a zoo, several small agricultural farms, greenhouses, restaurants, a dairy farm and a bre ...
in the Gazi district, and by other facilities in the Elmadağ, Çubuk and Beypazarı districts.
Çubuk-1 and
Çubuk-2 dams on the Çubuk Brook in Ankara were among the first dams constructed in the Turkish Republic.
Ankara is the center of the state-owned and private Turkish
defence
Defense or defence may refer to:
Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups
* Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare
* Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks
* Defense indus ...
and
aerospace
Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and ast ...
companies, where the industrial plants and headquarters of the
Turkish Aerospace Industries,
MKE,
ASELSAN,
HAVELSAN,
ROKETSAN,
FNSS
FNSS Savunma Sistemleri A.Ş. ( en, FNSS Defence Systems A.Ş.) is a Turkish defense manufacturer founded in 1988. It is owned 51% by Nurol Holding of Turkey and 49% by British–American firm BAE Systems Inc., and operates facilities located in ...
,
Nurol Makina, and numerous other firms are located. Exports to foreign countries from these defense and aerospace firms have steadily increased in the past decades. The
IDEF in Ankara is one of the largest international expositions of the global
arms industry. A number of the global
automotive companies also have production facilities in Ankara, such as the German bus and truck manufacturer
MAN SE. Ankara hosts the
OSTIM Industrial Zone
The OSTIM Industrial Zone (''Ortadoğu Sanayi ve Ticaret Merkezi, OSTİM'') is a large industrial park in Ankara, Turkey aimed at Small and medium enterprises (SMEs). With around 5000 companies in eight main sectors and 50,000 employees over an ar ...
, Turkey's largest
industrial park.
A large percentage of the complicated employment in Ankara is provided by the state institutions; such as the
ministries, subministries, and other administrative bodies of the Turkish government. There are also many foreign citizens working as diplomats or clerks in the
embassies of their respective countries.
Geography
Geographically, Ankara is located in the middle of the
Kızılırmak and
Sakarya rivers, and the
Sakarya River forms its border with
Eskişehir in the west. Ankara shares its borders with
Bolu
Bolu is a city in Turkey, and administrative center of the Bolu Province. The population is 131,264 (2012 census).
The city has been governed by mayor Tanju Özcan (Republican People's Party, CHP) since 2019 Turkish local elections, local electi ...
and
Çankırı in the north;
Konya
Konya () is a major city in central Turkey, on the southwestern edge of the Central Anatolian Plateau, and is the capital of Konya Province. During antiquity and into Seljuk times it was known as Iconium (), although the Seljuks also called it D ...
in the south and
Kırıkkale in the east.
Ankara and
its province are located in the
Central Anatolia Region of Turkey. The Çubuk Brook flows through the city center of Ankara. It is connected in the western suburbs of the city to the
Ankara River
Ankara River ( tr, Ankara Çayı) is a small river (stream) to the west of Ankara, Turkey. It is a tributary of the Sakarya River.
One of its tributaries, the Çubuk Brook, splits Ankara almost in half and crosses through many neighborhoods. T ...
, which is a
tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...
of the
Sakarya River.
Climate
Ankara has a
cold semi-arid climate
A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi ...
(
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...
: ''BSk'').
[ ] Under the
Trewartha climate classification, Ankara has a temperate
humid continental climate
A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freez ...
(''Dc''). Due to its elevation and inland location, Ankara has cold and snowy winters, and hot and dry summers. Rainfall occurs mostly during the spring and autumn. The city lies in
USDA
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of comme ...
Hardiness zone 7b, and its annual average precipitation is fairly low at , nevertheless precipitation can be observed throughout the year. Monthly mean temperatures range from in January to in July, with an annual mean of .
[
]
Demographics
Ankara had a population of 75,000 in 1927. As of 2019, the population of the Ankara Province was 5,639,076. When Ankara became the capital of the Republic of Turkey in 1923, it was designated as a planned city for 500,000 future inhabitants. During the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s, the city grew in a planned and orderly pace. However, from the 1950s onward, the city grew much faster than envisioned, because unemployment and poverty forced people to migrate from the countryside into the city in order to seek a better standard of living. As a result, many illegal houses called gecekondu
Gecekondu (Turkish for ''put up overnight'', plural gecekondular) is a Turkish word meaning a house put up quickly without proper permissions, a squatter's house, and by extension, a shanty or shack. Gecekondu bölgesi is a neighborhood made of ...
were built around the city, causing the unplanned and uncontrolled urban landscape of Ankara, as not enough planned housing could be built fast enough. Although precariously built, the vast majority of them have electricity, running water and modern household amenities.
Nevertheless, many of these gecekondus have been replaced by huge public housing projects in the form of tower blocks such as Elvankent, Eryaman and Güzelkent; and also as mass housing compounds for military and civil service accommodation. Although many gecekondus still remain, they too are gradually being replaced by mass housing compounds, as empty land plots in the city of Ankara for new construction projects are becoming impossible to find.
Çorum and Yozgat, which are located in Central Anatolia and whose population is decreasing, are the provinces with the highest net migration to Ankara. About one third of the Central Anatolia population of 15,608,868 people resides in Ankara.
The literacy rate
Literacy in its broadest sense describes "particular ways of thinking about and doing reading and writing" with the purpose of understanding or expressing thoughts or ideas in written form in some specific context of use. In other words, huma ...
in the whole province for people who are 15 years old or older is 98.18% according to 2020 TÜİK data. Ankara Province also has the highest percentage of tertiary education graduates in Turkey with 29.08% of the population having either an undergraduate, master's or doctor's degree.
Transportation
The ''Electricity, Gas, Bus General Directorate'' (EGO) operates the Ankara Metro
The Ankara Metro ( tr, Ankara Metrosu) is the rapid transit system serving Ankara, the capital of Turkey. At present, Ankara's rapid transit system consists of two metro lines – the ''Batıkent Metrosu (M1)''and the new ''Keçiören Metrosu (M4 ...
and other forms of public transportation. Ankara is served by a suburban rail
Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter rail systems are co ...
named Ankaray (A1) and three subway
Subway, Subways, The Subway, or The Subways may refer to:
Transportation
* Subway, a term for underground rapid transit rail systems
* Subway (underpass), a type of walkway that passes underneath an obstacle
* Subway (George Bush Intercontin ...
lines (M1, M2, M3) of the Ankara Metro with about 300,000 total daily commuters, while an additional subway line (M4) is under construction. A long gondola lift
A gondola lift is a means of cable transport and type of aerial lift which is supported and propelled by cables from above. It consists of a loop of steel wire rope that is strung between two stations, sometimes over intermediate ...
with four stations connects the district of Şentepe to the Yenimahalle metro station.
