Çamlıhemşin
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Çamlıhemşin, formerly Vice, ( lzz, ვიჯა ''Vija'' or ვიჯე ''Vije'' ;
/ref> ka, ვიჯა ''Vija'' ) is a small town and district of
Rize Province Rize Province ( tr, Rize ili) is a province of northeast Turkey, on the eastern Black Sea coast between Trabzon and Artvin. The province of Erzurum is to the south. It was formerly known as Lazistan, the designation of the term of Lazistan was ...
in the
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, ...
region of
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
. With its mountains and valleys in all shades of green, Çamlıhemşin has a reputation as one of the most attractive parts of the eastern Black Sea region, particularly with the autumn foliage.


Etymology

The town was originally known as ''Vija'', ''Vije'', or ''Vice'' with local variants ''Vicealtı'', ''Vicedibi'', although it was officially named as Vicealtı until 1953 when its name was changed to ''Çamlıca'' by Turkish authorities. Its current name, ''Çamlıhemşin'', was given in 1957, a combination of the terms "Çamlı", which in Turkish means "
pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family (biology), family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanic ...
-forested" or "piney" and " Hemşin", which is the name of the indigenous Armenian population that predominantly inhabits the region. The name ''Vija'' is the Laz word for brine, mineral (salty) water, which corresponds to the
Kartvelian Kartvelian may refer to: * Anything coming from or related to Georgia (country) * Kartvelian languages * Kartvelian alphabet, see Georgian alphabet * Kartvelian studies * Georgians The Georgians, or Kartvelians (; ka, ქართველ� ...
*weʒ₁- form.Gogokhia, Bakur, "About the name of Vija town in Lazeti", ''Etymological Researches XI'', Arnold Chikobava Institute of Linguistics, Tbilisi, 2014, p.p. 3-10
(in Georgian).


Geography

Çamlıhemşin is high in the Fırtına Valley, which leads down to the
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, ...
coast, and is an important access point to the
Kaçkar mountains The Kaçkar Mountains ( tr, Kaçkar Dağları; hy, Խաչքարի լեռներ, lit=Mountains of Khachkars), formerly known as the Lazistan Mountains or the Mountains of Khaghtik (), are a mountain range that rises above the Black Sea coast in ...
. This is a hilly area surrounded by very high mountains that poke up into the clouds, and watered by the Hala River and other streams running down the Black Sea. It rains here all year round, temperatures drop to minus 7 °C in winter and reach 25 °C in summer. This is a low-income district and successive generations of Çamlıhemşin have migrated to jobs in Turkey's larger cities (for example they have reputation as the best bakers and pastry-cooks in
Ankara Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, mak ...
). In Çamlıhemşin some tea is grown and otherwise people live from forestry, beekeeping or herding animals on the mountainside. However the countryside here is a gorgeous mix of meadows and valleys and in recent years the district has begun to attract tourists, people on trekking holidays in the Kaçkar. There are now small hotels and guest houses throughout the district. Çamlıhemşin itself is a small town of 2,355 people. There is a health centre and some blocks of public housing, residences for teachers and civil servants posted here. There are high schools in Çamlıhemşin and primary schools in the mountains villages. The traditional Çamlıhemşin village house is wooden, with a steep roof to run off the rain and a wooden terrace at the side. Many of these homes seem stuck to the steep hillsides by magic. 20 villages of the district are inhabited by
Hemshinli , , native_name_lang = , image = , caption = Hamshen people by country , population = 150,000 – 200,000 , popplace = , regions = , region1 = , pop1 = 150,000 , ref1 ...
, 7 villages are inhabited by Laz. The centre of the district (Vija/Vicealtı) has a Hemshinli majority and a Laz minority who are mostly recent settlers. Hemshinli have a distinct folk culture, for example, the women wear bright orange headscarves which they tie in a certain way to declare their availability (or not) for marriage. The local cuisine includes muhlama, the
fondue Fondue (, , ) is a Swiss melted cheese dish served in a communal pot ( ''caquelon'' or fondue pot) over a portable stove () heated with a candle or spirit lamp, and eaten by dipping bread into the cheese using long-stemmed forks. It was promot ...
-type hot cheese, butter and flour pudding.


Climate

Çamlıhemşin has an
oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ...
( Köppen: ''Cfb'').


Places of interest

Çamlıhemşin has a number of places for hiking and escaping into the countryside, including: *
Ayder Ayder is a yayla in Rize Province, Turkey. Etymology ''Ayder'' is the Hemshin word for "fields." Geography Ayder at is a typical yayla with no settled population; it hosts visitors during summers. The average altitude is . It is a part o ...
- the village has mineral baths and plenty of accommodation for visitors. * the Fırtına Valley, which runs through the heart of Çamlıhemşin, and is spanned by the Ottoman-era Fırtına River bridges. * ''Kale-i Balâ'' a castle high on a rock * Zilkale, a medieval era castle


Notable residents

* - a Turkish musician of Hemshin origin playing the
tulum Tulum (, yua, Tulu'um) is the site of a pre-Columbian Mayan walled city which served as a major port for Coba, in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo. The ruins are situated on cliffs along the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula on the ...


References


External links

*
Çamlıhemşin with photographs
*
Gulapoğlu Ailesi Sitesi - Gulapoglu Family Site from Camlihemsin
*
the Çamlıhemşin-Hemşin foundation
*
a forum for discussion of all things Hamsheni
*
website tilted "WE ARE HEMŞİNLİ"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Camlihemsin Populated places in Rize Province Districts of Rize Province