Salihli is a municipality and

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

Manisa Province Manisa Province () is a Provinces of Turkey, province and Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan municipality in western Turkey. Its area is 13,339 km2, and its population is 1,468,279 (2022). Its neighboring provinces are İzmi ...

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 ...

. Its area is 1,359 km², and its population is 165,182 (2023). The ancient

Lydia Lydia (; ) was an Iron Age Monarchy, kingdom situated in western Anatolia, in modern-day Turkey. Later, it became an important province of the Achaemenid Empire and then the Roman Empire. Its capital was Sardis. At some point before 800 BC, ...

n capitals of

Sardes Sardis ( ) or Sardes ( ; Lydian language, Lydian: , romanized: ; ; ) was an ancient city best known as the capital of the Lydian Empire. After the fall of the Lydian Empire, it became the capital of the Achaemenid Empire, Persian Lydia (satrapy) ...

and Daldis are located within Salihli.

Geography

The city of Salihli, which is also the seat of the district, is located on the

İzmir İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...

Ankara Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and List of national capitals by area, the largest capital by area in the world. Located in the Central Anatolia Region, central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5,290,822 in its urban center ( ...

(E-96) highway, and it's parallel railway connections. The urban centre is situated on the slopes of the Bozdağ mountain chain along the southern alluvial plains of the Gediz River. To the north and northeast of the plain extends two other mountain ranges, Mount Dibek (highest altitude 1120 m) and Mount Üşümüş (highest altitude 1085 m). The town lies at an altitude of 125 meters from sea level. Its advantageous location, smooth and busy intercity connections and the fertile soil allowed Salihli to develop extremely well in the recent past. Four rivers, namely Alaşehir, Gümüş, Kurşunlu and Sart cross the district area to join the River Gediz, which flows westward. The climate type is

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

. To the north of the city is Demirköprü Dam, used for irrigation, prevention of overflows, energy production and fishing, and which was built between 1954 and 1960. The population in the 2000 census were 149,150 for the whole district and 83,137 for the urban center of Salihli. (The urban population is 165,182 as of 2023.) The district area is surrounded by the neighboring districts of Ahmetli to the west, Gölmarmara to the northwest, Gördes and Köprübaşı to the north, Demirci to the northeast, Kula to the east,

Alaşehir Alaşehir () is a municipality and district of Manisa Province, Turkey. Its area is 971 km2, and its population is 104,717 (2022). It is situated in the valley of the Kuzuçay ( Cogamus in antiquity), at the foot of the Bozdağ Mountain ( Moun ...

to the southeast and

Ödemiş Ödemiş () is a municipality and district of İzmir Province, Turkey. Its area is 1,019 km2, and its population is 132,740 (2022). It is located 113 km southeast of the city of İzmir. About 4 km north of Ödemiş town are the ru ...

to the south. The distances from Salihli to the seat of neighboring provinces are: The distances from Salihli to other cities of

Manisa Manisa () is a city in Turkey's Aegean Region and the administrative seat of Manisa Province, lying approximately 40 km northeast of the major city of İzmir. The city forms the urban part of the districts Şehzadeler and Yunusemre, with ...

are:

History

Salihli is a city with a long history.

Fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserve ...

ised footprints discovered near the villages of Sindel and Çarıklar, Manisa are estimated to be between 10,000 and 26,000 years old, and are the first traces of

prehistory Prehistory, also called pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the first known use of stone tools by hominins million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use ...

in the region. However, the region came to foremost importance with the establishment of the city of

, which is located west of Salihli center and where the most remarkable historical artifacts and remains of the region are found. Sardes was the capital city of

until 547 B.C., at which date it was captured by the

Persian Empire The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire, also known as the Persian Empire or First Persian Empire (; , , ), was an Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid dynasty in 550 BC. Based in modern-day Iran, it was the larg ...

and governed by

satrap A satrap () was a governor of the provinces of the ancient Median kingdom, Median and Achaemenid Empire, Persian (Achaemenid) Empires and in several of their successors, such as in the Sasanian Empire and the Hellenistic period, Hellenistic empi ...

s until 334 B.C.. After the Persians, the region was governed successively by the

Macedonian Empire Macedonia ( ; , ), also called Macedon ( ), was an ancient kingdom on the periphery of Archaic and Classical Greece, which later became the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. The kingdom was founded and initially ruled by the royal ...

, the Kingdom of the Attalids,

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

and

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...