The Ankara Central Station is a major rail hub in Turkey. The Turkish State Railways operates passenger train service from Ankara to other major cities, such as: Istanbul
)
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code = 34000 to 34990
, area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side)
, registration_plate = 34
, blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD
, blank_i ...
, Eskişehir, Balıkesir, Kütahya, İzmir, Kayseri, Adana, Kars, Elazığ, Malatya, Diyarbakır
Diyarbakır (; ; ; ) is the largest Kurdish-majority city in Turkey. It is the administrative center of Diyarbakır Province.
Situated around a high plateau by the banks of the Tigris river on which stands the historic Diyarbakır Fortres ...
, Karabük
Karabük is a town and the capital district of Karabük Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey. According to the 2009 census, population of the city is 108 167. The district covers an area of , and the town lies at an elevation of .
Karabü ...
, Zonguldak and Sivas. Commuter rail also runs between the stations of Sincan and Kayaş. On 13 March 2009, the new Yüksek Hızlı Tren
Yüksek Hızlı Tren or YHT ( en, High Speed Train) is a high-speed rail service in Turkey, operated by TCDD Taşımacılık, and is the railway's premier intercity train service. As of 2022, the network spans and services major cities like ...
(YHT) high-speed rail service began operation between Ankara and Eskişehir. On 23 August 2011, another YHT high-speed line commercially started its service between Ankara and Konya. On 25 July 2014, the Ankara–Istanbul high-speed line of YHT entered service.
Esenboğa International Airport, located in the north-east of the city, is Ankara's main airport.
Ankara public transportation statistics
The average amount of time people spend commuting on public transit in Ankara on a weekday is 71 minutes. 17% of public transit passengers, ride for more than two hours every day. The average amount of time people wait at a stop or station for public transit is sixteen minutes, while 28% of users wait for over twenty minutes on average every day. The average distance people usually ride in a single trip with public transit is , while 27% travel for over in a single direction.
Politics
Since 8 April 2019, the Mayor of Ankara is Mansur Yavaş
Mansur Yavaş (; born 23 May 1955) is a Turkish lawyer and politician who is currently the Mayor of Ankara, holding the office since April 2019. He was elected in the 2019 local election as the candidate of the Nation Alliance, an opposition all ...
from the Republican People's Party (CHP), who won the mayoral election in 2019.
Ankara is politically a triple battleground between the ruling conservative AK Party
The Justice and Development Party ( tr, Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi, ; AKP), abbreviated officially AK Party in English, is a political party in Turkey self-describing as conservative-democrat. It is one of the two major parties of contemporar ...
, the opposition Kemalist
Kemalism ( tr, Kemalizm, also archaically ''Kamâlizm''), also known as Atatürkism ( tr, Atatürkçülük, Atatürkçü düşünce), or The Six Arrows ( tr, Altı Ok), is the founding official ideology of the Republic of Turkey.Eric J. Zurcher ...
center-left Republican People's Party (CHP) and the nationalist far-right MHP. The province of Ankara is divided into 25 districts. The CHP's key and almost only political stronghold in Ankara lies within the central area of Çankaya, which is the city's most populous district. While the CHP has always gained between 60 and 70% of the vote in Çankaya since 2002, political support elsewhere throughout Ankara is minimal. The high population within Çankaya, as well as Yenimahalle to an extent, has allowed the CHP to take overall second place behind the AK Party in both local and general elections, with the MHP a close third, despite the fact that the MHP is politically stronger than the CHP in almost every other district. Overall, the AK Party enjoys the most support throughout the city. The electorate of Ankara thus tend to vote in favor of the political right, far more so than the other main cities of Istanbul
)
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code = 34000 to 34990
, area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side)
, registration_plate = 34
, blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD
, blank_i ...
and İzmir. In retrospect, the 2013–14 protests against the AK Party government were particularly strong in Ankara, proving to be fatal on multiple occasions. The city suffered from a series of terrorist attacks in 2015 and 2016, most notably on 10 October 2015; 17 February 2016; 13 March 2016; and 15 July 2016.
Melih Gökçek was the Metropolitan Mayor of Ankara between 1994 and 2017. Initially elected in the 1994 local elections, he was re-elected in 1999
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...
, 2004 and 2009. In the 2014 local elections, Gökçek stood for a fifth term. The MHP's metropolitan mayoral candidate for the 2009 local elections, Mansur Yavaş
Mansur Yavaş (; born 23 May 1955) is a Turkish lawyer and politician who is currently the Mayor of Ankara, holding the office since April 2019. He was elected in the 2019 local election as the candidate of the Nation Alliance, an opposition all ...
, stood as the CHP's candidate against Gökçek in 2014. In a heavily controversial election, Gökçek was declared the winner by just 1% ahead of Yavaş amid allegations of systematic electoral fraud. With the Supreme Electoral Council and courts rejecting his appeals, Yavaş declared his intention to take the irregularities to the European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that ...
. Although Gökçek was inaugurated for a fifth term, most election observers believe that Yavaş was the winner of the election. Gökçek resigned on 28 October 2017 and was replaced by the former mayor of Sincan district, Mustafa Tuna; who was succeeded by Mansur Yavaş
Mansur Yavaş (; born 23 May 1955) is a Turkish lawyer and politician who is currently the Mayor of Ankara, holding the office since April 2019. He was elected in the 2019 local election as the candidate of the Nation Alliance, an opposition all ...
of the CHP, the current Mayor of Ankara, elected in 2019.
Main sights
Ancient/archeological sites
Ankara Citadel
The foundations of the Ankara castle and citadel were laid by the Galatians on a prominent lava
Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a fracture in the crust, on land or ...
outcrop (), and the rest was completed by the Romans. The Byzantines and Seljuks further made restorations and additions. The area around and inside the citadel, being the oldest part of Ankara, contains many fine examples of traditional architecture. There are also recreational areas to relax. Many restored traditional Turkish houses inside the citadel area have found new life as restaurants, serving local cuisine.
The citadel was depicted in various Turkish banknotes during 1927–1952 and 1983–1989.
Roman Theater
The remains, the stage, and the backstage of the Roman theater can be seen outside the castle. Roman statues that were found here are exhibited in the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations. The seating area is still under excavation.
Temple of Augustus and Rome
The Augusteum, now known as the Temple of Augustus and Rome, was built 25 20 BC following the conquest of Central Anatolia by the Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...
