Belde (literally "town", also known as ''kasaba'') means "large village with a municipality" in
Turkish.
All Turkish province centers and district centers have municipalities, but the villages (and also
subdistricts) are usually too small to have municipalities. The population in some villages may exceed 2000 and in such villages a small municipality may be established depending on residents' choice. Such villages are called ''belde''. Up to 2014 the number of ''belde'' municipalities was about 1400. However, on 30 March 2014 by the act no. 6360 all villages (those with and without municipality) were included in the urban fabric of the district municipalities in 30 provinces. Thus ''belde'' municipalities in 30 provinces were abolished. The number of abolished ''belde'' municipalities is 1040.
Presently, in 51 provinces, which are not in the scope of the act no 6360, there are still 394 ''belde'' municipalities.
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See also
* 2013 Turkish local government reorganisation
*Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey
There are 81 provinces in Turkey ( tr, il). Among the 81 provinces, 30 provinces are designated metropolitan municipalities ( tr, büyükşehir belediyeleri). Metropolitan municipalities are subdivided into districts ( tr, ilçe), where each dis ...
References
{{Authority control
Villages in Turkey
Towns in Turkey