Turkey Information, Geography and History

Information

•  Full name: Republic of Turkey.

•  Capital City: Ankara.

•  Language: Turkish, Arabic, Kurdish and Laz.

•  Currency: New Turkish Lira.

•  Religion: Muslim (Sunni).

•  National Anthem: “Istiklal Marsi”.

•  Newspaper: Zaman, Yerel Haber Gazetesi, Özgür Kocaeli, Aksam Gazetesi, Alanya Bote and Ay Gazete.

•  Places to Visit: Safranbolu, ruins of Troy, lavish ornamental mosques, Istanbul and remnants of the Ottoman Empire – in short the whole country.

•  Transport: Airways: international airports at Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir. Turkish Airlines conducts direct flights from Istanbul to over three dozen cities in Europe alone and also many more worldwide; Railways: daily services are available from the Bosfor Ekspresi, between Budapest, Bucharest, Belgrade and Sofia to Istanbul. Also the Dostluk Ekspresi connects Istanbul and Thessaloniki; Roadways: Turkish bus lines ply between Frankfurt and Vienna; Waterways: ferry cars services Marmara Lines ply between Turkey's Aegean coast and the Greek islands.

•  Shopping: handicrafts, paintings, rugs and carpets, crystal ware, hand-painted ceramics and porcelain, kilims, laces, leather and textile products, canvas embroidery, silver and gold jewellery with precious stones, colour-print cotton scarves, Ottoman engravings, copper and brass wares, silverware, marble sculptures, needlework and ceramics & tiles.

Introduction : the Eurasian nation of Turkey is a ‘constitutional, secular, democratic republic'. The Turkish version of its name – “Türkiye” – is derived from the amalgamation of two words – “Türk” and the suffix “-iye”. The former simply means ‘strong', while the suffix is possessive in nature and pertains to being an ‘owner'. The nation of Turkey was concretely established by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, in 1923, subsequently to Ottoman decline. The part of the country that lies in Asia is called Anatolia while the European section is called Thrace.

Location of Turkey

the land of Turkey lies spread out across the southern region of two continents – east of Europe and west of Asia. As a result it also covers two significant landscapes – the Anatolian peninsula and the Balkans. Its immediate political and watery neighbors are (clockwise from the west) Armenia, Iran and Azerbaijan to the east;

Iraq and Syria to southeast; the Mediterranean Sea to the south; the Aegean Sea to the southwest; the Sea of Marmara and the country of Greece to the west; Bulgaria to the northwest; and the Black Sea to the north.

Physical Map of Turkey

turkey is a trans-continental nation, half of it being in Asia and another half in Europe. So it can be called a Eurasian country. Turkey has a diverse landscape of coasts, mountains, plains and peninsulas. The Anatolian peninsula is almost a national trademark, with its stark ruggedness and aridity it rises to a plateau surrounded by contracted coastal plains. The country of Turkey is comprises of seven sections based on the region it surrounds or the region that surrounds it. They are the Aegean region, the Marmara region, the Mediterranean region, East Anatolia, Central Anatolia, Southeast Anatolia and the Black Sea region. There are mountain ranges in the east that are the birth places for many a river, namely the Euphrates, Tigris, Araks and also Lake Van. The highest point in Turkey is Mount Arat.

Climate of Turkey

turkey has clement weather almost the whole year round. It can be summed up in the phrase ‘Mediterranean'. Summers are hot and dry, while the winters are wet and cold. However, inland-wards, the conditions get arid and continental, with demarcated seasonal changes, due to the mountainous barrier near the coast. Precipitation in the form of snowfall is experienced inland at higher altitudes. The month of May experiences the most rainfall.

Flora and Fauna of Turkey

a country of rich diversity, Turkey has a huge inventory of plants and animals thriving in the country. This rich biodiversity includes trees, flowers, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds and fishes. To begin with the kind of plants that populate the country of Turkmenistan; some of the wide spread species include the alder, beech, Scots pine, oak, Oriental spruce, maple, flax, plums, apricots, hazelnuts, figs, almonds and sour cherries. Among flowers, those that populate the list are violets, daisies, poppies, crocuses and sunflowers. As a direct result of all the flowers that are to be seen, butterflies too are aplenty. Animal fauna is just as diverse with some unique and rare species living in the land. Some of these are Anatolia leopard, wild sheep, tiger, lions, fallow deer; the rare species are the Kangal dog and the Van cat – a cat with one blue and one green. Avian fauna in Turkey consists of pheasant, storks, dalmatian pelican, pygmy cormorants, the slender billed curlew, bald ibis, flamingoes, wild ducks and geese. There are some other species of fauna like the loggerhead turtles,Chelonia mydas and Caretta caretta sea turtles and monk seals which are not just singular but also rare to spot anywhere across the globe.

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