. Ancyra then formed the capital of the new province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...
of Galatia. After the death of Augustus
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pr ...
in AD 14, a copy of the text of the '' Res Gestae Divi Augusti'' (the '' Monumentum Ancyranum'') was inscribed on the interior of the temple's ' in Latin and a Greek translation on an exterior wall of the '. The temple on the ancient acropolis of Ancyra was enlarged in the 2nd century and converted into a church in the 5th century. It is located in the Ulus quarter of the city. It was subsequently publicized by the Austrian
Austrian may refer to:
* Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent
** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law
* Austrian German dialect
* Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...
ambassador Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq in the 16th century.
Roman Baths
The Roman Baths of Ankara
The Roman Baths of Ankara are the ruined remains of an ancient Roman bath complex in Ankara, Turkey, which were uncovered by excavations carried out in 1937–1944, and have subsequently been opened to the public as an open-air museum.
History
Th ...
have all the typical features of a classical Roman bath complex: a '' frigidarium'' (cold room), a '' tepidarium'' (warm room) and a ''caldarium
230px, Caldarium from the Roman Baths at Bath, England. The floor has been removed to reveal the empty space where the hot air flowed through to heat the floor.
A caldarium (also called a calidarium, cella caldaria or cella coctilium) was a room ...
'' (hot room). The baths were built during the reign of the Roman emperor Caracalla
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname "Caracalla" () was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. He was a member of the Severan dynasty, the elder son of Emperor ...
in the early 3rd century to honor Asclepios, the God of Medicine. Today, only the basement and first floors remain. It is situated in the Ulus quarter.
Roman Road
The Roman Road of Ankara
The Roman Road of Ankara or Cardo Maximus is an ancient Roman roads, Roman road in Ankara, the capital of Turkey. The road was found in 1995 by Turkish archaeologist Cevdet Bayburtluoğlu. It is long and wide. Many ancient artifacts were discov ...
or ''Cardo Maximus'' was found in 1995 by Turkish archeologist Cevdet Bayburtluoğlu. It is long and wide. Many ancient artifacts were discovered during the excavations along the road and most of them are displayed at the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations.
Column of Julian
The Column of Julian or Julianus, now in the Ulus district, was erected in honor of the Roman emperor Julian the Apostate's visit to Ancyra in 362.
Mosques
Kocatepe Mosque
Kocatepe Mosque
The Kocatepe Mosque ( tr, Kocatepe Camii) is the largest mosque in Ankara, Turkey. It was built between 1967 and 1987 in the Kocatepe quarter in Kızılay, and its size and prominent situation have made it a landmark that can be seen from almost a ...
is the largest mosque in the city. Located in the Kocatepe quarter, it was constructed between 1967 and 1987 in classical Ottoman style with four minarets. Its size and prominent location have made it a landmark for the city.
Ahmet Hamdi Akseki Mosque
Ahmet Hamdi Akseki Mosque is located near the Presidency of Religious Affairs on the Eskişehir Road. Built in the Turkish neoclassical style, it is one of the largest new mosques in the city, completed and opened in 2013. It can accommodate 6 thousand people during general prayers, and up to 30 thousand people during funeral prayers. The mosque was decorated with Anatolian Seljuk style patterns.
Yeni (Cenab Ahmet) Mosque
It is the largest Ottoman mosque in Ankara and was built by the famous architect Sinan in the 16th century. The mimber (pulpit) and mihrap (prayer niche) are of white marble, and the mosque itself is of Ankara stone, an example of very fine workmanship.
Hacı Bayram Mosque
This mosque, in the Ulus quarter next to the Temple of Augustus, was built in the early 15th century in Seljuk style by an unknown architect. It was subsequently restored by architect Mimar Sinan in the 16th century, with Kütahya tiles being added in the 18th century. The mosque was built in honor of Hacı Bayram-ı Veli, whose tomb is next to the mosque, two years before his death (1427–28). The usable space inside this mosque is on the first floor and on the second floor.
Ahi Elvan Mosque
It was founded in the Ulus quarter near the Ankara Citadel and was constructed by the Ahi fraternity during the late 14th and early 15th centuries. The finely carved walnut mimber (pulpit) is of particular interest.
Alâeddin Mosque
The Alâeddin Mosque is the oldest mosque in Ankara. It has a carved walnut mimber, the inscription on which records that the mosque was completed in early AH 574 (which corresponds to the summer of 1178 AD) and was built by the Seljuk prince Muhiddin Mesud Şah (died 1204), the Bey of Ankara, who was the son of the Anatolian Seljuk sultan Kılıç Arslan II (reigned 1156–1192.)
Modern monuments
Victory Monument
The '' Victory Monument'' ( Turkish: '' Zafer Anıtı'') was crafted by Austrian sculptor Heinrich Krippel in 1925 and was erected in 1927 at Ulus Square
Ulus Square ( tr, Ulus Meydanı) is a square in Ankara, Turkey. "''Ulus''" is the Turkish word for "Nation".
Geography
The square is actually a crossroad of four streets at about . The boulevard to south is Atatürk Boulevard and the street to ...
. The monument is made of marble and bronze and features an equestrian statue of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who wears a Republic era modern military uniform, with the rank Field Marshal.
Statue of Atatürk
Located at Zafer(Victory) Square ( Turkish: ''Zafer Meydanı''), the marble and bronze statue was crafted by the renowned Italian sculptor Pietro Canonica in 1927 and depicts a standing Atatürk who wears a Republic era modern military uniform, with the rank Field Marshal.
Monument to a Secure, Confident Future
This monument, located in Güven Park near Kızılay Square, was erected in 1935 and bears Atatürk's advice to his people: "Turk! Be proud, work hard, and believe in yourself." (There is debate on whether or not Atatürk actually said "Use your mind"(Turkish: öğün) instead of "Be proud"(Turkish: övün))
The monument was depicted on the reverse of the Turkish 5 lira banknote of 1937–1952 and of the 1000 lira banknotes of 1939–1946.
Hatti Monument
Erected in 1978 at Sıhhiye Square
Sıhhıye Square ( tr, Sıhhiye Meydanı) is a square in Ankara, Turkey. "''Sıhhiye''" is a Turkish word for "Health". Because the former main building of the Ministry of Health was facing Sıhhiye Square from the east.
Formerly, it was also ca ...
