Tokat is the capital city of

Tokat Province Tokat Province ( tr, ) is a province in northern Turkey. Its adjacent provinces are Amasya to the northwest, Yozgat to the southwest, Sivas to the southeast, and Ordu to the northeast. Its capital is Tokat, which lies inland of the middle Black ...

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 ...

in the mid-

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...

region 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 ...

. It is located at the confluence of the Tokat River (Tokat Suyu) with the Yeşilırmak. In the 2018 census, the city of Tokat had a population of 155,000.

History

The city was established in the Hittite era. During the time of King

Mithradates VI of Pontus Mithridates or Mithradates VI Eupator ( grc-gre, Μιθραδάτης; 135–63 BC) was ruler of the Kingdom of Pontus in northern Anatolia from 120 to 63 BC, and one of the Roman Republic's most formidable and determined opponents. He was an e ...

, it was one of his many strongholds in

Asia Minor 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 ...

. Known as Evdokia or Eudoxia, ecclesiastically it was later incorporated into the western part of the Byzantine Greek Empire of Trebizond. Some authors like Guillaume de Jerphanion and

William Mitchell Ramsay Sir William Mitchell Ramsay, FBA (15 March 185120 April 1939) was a Scottish archaeologist and New Testament scholar. By his death in 1939 he had become the foremost authority of his day on the history of Asia Minor and a leading scholar in th ...

identified Tokat with the ancient and medieval Dazimon, with Ramsay saying, "Dazimon, which seems to have been a fortress, must have been the modern Tokat, with its strong castle.

Henri Grégoire Henri Jean-Baptiste Grégoire (; 4 December 1750 – 28 May 1831), often referred to as the Abbé Grégoire, was a French Catholic priest, Constitutional bishop of Blois and a revolutionary leader. He was an ardent slavery abolitionist and sup ...

, on the other hand, refuted this as implausible, because a 13th-century text written by

Ibn Bibi Ibn Bibi was a Persian historiographer and the author of the primary source for the history of the Seljuq Sultanate of Rum during the 13th century. He served as head of the chancellery of the Sultanate in Konya and reported on contemporary events. ...

clearly distinguishes Dazimon and Tokat as separate places. Instead, he said, Tokat should be identified with the town of Dokeia ( gr, Δόκεια) mentioned in another 10th-century text, by

Theophanes Continuatus ''Theophanes Continuatus'' ( el, συνεχισταί Θεοφάνους) or ''Scriptores post Theophanem'' (, "those after Theophanes") is the Latin name commonly applied to a collection of historical writings preserved in the 11th-century Vat. g ...

, which says that the Byzantine general John Kourkouas was born in a village near Dokeia sometime in the 9th century. According to Grégoire, the name "Dokeia" does not have a Greek etymology and probably represents an old Anatolian place name. The supposed derivation from "Eudokia", he claimed, is only a folk etymology that came much later. After the Battle of Manzikert the town, like most of

, came under the control of the

Seljuk Turks The Seljuk dynasty, or Seljukids ( ; fa, سلجوقیان ''Saljuqian'', alternatively spelled as Seljuqs or Saljuqs), also known as Seljuk Turks, Seljuk Turkomans "The defeat in August 1071 of the Byzantine emperor Romanos Diogenes by the Turk ...

. After the death of Sultan

Suleiman ibn Qutulmish Suleiman Shah I ibn Qutalmish (; 1ca, سُلَیمانشاہ بن قُتَلمِش; fa, سلیمان بن قتلمش) founded an independent Seljuk Turkish state in Anatolia and ruled as Seljuk Sultan of Rûm from 1077 until his death in 10 ...

in 1086, the

Emir Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or cer ...

Danishmend Gazi Danishmend Gazi ( fa, دانشمند غازی), Danishmend Taylu, or Dānishmand Aḥmad Ghāzī (died 1085), was the Turkmen general of the Seljuks and later founder of the beylik of Danishmends. After the Turkic advance into Anatolia that ...

took control of the area, operating from his power base in the town of Sivas. It would be many decades before the Seljuks re-took control of that region, in the reign of Kilij Arslan II. After the

Battle of Köse Dağ The Battle of Köse Dağ was fought between the Sultanate of Rum ruled by the Seljuq dynasty and the Mongol Empire on June 26, 1243, at the defile of Köse Dağ, a location between Erzincan and Gümüşhane in modern northeastern Turkey. The ...