. In the beginning of the 14th century, Turks under the Beylik of Saruhan captured the city and the region and ruled it for a century from their base in nearby

. In 1400 the region passed over to the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

under which Manisa preserved its position as a primary regional center. In the beginning of the Ottoman rule, Salihli was a village of the

kaza A kaza (, "judgment" or "jurisdiction") was an administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire, administrative division of the Ottoman Empire. It is also discussed in English under the names district, subdistrict, and juridical district. Kazas co ...

of Sart, depending the province seat of

Aydın Aydın ( ''EYE-din''; ; formerly named ''Güzelhisar; Greek: Τράλλεις)'' is a city in and the seat of Aydın Province in Turkey's Aegean Region. The city is located at the heart of the lower valley of Büyük Menderes River (ancient ...

, situated more to the south, and was called (meaning 'the children of Salih' in English). In the 19th century, with the construction of

- Uşak- Afyon railway, Salihli demonstrated a much more rapid pace of progress compared to Sart and gained township status in 1872, when it became a

of the Sanjak of Saruhan, centred around

. From 1867 until 1922, Salihli was part of the Aidin Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire. During the Greco-Turkish War, the city was taken by Greek forces on 24 July 1920, then re-taken by the Turkish army on 5 September 1922. According to a number of sources, the retreating Greek army carried out a scorched-earth policy while fleeing from Anatolia during the final phase of the war. Sydney Nettleton Fisher, ''The Middle East: a history'', New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1969, p. 386 According to James Loder Park, the U.S. Vice-Consul in Constantinople at the time, who toured much of the devastated area immediately after the Greek evacuation, 65% of Salihli had been destroyed.U.S. Vice-Consul James Loder Park ''to Secretary of State,

Smyrna Smyrna ( ; , or ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek city located at a strategic point on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, Turkey. Due to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence, and its good inland connections, Smyrna ...

, 11 April 1923.'' US archives US767.68116/34 After the war, Salihli became one of the biggest and the most important districts of

. It is not always easy to make estimates on Salihli's population before the establishment of the

Republic 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 ...

due to the lack of adequate sources. However, a population of 500 people was confirmed for Sart during the 1831 census. The city grew quite fast after the construction of the railway until the

Turkish War of Independence , strength1 = May 1919: 35,000November 1920: 86,000Turkish General Staff, ''Türk İstiklal Harbinde Batı Cephesi'', Edition II, Part 2, Ankara 1999, p. 225August 1922: 271,000Celâl Erikan, Rıdvan Akın: ''Kurtuluş Savaşı tarih ...

. In the yearbook of 1891, 3000 people and in the yearbook of 1908, 4400 people were documented to be living in Salihli. In the first Republican census of 1927, 7191 people were recorded. The departure of the town's minority populations in 1923 also caused the population to decrease. Salihli has always been an attractive destination for immigrants. In the Ottoman era, the region was a favorite stopover for

nomad Nomads are communities without fixed habitation who regularly move to and from areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the population of nomadic pa ...

clan A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, a clan may claim descent from a founding member or apical ancestor who serves as a symbol of the clan's unity. Many societie ...

s (). Today, it is still possible to trace the names of some of the region's villages to the original '' aşiret'' names such as Karayahşi, Araplı,

Burhan Burhan (, ) is an Arabic male name, an epithet of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad. It is especially popular in Turkey, as it respects Turkish language, Turkish vowel harmony and the end syllable "-han" can be interpreted as the Turkish variant of " ...

, Beylikli, Çökelek, Eldelek, Dombaylı, Durasıllı, Sindel etc. Moreover, some names refer to unsettled localities, such as Sığıralcısı, Bayındırlı, Karatekeli, Kuşdoğanlı, Kacar, Taras, Karakeçili. After the 1890s until the 1950s, Salihli also attracted many immigrants moving into Turkey from the

Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

, from

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

and

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

particularly. Many Turkic-speaking immigrants from

Xinjiang Xinjiang,; , SASM/GNC romanization, SASM/GNC: Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Sinkiang, officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People' ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

chose to live in Salihli during the Chinese revolutionary disturbances. This part of the population, mainly

Kazakhs The Kazakhs (Kazakh language, Kazakh: , , , ) are a Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group native to Central Asia and Eastern Europe. They share a common Culture of Kazakhstan, culture, Kazakh language, language and History of Kazakhstan, history ...

and known as in the city, came to Salihli between 1954 and 1955 in the following years. After the 1970s, some immigration from Eastern Anatolia also came to strengthen the ranks of the previous immigrants. Counter-movements in the population were towards Turkey's big cities and to