, this impressive monument symbolizes the Hatti Hatti may refer to
*Hatti (; Assyrian ) in Bronze Age Anatolia:
**the area of Hattusa, roughly delimited by the Halys bend
**the Hattians of the 3rd and 2nd millennia BC
**the Hittites of ''ca'' 1400–1200 BC
**the areas to the west of the Euphr ...
Sun Disc (which was later adopted by the Hittites
The Hittites () were an Anatolian people who played an important role in establishing first a kingdom in Kussara (before 1750 BC), then the Kanesh or Nesha kingdom (c. 1750–1650 BC), and next an empire centered on Hattusa in north-cent ...
) and commemorates Anatolia's earliest known civilization. The Hatti Sun Disc has been used in the previous logo of Ankara Metropolitan Municipality. It was also used in the previous logo of the Ministry of Culture & Tourism.
Inns
Suluhan
Suluhan
Suluhan is a historical caravanserai (''han'') in Ankara, Turkey. It is also called the Hasanpaşa Han.
Geography
Suluhan is at in the urban fabric of Ankara. It is about southeast of Ulus Square and situated in Hacıdoğan, a busy neighbourh ...
is a historical Inn in Ankara. It is also called the ''Hasanpaşa Han''. It is about southeast of Ulus Square
Ulus Square ( tr, Ulus Meydanı) is a square in Ankara, Turkey. "''Ulus''" is the Turkish word for "Nation".
Geography
The square is actually a crossroad of four streets at about . The boulevard to south is Atatürk Boulevard and the street to ...
and situated in the Hacıdoğan neighborhood. According to the ''vakfiye'' (inscription) of the building, the Ottoman era ''han'' was commissioned by Hasan Pasha, a regional beylerbey, and was constructed between 1508 and 1511, during the final years of the reign of Sultan Bayezid II.
There are 102 rooms (now shops) which face the two yards. In each room there is a window, a niche and a chimney.
Çengelhan Rahmi Koç Museum
Çengelhan Rahmi Koç Museum is a museum of industrial technology situated in Çengel Han, an Ottoman era Inn which was completed in 1523, during the early years of the reign of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. The exhibits include industrial/technological artifacts from the 1850s onwards. There are also sections about Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of modern Turkey; Vehbi Koç, Rahmi Koç's father and one of the first industrialists of Turkey, and Ankara city.
Shopping
Foreign visitors to Ankara usually like to visit the old shops in ''Çıkrıkçılar Yokuşu'' (Weavers' Road) near Ulus, where myriad things ranging from traditional fabrics, hand-woven carpets and leather products can be found at bargain prices. ''Bakırcılar Çarşısı'' (Bazaar of Coppersmiths) is particularly popular, and many interesting items, not just of copper, can be found here like jewelry, carpets, costumes, antiques and embroidery. Up the hill to the castle gate, there are many shops selling a huge and fresh collection of spices, dried fruits, nuts, and other produce.
Modern shopping areas are mostly found in Kızılay, or on Tunalı Hilmi Avenue, including the modern mall of Karum (named after the ancient Assyria
Assyria ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , romanized: ''māt Aššur''; syc, ܐܬܘܪ, ʾāthor) was a major ancient Mesopotamian civilization which existed as a city-state at times controlling regional territories in the indigenous lands of the A ...
n merchant colonies called ''Kârum'' that were established in central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...
Anatolia
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
at the beginning of the 2nd millennium BC) which is located towards the end of the Avenue; and in Çankaya, the quarter with the highest elevation in the city. Atakule Tower next to Atrium Mall in Çankaya has views over Ankara and also has a revolving restaurant
A revolving restaurant or rotating restaurant is usually a tower restaurant eating space designed to rest atop a broad circular revolving platform that operates as a large turntable. The building remains stationary and the diners are carried on ...
at the top. The symbol of the Armada Shopping Mall is an anchor
An anchor is a device, normally made of metal , used to secure a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the craft from drifting due to wind or current. The word derives from Latin ''ancora'', which itself comes from the Greek � ...
, and there's a large anchor monument at its entrance, as a reference to the ancient Greek name of the city, Ἄγκυρα (Ánkyra), which means anchor. Likewise, the anchor monument is also related with the Spanish name of the mall, Armada, which means naval fleet.
As Ankara started expanding westward in the 1970s, several modern, suburbia-style developments and mini-cities began to rise along the western highway, also known as the Eskişehir Road. The ''Armada'', ''CEPA'' and ''Kentpark'' malls on the highway, the ''Galleria'', ''Arcadium'' and ''Gordion'' in Ümitköy, and a huge mall, ''Real'' in Bilkent Center, offer North American and European style shopping opportunities (these places can be reached through the Eskişehir Highway.) There is also the newly expanded '' ANKAmall'' at the outskirts, on the Istanbul Highway, which houses most of the well-known international brands. This mall is the largest throughout the Ankara region. In 2014, a few more shopping malls were open in Ankara. They are ''Next Level'' and ''Taurus'' on the Boulevard of Mevlana (also known as Konya
Konya () is a major city in central Turkey, on the southwestern edge of the Central Anatolian Plateau, and is the capital of Konya Province. During antiquity and into Seljuk times it was known as Iconium (), although the Seljuks also called it D ...
Road).
Culture
The arts
Turkish State Opera and Ballet
Turkish may refer to:
*a Turkic language spoken by the Turks
* of or about Turkey
** Turkish language
*** Turkish alphabet
** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
*** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey
*** Turkish communities and mi ...
, the national directorate of opera and ballet companies of Turkey, has its headquarters in Ankara, and serves the city with three venues:
*Ankara Opera House
Ankara Opera House ( tr, Opera Sahnesi) of the Turkish State Opera and Ballet is the largest of the three venues for opera and ballet in Ankara, Turkey, the other two being ''Leyla Gencer Sahnesi'' in Ostim and ''Operet Sahnesi'' (Operetta Theater ...
(''Opera Sahnesi'', also known as ''Büyük Tiyatro'') is the largest of the three venues for opera and ballet in Ankara.
Music
Ankara is host to five classical music orchestras:
*Presidential Symphony Orchestra
The Presidential Symphony Orchestra ( tr, Cumhurbaşkanlığı Senfoni Orkestrası), with headquarters in Ankara, is the presidential symphony orchestra of the Republic of Turkey. Its history dates back as far as 1826, making it one of the first s ...
(Turkish Presidential Symphony Orchestra)
* Bilkent Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is a major symphony orchestra of Turkey.