, Seljuk hold over the region was lost, and local Emirs such as the

Eretna Ala al-Din Eretna (or Eretne, also Artanā) was a Mongol officer of Uyghur origin in the service of Timurtash, the Ilkhanid governor of Anatolia. He later became the last Mongol governor of Anatolia himself and forged his own principality and dy ...

took power until the rise of the Ottomans, who captured the town in 1392. Prior to

WWI World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Tokat had 40,000 residents of which included 15,000 Armenians, 1,000 Greeks, and a small number of Jews.

Climate

Tokat has a

hot-summer Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...

, or alternatively a continental climate (

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...

: ''Csa,'' Trewartha: ''Dc''). Due to the relatively high altitude and inland location, winters are colder with average lows below the freezing point and annual snowfall.

Economy

Historically,

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

was mined in the area. According to Greek researcher, Dimosthenis Oeconomidis (1858–1938):

Culture

Education

Tokat Gaziosmanpaşa University is one of Turkey's newer tertiary institutions, founded in 1992. It was named after the local hero Gazi Osman Paşa.

Sports

Football is the most popular sport: in the older districts above the city center children often kick balls around in the evenings in the smallest streets. The city's football club is

Tokatspor Tokatspor is a Turkish sports club in Tokat. The club was founded in 1969 and they play at the Gaziosmanpaşa Stadium, which has a capacity of 5,762. Their most notable accomplishment was a Turkish Cup stay group stage in 2008–09 season. Thei ...

, which plays its games at the Tokat Gaziosmanpaşa Stadium.

Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

, volleyball, tennis, swimming,

cable skiing Cable skiing is a way to water ski (or wakeboard), in which the skier's rope and handle are pulled by an electrically-driven cable, whereas traditionally a waterskier is pulled by a motorboat. The mechanism consists of two cables running paral ...

(in summer), horse riding, go karting, paintballing, martial arts and many other sports are played. Cycling and jogging are only common along the sea front, where recreational fishing is also popular.

Cuisine

Foods distinctive to Tokat include Tokat kebabı and

Zile Zile, anciently known as Zela ( el, Ζῆλα) (still as Latin Catholic titular see), is a city and a district of Tokat Province, Turkey. Zile lies to the south of Amasya and the west of Tokat in north-central Turkey. The city has a long history, ...

pekmez Pekmez ( tr, pekmez, az, bəkməz/doşab) is a molasses-like syrup obtained after condensing juices of fruit must, especially grape by boiling it with a coagulant agent like wood ashes or ground carob seeds. It is used as a syrup or mixed with ta ...

i, the latter being served in a wooden pot. ''Tokat kebabı'' consists of sliced lamb, aubergines, potatoes, green bell peppers and tomatoes. The slices are laid on their sides in rows in a dish and baked with cloves of garlic. ''Zile pekmezi'' is a grape-molasses confection, prepared from a variety of small green grapes, which are pressed (traditionally by foot but nowadays by machine) and then evaporated to a thick syrup by boiling. Egg-whites are then beaten into the syrup until it forms a pale marshmallow-like paste. It is sold commercially in tubs.

Tourism

The most important landmark is

Tokat Castle Tokat Castle, is an ancient citadel with 28 towers built on top of a rocky peak in the center of Tokat, Turkey. While its first residents are unknown, the city's history dates back to 3,000 Before Christ, BC. The Hittites and Persian Empire, Persi ...

, an Ottoman

citadel A citadel is the core fortified area of a town or city. It may be a castle, fortress, or fortified center. The term is a diminutive of "city", meaning "little city", because it is a smaller part of the city of which it is the defensive core. I ...

with 28 towers on a rocky hill overlooking the town.

Vlad the Impaler Vlad III, commonly known as Vlad the Impaler ( ro, Vlad Țepeș ) or Vlad Dracula (; ro, Vlad Drăculea ; 1428/311476/77), was Voivode of Wallachia three times between 1448 and his death in 1476/77. He is often considered one of the most im ...