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, especially to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Composition

There are 103

neighbourhoods A neighbourhood (Commonwealth English) or neighborhood (American English) is a geographically localized community within a larger town, city, suburb or rural area, sometimes consisting of a single street and the buildings lining it. Neighbourh ...

in Salihli District:Mahalle
Turkey Civil Administration Departments Inventory. Retrieved 19 September 2023. * Adala * Akçaköy * Akören * Aksoy * Akyar * Allahdiyen * Atatürk * Bağcılar * Bahçecik * Barış * Başlıoğlu * Beşeylül * Beylikli * Burhanköy * Caferbey * Çakaldoğan * Çaltılı * Çamurhamamı * Çapaklı * Çavlı * Çayköy * Çaypınar * Çelikli * Çökelek * Çukuroba * Cumhuriyet * Damatlı * Dedetaşı * Delibaşlı * Derbent * Dombaylı * Durasıllı * Eldelek * Eminbey * Emirhacılı * Eskicami * Gaffar Okkan * Gaziler * Gökçeköy * Gökeyüp * Gökköy * Gümüş * Güneş * Hacıbektaşlı * Hacıhıdır * Hacıköseli * Hacılı * Hasalan * İğdecik * Kabazlı * Kale * Kapancı * Kaplanköy * Karaağaç * Karaoğlanlı * Karapınar * Karasavcı * Karayahşi * Keli * Kemerdamları * Kemerköy * Kırdamları * Kırveli * Kızılavlu * Kocaçeşme * Kordon * Köseali * Kurttutan * Kurtuluş * Mamatlı * Mersindere * Mersinli * Mevlutlu * Mitatpaşa * Namıkkemal * Oraklar * Ortaköy * Özyurt * Pazarköy * Poyraz * Poyrazdamları * Sağlık * Sarıpınar * Sart * Şehitler * Seyrantepe * Sindel * Şirinyer * Süleymaniye * Taytan * Tekelioğlu * Torunlu * Üçtepe * Yağbasan * Yağmurlar * Yeniköy * Yenipazar * Yeşilkavak * Yeşilova * Yeşilyurt * Yılmaz * Yörük * Zafer

Climate

Economy

The economy of the city is primarily based around agriculture, agricultural commerce and industry. Agriculture: The main agricultural products are seedless sultana grapes,

wheat Wheat is a group of wild and crop domestication, domesticated Poaceae, grasses of the genus ''Triticum'' (). They are Agriculture, cultivated for their cereal grains, which are staple foods around the world. Well-known Taxonomy of wheat, whe ...

barley Barley (), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains; it was domesticated in the Fertile Crescent around 9000 BC, giving it nonshattering spikele ...

cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

and

maize Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native American ...

. The fertility of the region's soil also allows for the cultivation of a wide variety of fruits and vegetables.

Cherries A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit). Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet ''Prunus avium'' and the sour ''Prunus cerasus''. The name ...

known as the Napoleon breed grown especially in the villages of Allahdiyen and Gökköy and the potatoes locally known as potatoes are particularly famous. Stockbreeding is another source of income for rural inhabitants, of rising importance especially in the last decade. Industry: The recent building of Salihli Organized Industrial Zone (in Turkish ), extending over an area of 111 hectares in a triangular zone between the close district centers of Salihli,

and Kula, became a great opportunity to provide new employment opportunities in the region and accelerate the pace of industrialization. Smaller industrial enterprises are concentrated in Salihli itself, where there are 32 brickworks and tileries drawing on the region's rich reserves in raw materials for bricks, two flour mills, two valonia oak factories, ten

cotton gin A cotton gin—meaning "cotton engine"—is a machine that quickly and easily separates cotton fibers from their seeds, enabling much greater productivity than manual cotton separation.. Reprinted by McGraw-Hill, New York and London, 1926 (); ...

factories, two grape operating works, one feed grain factory, one industrial tube factory, one tomato dressing factory, two olive oil mills, two beverage factories, one water bottling factory, one mineral water company and one emery rock factory. Tourism: The remains of

Sardis Sardis ( ) or Sardes ( ; Lydian language, Lydian: , romanized: ; ; ) was an ancient city best known as the capital of the Lydian Empire. After the fall of the Lydian Empire, it became the capital of the Achaemenid Empire, Persian Lydia (satrapy) ...

, which notably includes the Lydian King named Giges's tomb, the

Artemis In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Artemis (; ) is the goddess of the hunting, hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, transitions, nature, vegetation, childbirth, Kourotrophos, care of children, and chastity. In later tim ...