*Hacettepe Symphony Orchestra The Hacettepe Symphony Orchestra (''Hacettepe Senfoni Orkestrası'') is an orchestra based in Ankara, Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country ...
was founded in 2003 and directed by Erol Erdinç
*Başkent Oda Orkestrası (Chamber Orchestra of the Capital)
There are four concert halls in the city:
* CSO Concert Hall
* Bilkent Concert Hall is a performing arts center in Ankara. It is located in the Bilkent University campus.
* MEB Şura Salonu (also known as the Festival Hall), It is noted for its tango performances.
* Çankaya Çağdaş Sanatlar Merkezi Concert Hall was founded in 1994.
The city has been host to several well-established, annual theater, music, film festivals:
*Ankara International Music Festival Ankara International Music Festival ( tr, Ankara Uluslararası Müzik Festivali) is a music festival held annually in Ankara, Turkey. In addition to Turkish artists, performers from many countries have participated in the festival.
The annual festiv ...
, a music festival organized in the Turkish capital presenting classical music and ballet programs.
Ankara also has a number of concert venues such as ''Eskiyeni'', '' IF Performance Hall'', '' Jolly Joker'', ''Kite'', ''Nefes Bar'', and ''Route'', which host the live performances and events of popular musicians.
Theater
The Turkish State Theatres
The Turkish State Theatres ( tr, Devlet Tiyatroları - DT) is the official directorate of the national theatre companies in Turkey. It is bound to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and financed by the state to promote performed arts and enhance t ...
also has its head office in Ankara and runs the following stages in the city:
* 125. Yıl Çayyolu Sahnesi
* Büyük Tiyatro,
* Küçük Tiyatro,
* Şinasi Sahnesi,
* Akün Sahnesi,
* Altındağ Tiyatrosu,
* İrfan Şahinbaş Atölye Sahnesi,
* Oda Tiyatrosu,
*Mahir Canova Sahnesi Mahir Canova Stage ( tr, Mahir Canova Sahnesi) is a theatre in Balgat neighborhood of Çankaya district in Ankara, Turkey. It is operated by the Turkish State Theatres
The Turkish State Theatres ( tr, Devlet Tiyatroları - DT) is the official dir ...
,
* Muhsin Ertuğrul Sahnesi.
In addition, the city is served by several private theater companies, among which Ankara Sanat Tiyatrosu, who have their own stage in the city center, is a notable example.
Museums
There are about 50 museums in the city.
Museum of Anatolian Civilizations
The Museum of Anatolian Civilizations (''Anadolu Medeniyetleri Müzesi'') is situated at the entrance of the Ankara Castle. It is an old 15th century bedesten
A bedesten (variants: bezistan, bezisten, bedestan) is a type of covered market or market hall which was historically found in the cities of the Ottoman Empire. It was typically the central building of the commercial district of an Ottoman town or ...
(covered bazaar) that has been restored and now houses a collection of Paleolithic, Neolithic
The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several pa ...
, Hatti Hatti may refer to
*Hatti (; Assyrian ) in Bronze Age Anatolia:
**the area of Hattusa, roughly delimited by the Halys bend
**the Hattians of the 3rd and 2nd millennia BC
**the Hittites of ''ca'' 1400–1200 BC
**the areas to the west of the Euphr ...
, Hittite, Phrygian, Urartian and Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
* Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...
works as well as a major section dedicated to Lydian treasures.
Anıtkabir
Anıtkabir is located on an imposing hill, which forms the ''Anıttepe'' quarter of the city, where the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of the Republic of Turkey, stands. Completed in 1953, it is an impressive fusion of ancient and modern architectural styles. An adjacent museum houses a wax statue of Atatürk, his writings, letters and personal items, as well as an exhibition of photographs recording important moments in his life and during the establishment of the Republic. Anıtkabir is open every day, while the adjacent museum is open every day except Mondays.
Ankara Ethnography Museum
Ankara Ethnography Museum
The Ethnography Museum of Ankara is dedicated to the cultures of Turkic civilizations. The building was designed by architect Arif Hikmet Koyunoğlu and was built between 1925 and 1928. The museum temporarily hosted the sarcophagus of Mustafa K ...
(''Etnoğrafya Müzesi'') is located opposite to the Ankara Opera House
Ankara Opera House ( tr, Opera Sahnesi) of the Turkish State Opera and Ballet is the largest of the three venues for opera and ballet in Ankara, Turkey, the other two being ''Leyla Gencer Sahnesi'' in Ostim and ''Operet Sahnesi'' (Operetta Theater ...
on Talat Paşa Boulevard, in the Ulus district. There is a fine collection of folkloric items, as well as artifacts from the Seljuk and Ottoman periods. In front of the museum building, there is a marble and bronze equestrian statue of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (who wears a Republic era modern military uniform, with the rank Field Marshal) which was crafted in 1927 by the renowned Italian sculptor Pietro Canonica.
State Art and Sculpture Museum
The State Art and Sculpture Museum (''Resim-Heykel Müzesi'') which opened to the public in 1980 is close to the Ethnography Museum and houses a rich collection of Turkish art from the late 19th century to the present day. There are also galleries which host guest exhibitions.
Cer Modern
Cer Modern is the modern-arts museum of Ankara, inaugurated on 1 April 2010. It is situated in the renovated building of the historic TCDD Cer Atölyeleri, formerly a workshop of the Turkish State Railways. The museum incorporates the largest exhibition hall in Turkey. The museum holds periodic exhibitions of modern and contemporary art as well as hosting other contemporary arts events.
War of Independence Museum
The War of Independence Museum
The War of Independence Museum (''Kurtuluş Savaşı Müzesi''), housed in the first Turkish Grand National Assembly building in the Ulus district of Ankara, Turkey, displays important photographs, documents and furniture from the Turkish War of ...
(''Kurtuluş Savaşı Müzesi'') is located on Ulus Square
Ulus Square ( tr, Ulus Meydanı) is a square in Ankara, Turkey. "''Ulus''" is the Turkish word for "Nation".
Geography
The square is actually a crossroad of four streets at about . The boulevard to south is Atatürk Boulevard and the street to ...
. It was originally the first Parliament building (TBMM) of the Republic of Turkey. The War of Independence was planned and directed here as recorded in various photographs and items presently on exhibition. In another display, wax figure
A wax sculpture is a depiction made using a waxy substance. Often these are effigies, usually of a notable individual, but there are also death masks and scenes with many figures, mostly in relief.
The properties of beeswax make it an excell ...
s of former presidents of the Republic of Turkey are on exhibit.