, who may have inspired Bram Stoker's fictional character

Count Dracula Count Dracula () is the title character of Bram Stoker's 1897 gothic horror novel ''Dracula''. He is considered to be both the prototypical and the archetypal vampire in subsequent works of fiction. Aspects of the character are believed by some ...

, was imprisoned in one of its

dungeon A dungeon is a room or cell in which prisoners are held, especially underground. Dungeons are generally associated with medieval castles, though their association with torture probably belongs more to the Renaissance period. An oubliette (from ...

s.Archaeologists In Turkey Say They've Discovered Dracula's Dungeon
/ref> Other sights include the remains of several

Greek Orthodox The term Greek Orthodox Church ( Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the entire body of Orthodox (Chalcedonian) Christianity, sometimes also cal ...

churches and a cathedral, the Garipler Mosque dating to the 12th century, the Ali Paşa Mosque (16th century), the Hatuniye Külliyesi, also 16th century and the Gök Medrese (Pervane Bey Darussifasi), which was constructed in 1270. It was founded as a school of

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

, and was converted into a museum, housing archaeological finds from the area, until that function was transferred in 2012 to another location. File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque 2419.jpg, Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque 2423.jpg, Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque View along side File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque 8117.jpg, Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque View along side File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque 2421.jpg, Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque Entrance File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque 2422.jpg, Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque Entrance File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque 8127.jpg, Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque Interior File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque 8128.jpg, Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque Interior File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mausoleum 8124.jpg, Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque Mausoleum The Latifoglu Konak, a late 18th-century Ottoman residence, is an example of

Baroque architecture Baroque architecture is a highly decorative and theatrical style which appeared in Italy in the early 17th century and gradually spread across Europe. It was originally introduced by the Catholic Church, particularly by the Jesuits, as a means t ...

. The two-story building has been restored and has been converted into a small museum. Much of the furniture in the kitchen, study, visitors' rooms with bath and toilet, bedroom, master's room, and

harem Harem ( Persian: حرمسرا ''haramsarā'', ar, حَرِيمٌ ''ḥarīm'', "a sacred inviolable place; harem; female members of the family") refers to domestic spaces that are reserved for the women of the house in a Muslim family. A har ...

is original. Ballıca Cave is a small cave situated at 6 km (3.8 mi) southeast of Pazar, Tokat Province. File:Ballıca_Cave_1933.jpg, Ballıca Cave Image File:Ballıca Han 2021.jpg, Ballıca Han Door decoration File:Ballıca Han 2027.jpg, Ballıca Han Decoration at entrance File:Ballıca Han 2025.jpg, Ballıca Han View into closed courtyard File:Ballıca Han 2026.jpg, Ballıca Han Exterior wall

Notable people

* Apkar Tebir Tokhatetsi (1520?–1572?), Armenian printer and typographer * Gazi Osman Paşa (1832–1897), Ottoman commander * Symeon Savvidis (1859–1927), Greek painter * Mehmet Emin Tokadi Hazretleri (1664–1745), Sufi saint of Istanbul * Krikor Balakian (1875–1934), Armenian bishop * Cahit Külebi (1917–1997), Turkish poet * Engin Günaydın (born 1972), Turkish actor and comedian * Hüseyin Akbaş (1933–1989), Turkish World and Olympic Champion in wrestling * Seda Sayan (born 1964), Turkish pop folk singer, actress and TV variety-show hostess *

Aziz Kocaoğlu Aziz Kocaoğlu ( Erbaa 12 July 1948) is a Turkish politician who was Mayor of İzmir, Turkey's third largest city, from 2004 to 2019. Life and career He was born in 1948 at Erbaa in Tokat Province, a landlocked province in the Black Sea Region ...

(born 1948), mayor and politician.

International relations

Tokat is twinned with:

Notes

References

Sources and external links

Tokat
at kultur.gov.tr
Tokat web news
{{Authority control Cities in Turkey Former Armenian Catholic eparchies History of Tokat Province Districts of Tokat Province Populated places in Tokat Province