The Kelkit River ( or ''Kelkit Çayı''), is a river in the Black Sea Region of
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
. It is the longest tributary of the Yeşilırmak. Its name derives from the Armenian ''Gayl get'' ( 'wolf river', Kayl ked in Western Armenian pronunciation). Its Greek name is Lykos (), also meaning 'wolf', and romanized as Lycus.
It rises in
Gümüşhane Province
Gümüşhane Province ( Pontic Greek, Romeika: Αργυρούπολη) is a Provinces of Turkey, province in northern Turkey, bordering Bayburt Province, Bayburt to the east, Trabzon Province, Trabzon to the north, Giresun Province, Giresun and E ...
and runs through the provinces of
Erzincan
Erzincan (; ), historically Yerznka (), is the capital of Erzincan Province in eastern Turkey. Nearby cities include Erzurum, Sivas, Tunceli, Bingöl, Elazığ, Malatya, Gümüşhane, Bayburt, and Giresun. The city is majority Turkish Sunni w ...
,
Giresun
Giresun () is a city in the Black Sea Region of northeastern Turkey, about west of the city of Trabzon. It is the seat of Giresun Province and Giresun District.Sivas
Sivas is a city in central Turkey. It is the seat of Sivas Province and Sivas District.İl Beledi ...
, and
Tokat
Tokat is a city of Turkey in the mid-Black Sea region of Anatolia. It is the seat of Tokat Province and Tokat District.
before flowing into the Yeşilırmak at the modern village of Kızılçubuk, near the site of the ancient city of Eupatoria. The Kelkit follows the
North Anatolian Fault
The North Anatolian Fault (NAF; ) is an active right-lateral strike-slip fault in northern Anatolia, and is the transform boundary between the Eurasian plate and the Anatolian sub-plate. The fault extends westward from a junction with the Ea ...
for about 150 km from
Suşehri
Suşehri (formerly: ''Endires'') is a town in Sivas Province of Turkey. It is the seat of Suşehri District.Resadiye and
Niksar
Niksar, historically known as Neocaesarea (Νεοκαισάρεια), is a city in Tokat Province, Turkey. It is the seat of Niksar District.Armenia Minor
Lesser Armenia (; ; ), also known as Armenia Minor and Armenia Inferior, comprised the Armenian-populated regions primarily to the west and northwest of the ancient Kingdom of Armenia (also known as Kingdom of Greater Armenia), on the western sid ...
to
Bithynia
Bithynia (; ) was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor (present-day Turkey), adjoining the Sea of Marmara, the Bosporus, and the Black Sea. It bordered Mysia to the southwest, Paphlagonia to the northeast a ...
.B. C. McGing, ''The Foreign Policy of Mithridates VI Eupator, King of Pontus'' (Mnemosyne Ser.: Suppl. 89), 1997. . p. 6''f''.
It was the site of the
Battle of the Lycus
The Battle of the Lycus was fought in 66 BC between an army of Roman Republic under the command of Pompey the great and the forces of Mithridates VI of Pontus. The Romans won the battle with few losses; their victory turned out to be decisive w ...
in 66 BCE
Phanaroea
The valley for the last 40 km of the Kelkit's journey is the Erbaa plain (Erbaa Ovası), known in antiquity as the Phanaroea.