Mehmet Akif Literature Museum Library
The Mehmet Akif Literature Museum Library is an important literary museum and archive opened in 2011 and dedicated to Mehmet Akif Ersoy
Mehmet Akif Ersoy (20 December 1873 – 27 December 1936) was a Turkish pan-Islamist poet, writer, academic, politician, and the author of the Turkish National Anthem. Widely regarded as one of the premiere literary minds of his time, Ersoy i ...
(1873–1936), the poet of the Turkish National Anthem.
TCDD Open Air Steam Locomotive Museum
The TCDD Open Air Steam Locomotive Museum is an open-air museum which traces the history of steam locomotives.
Ankara Aviation Museum
Ankara Aviation Museum (''Hava Kuvvetleri Müzesi Komutanlığı'') is located near the Istanbul Road in Etimesgut. The museum opened to the public in September 1998. It is home to various missiles, avionics, aviation materials and aircraft that have served in the Turkish Air Force (e.g. combat aircraft such as the F-86 Sabre, F-100 Super Sabre, F-102 Delta Dagger, F-104 Starfighter, F-5 Freedom Fighter, F-4 Phantom; and cargo planes such as the Transall C-160.) Also a Hungarian MiG-21, a Pakistani MiG-19, and a Bulgarian MiG-17 are on display at the museum.
METU Science and Technology Museum
The METU Science and Technology Museum (''ODTÜ Bilim ve Teknoloji Müzesi'') is located inside the Middle East Technical University campus.
Sports
As with all other cities of Turkey, football is the most popular sport in Ankara. The city has two football clubs
A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an all ...
competing in the Turkish Süper Lig: Ankaragücü, founded in 1910, is the oldest club in Ankara and is associated with Ankara's military arsenal manufacturing company MKE. They were the Turkish Cup winners in 1972 and 1981. Gençlerbirliği, founded in 1923, are known as the ''Ankara Gale'' or the ''Poppies'' because of their colors: red and black. They were the Turkish Cup winners in 1987 and 2001. Gençlerbirliği's B team, Hacettepe S.K. (formerly known as Gençlerbirliği OFTAŞ) played in the Süper Lig but currently plays in the TFF Second League. A fourth team, Büyükşehir Belediye Ankaraspor, played in the Süper Lig until 2010, when they were expelled. The club was reconstituted in 2014 as Osmanlıspor
Ankaraspor Kulübü (), formerly known as Osmanlıspor (), is a Turkish professional football club based in the country's capital Ankara. Founded in 1978, the club competes in the TFF Second League.
History
Ankaraspor was founded as "Ankara Bele ...
but have since returned to their old identity as Ankaraspor. Ankaraspor currently play in the TFF First League at the Osmanlı Stadium
Osmanlı Stadium ( tr, Osmanlı Stadyumu) is a football stadium, based in Sincan, Turkey. The stadium holds 18,029 people, and was built in 1974 and renovated in 2008.
References
External links
Venue informationBasic information
Football ...
in the Sincan district of Yenikent, outside the city center. Keçiörengücü also currently play in the TFF First League.
Ankara has a large number of minor teams, playing at regional levels. In the TFF Second League: Mamak FK in Mamak, Ankara Demirspor in Çankaya, Etimesgut Belediyespor in Etimesgut; in the TFF Third League: Çankaya FK Çankaya may refer to:
* Çankaya, Ankara (neighbourhood), a neighbourhood in Ankara, Turkey
* Çankaya, Ankara (district) Çankaya is a district of Ankara, Turkey. It is home to many government buildings, including the Grand National Assembly of ...
in Keçiören; Altındağspor in Altındağ; in the Amateur League: Turanspor in Etimesgut, Türk Telekomspor owned by the phone company in Yenimahalle, Çubukspor in Çubuk, and Bağlumspor in Keçiören.
In the Turkish Basketball League, Ankara is represented by Türk Telekom, whose home is the Ankara Arena, and CASA TED Kolejliler
TED Ankara Kolejliler Spor Kulübü, more commonly known as TED Ankara Kolejliler is a professional basketball team from the city of Ankara in Turkey. Their home arena is the Ankara Arena with a capacity of 10,400 seats, which was opened in April ...
, whose home is the TOBB Sports Hall.
Halkbank Ankara
Halkbank Ankara is a professional men's volleyball team based in Ankara, Turkey and sponsored by the state-owned Halkbank. It was founded on 21 July 1983 as Halkbank Spor Kulübü with blue, white and red colors ...
is the leading domestic powerhouse in men's volleyball, having won many championships and cups in the Turkish Men's Volleyball League and even the CEV Cup
The CEV Cup is the second tier official competition for men's Volleyball clubs of Europe. The competition takes place every year.
Until 2000, it was the CEV Cup Winners' Cup. In 2000 it was renamed CEV Top Teams Cup and in 2007 it was renamed CE ...
in 2013.
Ankara Buz Pateni Sarayı is where the ice skating and ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...
competitions take place in the city.
There are many popular spots for skateboarding which is active in the city since the 1980s. Skaters in Ankara usually meet in the park near the Grand National Assembly of Turkey
The Grand National Assembly of Turkey ( tr, ), usually referred to simply as the TBMM or Parliament ( tr, or ''Parlamento''), is the unicameral Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by the Turkish Cons ...
.
The 2012-built THF Sport Hall hosts the Handball Super League and Women's Handball Super League matches scheduled in Ankara.
Parks
Ankara has many parks and open spaces mainly established in the early years of the Republic and well maintained and expanded thereafter. The most important of these parks are: Gençlik Parkı
Gençlik Parkı (literally ''Youth Park'') is a public park in Ankara, Turkey.
Geography
The park is almost at the center of Ankara. Its altitude is about , which makes it one of the lowest points in Ankara. It is surrounded by Ulus Square to ...
(houses an amusement park with a large pond for rowing), the Botanical garden
A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...
, Seğmenler Park, Anayasa Park, Kuğulu Park (famous for the swans received as a gift from the Chinese government), Abdi İpekçi
Abdi İpekçi (9 August 1929 – 1 February 1979) was a Turkish journalist, intellectual and an activist for human rights. He was murdered while editor-in-chief of one of the main Turkish daily newspapers '' Milliyet'' which then had a cent ...
Park, Esertepe Parkı, Güven Park (see above for the monument), Kurtuluş Park (has an ice-skating rink), Altınpark (also a prominent exposition/fair area), Harikalar Diyarı (claimed to be Biggest Park of Europe inside city borders) and Göksu Park. Dikmen Vadisi (Dikmen Valley) is a park and recreation area situated in Çankaya district.
Gençlik Park was depicted on the reverse of the Turkish 100 lira banknotes of 1952–1976.
