Kalecik is a town and district of

Ankara Province Ankara Province ( tr, , ) is a province of Turkey with the capital city Ankara. Demographics History The site of the modern city has been home to settlements by many historic Anatolian civilizations in antiquity and classical times, in ...

in the

Central Anatolia The Central Anatolia Region ( tr, İç Anadolu Bölgesi) is a geographical region of Turkey. The largest city in the region is Ankara. Other big cities are Konya, Kayseri, Eskişehir, Sivas, and Aksaray. Located in Central Turkey, it is borde ...

region 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 in ...

. According to 2010 census, population of the district is 14,517 of which 9,450 live in the town of Kalecik. The district covers an area of , and the average elevation is . Kalecik stands on a plain with the eastern boundary formed by the River Kızılırmak while there are mountains to the south and the west. This agricultural district is known for its wine; other major crops include sugar beet and grains. The popular grape variety Kalecik Karası grows successfully near the Kızılırmak and is used to make some of Turkey's best red wine.

History

The area has a history going back to 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-centra ...

and even earlier (4000 BC). In 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) ...

period this was a thriving town recorded by the 17th-century traveler

Evliya Çelebi Derviş Mehmed Zillî (25 March 1611 – 1682), known as Evliya Çelebi ( ota, اوليا چلبى), was an Ottoman explorer who travelled through the territory of the Ottoman Empire and neighboring lands over a period of forty years, recording ...

as being a trading city with tanneries, coppersmiths, and weavers.

Education

The vocational school of higher education in Kalecik ( tr, Kalecik Meslek Yüksekokulu), part of Ankara University, educates in

viticulture Viticulture (from the Latin word for '' vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of '' Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ...

and

winemaking Winemaking or vinification is the production of wine, starting with the selection of the fruit, its fermentation into alcohol, and the bottling of the finished liquid. The history of wine-making stretches over millennia. The science of wine and ...

Places of interest

* Kalecik Castle, an Ancient Roman ruin on the rock above the town * Kalecik Bridge *

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 a ...

, including a number of mosques and the seven-arch Develioğlu Köprüsü bridge over the Kızılırmak at .

Villages in the district

Notes

References

* *

External links

Kalecik Tanıtım Gönüllüleri & www.kalecik.com.tr
Populated places in Ankara Province Districts of Ankara Province {{KalecikAnkara-geo-stub