Temple and a Marble Court with Gymnasium built by the Romans, as well as other historical vestiges are widely visited by tourists, nationally and internationally. and south of the town, there are lead and mud baths named , which are famous across the region. These thermal springs are visited especially to treat rheumatic disorders,

sciatica Sciatica is pain going down the leg from the lower back. This pain may go down the back, outside, or front of the leg. Onset is often sudden following activities such as heavy lifting, though gradual onset may also occur. The pain is often desc ...

lumbago Low back pain or lumbago is a common disorder involving the muscles, nerves, and bones of the back, in between the lower edge of the ribs and the lower fold of the buttocks. Pain can vary from a dull constant ache to a sudden sharp feeling. ...

arthritis Arthritis is a general medical term used to describe a disorder that affects joints. Symptoms generally include joint pain and stiffness. Other symptoms may include redness, warmth, Joint effusion, swelling, and decreased range of motion of ...

neuralgia Neuralgia (Greek ''neuron'', "nerve" + ''algos'', "pain") is pain in the distribution of a nerve or nerves, as in intercostal nerve, intercostal neuralgia, trigeminal neuralgia, and glossopharyngeal nerve, glossopharyngeal neuralgia. Classifica ...

orthopaedic Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics ( alternative spelling orthopaedics) is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgical and nonsurgical means to treat musculoskeletal ...

disorders, several skin diseases, some gynecological conditions and kidney disorders. Moreover, a recent

geothermal energy Geothermal energy is thermal energy extracted from the crust (geology), crust. It combines energy from the formation of the planet and from radioactive decay. Geothermal energy has been exploited as a source of heat and/or electric power for m ...

production project intends to use these thermal sources and provide heating for the city of Salihli. There are also many excursion possibilities around Salihli. Bozdağ summits and the Lake Gölcük located near the top of one of the summits is at a very high altitude. The restaurants and cafes situated on the hills around Bozdağ have views over Salihli.

Culture and sports activities

Sporting activities are quite prominent, and the city was represented for a long time in the Turkish Second League by Yeni Salihlispor. Today, nearly 1500 licensed athletes compete in various sports activities in Salihli, such as

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

table tennis Table tennis (also known as ping-pong) is a racket sport derived from tennis but distinguished by its playing surface being atop a stationary table, rather than the Tennis court, court on which players stand. Either individually or in teams of ...

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

, oil wrestling,

folk dance A folk dance is a dance that reflects the life of the people of a certain country or region. Not all ethnic dances are folk dances. For example, Ritual, ritual dances or dances of ritual origin are not considered to be folk dances. Ritual dances ...

and

chess Chess is a board game for two players. It is an abstract strategy game that involves Perfect information, no hidden information and no elements of game of chance, chance. It is played on a square chessboard, board consisting of 64 squares arran ...

. There are ten football clubs that represent Salihli in Turkey's amateur league, and one female volleyball club in the 2nd league. Under Salihli Municipality's structure, Turkish folk music, Turkish classical music and children's chorus organizations also have a place, and modern

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

and other dance schools, folk dancing, piano, drawing and theater lessons are also supported. The judo team has previously won gold, silver and bronze medals in world championships and many other medals in national tournaments.

Cuisine

Besides other Turkish dishes, Salihli has a particular köfte variety of its own, named . Gökeyüp village's

güveç Güveç () is a family of earthenware pots used in Balkan, Persian, Turkish, and Levantine cuisine; various casserole or stew dishes cooked in them are called ghivetch. The pot is wide and medium-tall, can be glazed or unglazed, and the dish ...

stews are also particularly famous in the region. The production of high-quality grapes, especially sultana grapes, is also reflected in the cuisine. In wedding ceremonies held in the villages, dishes like keşkek and topalak are often cooked, and some people make their own rakı with sweet sultana grapes.

Notable people

* Tasos Athanasiadis (1913-2006), Greek writer * Güven Erkaya (1938-2000), Turkish admiral * Ramiz Turan, military officer, died during Cyprus Operation * Ali İhsan Karayiğit (1928-2014), Football player * Ali Tandoğan, ex-football player, manager

References

External links

Salihli Municipality

Governorship of Manisa

Salihli Chamber of Industry and Commerce

List of Schools in Turkey by Ministry of National Education

Panoramic picture of Demirkopru Dam Reservoir and nearby Volcanos.
{{Authority control Populated places in Manisa Province Districts of Manisa Province Metropolitan district municipalities in Turkey