Atatürk Forest Farm and Zoo
Atatürk Forest Farm and Zoo ( tr, Atatürk Orman Çiftliği ve Hayvanat Bahçesi, in short ''AOÇ'') is an expansive recreational farming area, which houses a zoo, several small agricultural farms, greenhouses, restaurants, a dairy farm and a bre ...
(''Atatürk Orman Çiftliği'') is an expansive recreational farming area which houses a zoo
A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility in which animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes.
The term ''zoological garden'' refers to z ...
, several small agricultural farms, greenhouses, restaurants, a dairy farm and a brewery. It is a pleasant place to spend a day with family, be it for having picnics, hiking, biking or simply enjoying good food and nature. There is also an exact replica of the house where Atatürk was born in 1881, in Thessaloniki, Greece. Visitors to the "Çiftlik" (farm) as it is affectionately called by Ankarans, can sample such famous products of the farm such as old-fashioned beer and ice cream
Ice cream is a sweetened frozen food typically eaten as a snack or dessert. It may be made from milk or cream and is flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit such as ...
, fresh dairy products and meat rolls/kebabs made on charcoal, at a traditional restaurant (''Merkez Lokantası'', Central Restaurant), cafés and other establishments scattered around the farm.
Education
Universities
Ankara is noted, within Turkey, for the multitude of universities it is home to. These include the following, several of them being among the most reputable in the country:
* Ankara University
* Atılım University
*Başkent University
Başkent University ( tr, Başkent Üniversitesi) is a private university in Ankara, Turkey. The university was founded on 13 January 1994 by Professor Dr. Mehmet Haberal. The University center is located in Ankara and also has Medical and Res ...
*Bilkent University
Bilkent University ( tr, Bilkent Üniversitesi) is a private university located in Ankara, Turkey. It was founded by Prof. İhsan Doğramacı in 1984, with the aim of creating a center of excellence in higher education and research. It is constan ...
* Çankaya University
* Gazi University
* Gülhane Military Medical Academy
* Hacettepe University
* Middle East Technical University
* TED University
*TOBB University of Economics and Technology
TOBB University of Economics and Technology is a private non-profit foundation university in Ankara, Turkey.
History
Tobb University is a private non-profit cooperative education university established in 2003 by The Turkish Chambers and Commo ...
* Turkish Aeronautical Association University
* Turkish Military Academy
* Turkish National Police Academy
*Ufuk University
Ufuk University ( tr, Ufuk Üniversitesi) is a private university in Ankara, Turkey. The university was established by the Turkish Foundation of Traffic Accidents in 1999.
The university consists of Faculties of Medicine, Law, Education, Scienc ...
* Yıldırım Beyazıt University
Fauna
Angora cat
Ankara is home to a world-famous domestic cat breed – the Turkish Angora, called ''Ankara kedisi'' (Ankara cat) in Turkish. Turkish Angoras are one of the ancient, naturally occurring cat breeds, having originated in Ankara and its surrounding region in central Anatolia.
They mostly have a white, silky, medium to long length coat, no undercoat and a fine bone structure. There seems to be a connection between the Angora Cats and Persians, and the Turkish Angora is also a distant cousin of the Turkish Van
The Turkish Van (pronounced Von) is a naturally occurring breed of domestic cat that originated in the Lake Van area of modern-day Turkey, part of Armenian Highlands. The Van is classified as a semi-long hair, but it has two lengths of hair, de ...
. Although they are known for their shimmery white coat, there are more than twenty varieties including black, blue and reddish fur. They come in tabby
A tabby is any domestic cat (''Felis catus'') with a distinctive 'M'-shaped marking on its forehead; stripes by its eyes and across its cheeks, along its back, and around its legs and tail; and (differing by tabby type), characteristic striped, d ...
and tabby-white, along with smoke varieties, and are in every color other than pointed, lavender, and cinnamon (all of which would indicate breeding to an outcross.)
Eyes may be blue, green, or amber, or even one blue and one amber or green. The W gene which is responsible for the white coat and blue eye is closely related to the hearing ability, and the presence of a blue eye can indicate that the cat is deaf to the side the blue eye is located. However, a great many blue and odd-eyed
Heterochromia is a variation in coloration. The term is most often used to describe color differences of the iris, but can also be applied to color variation of hair or skin. Heterochromia is determined by the production, delivery, and concentra ...
white cats have normal hearing, and even deaf cats lead a very normal life if kept indoors.
Ears are pointed and large, eyes are almond shaped and the head is massive with a two plane profile. Another characteristic is the tail, which is often kept parallel to the back.
Angora goat
The Angora goat
Angora may refer to:
Places
*Angora, the historic name of Ankara, the capital city of Turkey
*Angora, Philadelphia
** Angora (SEPTA station), a commuter rail station
* Angora, Minnesota
* Angora Township, Minnesota
* Angora, Nebraska
* Angora L ...
() is a breed of domestic goat that originated in Ankara and its surrounding region in central Anatolia.
This breed was first mentioned in the time of Moses, roughly in 1500 BC. The first Angora goats were brought to Europe by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, about 1554, but, like later imports, were not very successful. Angora goats were first introduced in the United States in 1849 by Dr. James P. Davis. Seven adult goats were a gift from Sultan Abdülmecid I in appreciation for his services and advice on the raising of cotton.
The fleece taken from an Angora goat is called mohair. A single goat produces between of hair per year. Angoras are shorn twice a year, unlike sheep, which are shorn only once. Angoras have high nutritional requirements due to their rapid hair growth. A poor quality diet will curtail mohair development. The United States, Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...
, and South Africa are the top producers of mohair.
For a long period of time, Angora goats were bred for their white coat. In 1998, the Colored Angora Goat Breeders Association was set up to promote breeding of colored Angoras. Today, Angora goats produce white, black (deep black to greys and silver), red (the color fades significantly as the goat gets older), and brownish fiber.
Angora goats were depicted on the reverse of the Turkish 50 lira banknotes of 1938–1952.
Angora rabbit
The Angora rabbit
The Angora rabbit ( tr, Ankara tavşanı), which is one of the oldest types of domestic rabbit, is bred for the long fibers of its coat, known as ''Angora wool'', which are gathered by shearing, combing or plucking. Because rabbits do not posses ...
() is a variety of domestic rabbit bred for its long, soft hair. The Angora is one of the oldest types of domestic rabbit, originating in Ankara and its surrounding region in central Anatolia, along with the Angora cat
Angora may refer to:
Places
*Angora, the historic name of Ankara, the capital city of Turkey
*Angora, Philadelphia
** Angora (SEPTA station), a commuter rail station
* Angora, Minnesota
* Angora Township, Minnesota
* Angora, Nebraska
* Angora L ...
and Angora goat
Angora may refer to:
Places
*Angora, the historic name of Ankara, the capital city of Turkey
*Angora, Philadelphia
** Angora (SEPTA station), a commuter rail station
* Angora, Minnesota
* Angora Township, Minnesota
* Angora, Nebraska
* Angora L ...
. The rabbits were popular pets with French royalty in the mid-18th century, and spread to other parts of Europe by the end of the century. They first appeared in the United States in the early 20th century. They are bred largely for their long Angora wool
Angora hair or Angora fibre refers to the downy coat produced by the Angora rabbit. While the names of the source animals are similar, Angora fibre is distinct from mohair, which comes from the Angora goat. Angora fibre is also distinct from c ...
, which may be removed by sheep shearing, shearing, combing, or plucking (hair removal), plucking (gently pulling loose wool.)
Angoras are bred mainly for their wool because it is silky and soft. They have a humorous appearance, as they oddly resemble a fur ball. Most are calm and docile but should be handled carefully. Grooming is necessary to prevent the fiber from matting and felting on the rabbit. A condition called "wool block" is common in Angora rabbits and should be treated quickly. Sometimes they are shorn in the summer as the long fur can cause the rabbits to overheat.
International relations
Twin towns and sister cities
Ankara is Twin towns and sister cities, twinned with:
* Seoul, South Korea (since 1971)
* Islamabad, Pakistan (since 1982)
* Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (since 1984)
* Beijing, China (since 1990)
* Amman, Jordan (since 1992)
* Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan (since 1992)
* Budapest, Hungary (since 1992)
* Khartoum, Sudan (since 1992)
* Moscow, Russia (since 1992)
* Sofia, Bulgaria (since 1992)
* Havana, Cuba (since 1993)
* Kyiv, Ukraine (since 1993)
* Ashgabat, Turkmenistan (since 1994)
* Kuwait City, Kuwait (since 1994)
* Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina (since 1994)
* Tirana, Albania (since 1995)
* Tbilisi, Georgia (since 1996)
* Ufa, Bashkortostan, Russia (since 1997)
* Alanya, Turkey
* Bucharest, Romania (since 1998)
* Hanoi, Vietnam (since 1998)
* Manama, Bahrain (since 2000)
* Mogadishu, Somalia (since 2000)
* Santiago, Chile (since 2000)
* Astana, Kazakhstan (since 2001)
* Dushanbe, Tajikistan (since 2003)
* Kabul, Afghanistan (since 2003)
* Ulan Bator, Mongolia (since 2003)
* Cairo, Egypt (since 2004)
* Chișinău, Moldova (since 2004)
* Sana'a, Yemen (since 2004)
* Tashkent, Uzbekistan (since 2004)
* Pristina, Kosovo (since 2005)
* Kazan, Tatarstan, Russia (since 2005)
* Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo (since 2005)
* Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (since 2006)
* Minsk, Belarus (since 2007)
* Zagreb, Croatia (since 2008)
* Damascus, Syria (since 2010)
* Bissau, Guinea-Bissau (since 2011)
* Washington, D.C., USA (since 2011)
* Bangkok, Thailand (since 2012)
* Tehran, Iran (since 2013)
* Doha, Qatar (since 2016)
* Podgorica, Montenegro (since 7 March 2019)
* North Nicosia, Northern Cyprus
* Djibouti City, Djibouti (since 2017)
Partner cities
* Skopje, North Macedonia (since 1995)
* Vienna, Austria
See also
*Angora cat
Angora may refer to:
Places
*Angora, the historic name of Ankara, the capital city of Turkey
*Angora, Philadelphia
** Angora (SEPTA station), a commuter rail station
* Angora, Minnesota
* Angora Township, Minnesota
* Angora, Nebraska
* Angora L ...
*Angora goat
Angora may refer to:
Places
*Angora, the historic name of Ankara, the capital city of Turkey
*Angora, Philadelphia
** Angora (SEPTA station), a commuter rail station
* Angora, Minnesota
* Angora Township, Minnesota
* Angora, Nebraska
* Angora L ...
*Angora rabbit
The Angora rabbit ( tr, Ankara tavşanı), which is one of the oldest types of domestic rabbit, is bred for the long fibers of its coat, known as ''Angora wool'', which are gathered by shearing, combing or plucking. Because rabbits do not posses ...
*Ankara Agreement
* Ankara Arena
*Ankara Central railway station, Ankara Central Station
*Esenboğa International Airport, Ankara Esenboğa International Airport
*Ankara Metro
The Ankara Metro ( tr, Ankara Metrosu) is the rapid transit system serving Ankara, the capital of Turkey. At present, Ankara's rapid transit system consists of two metro lines – the ''Batıkent Metrosu (M1)''and the new ''Keçiören Metrosu (M4 ...
* Ankara Province
* Ankara University
*ATO Congresium
* Basil of Ancyra
*Battle of Ancyra
* Battle of Ankara
*Clement of Ancyra
*Gemellus of Ancyra
*History of Ankara
*List of hospitals in Ankara Province
*List of mayors of Ankara
*List of municipalities in Ankara Province
*List of districts of Ankara
*List of people from Ankara
*List of tallest buildings in Ankara
*Marcellus of Ancyra
Marcellus may refer to:
* Marcellus (name)
* Marcus Claudius Marcellus, Roman commander
Places
* Marcellus, Lot-et-Garonne, France
* Marcellus Township, Michigan
** Marcellus, Michigan, a village in Marcellus Township
** Marcellus Community ...
* Monumentum Ancyranum
*Nilus of Sinai, Nilus of Ancyra
*Roman Baths of Ankara
The Roman Baths of Ankara are the ruined remains of an ancient Roman bath complex in Ankara, Turkey, which were uncovered by excavations carried out in 1937–1944, and have subsequently been opened to the public as an open-air museum.
History
Th ...
*Synod of Ancyra
*Theodotus of Ancyra (bishop)
*Theodotus of Ancyra (martyr)
*Timeline of Ankara
*Treaty of Ankara (disambiguation)
*Victory Monument (Ankara)
Notes
References
*
*
*
43
ilişki durumu evli izle
Attribution
*
*
Further reading
*
External links
Governorate of Ankara
Municipality of Ankara
Ankara Development Agency
Esenboğa International Airport
*
{{Authority control
Ankara,
Capitals in Asia
Populated places in Ankara Province