Location

Geographically, Turkey extends over two continents. Anatolia, the Asian part of Turkish territory, accounts for about 97 % of the area. The European part in the northwest (Eastern Thrace) covers about 3 % of the area, where the main part of the metropolis of Istanbul is also located.

With a coastline of around 7,200 km, Turkey borders the Aegean Sea to the west, the Mediterranean to the south and the Black Sea to the north. The Sea of Marmara lies between the Aegean and the Black Sea and is connected to each of them by a strait: in the west the Dardanelles, about 65 kilometres long, and in the east the Bosphorus. The metropolis of Istanbul, with its millions of inhabitants, lies on the Bosphorus.

The land border with the eight neighbouring countries has a total length of 2,648 km. In the northwest Turkey borders Greece (206 km of border) and Bulgaria (240 km), in the northeast Georgia (252 km), Armenia (268 km) and Azerbaijan (the exclave and autonomous republic of Nakhchivan, 17 km[8]), in the east Iran (499 km) and in the south Iraq (331 km) and Syria (822 km).[9] The politically divided island of Cyprus, with the Republic of Cyprus and the internationally unrecognised Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, lies about 70 kilometres off the south coast. The Greek islands of Chios, Kos, Symi and Rhodes are also not far from the Turkish mainland.

The relocated tomb of Suleyman Shah (previously at Qalʿat Jaʿbar) near the Syrian town of Sarrin is (as of mid-2014) an official exclave. It was guarded as sovereign territory by Turkish soldiers. In February 2015 a commando unit of the Turkish armed forces relocated the tomb once again and razed the mausoleum.

Geology

Geologically, Turkey is part of the Alpide mountain belt. It lies largely on the Anatolian Plate, which borders the Eurasian Plate to the north and east, the Arabian Plate to the south and the African Plate to the southwest. Because of the North Anatolian Fault, a transform fault, the north of Turkey in particular is one of the most earthquake-prone regions on earth and has been shaken by earthquakes several times in recent decades. Since a certain chronological east-west sequence of earthquakes can be observed in northern Turkey, experts suspect that Istanbul will also be hit by a major earthquake in the foreseeable future. The last major earthquakes in the province of Kocaeli, such as the Gölcük earthquake, were less than 100 km from Istanbul.

Landscape

The regions of Turkey: 1 Marmara Region, 2 Central Anatolia, 3 Aegean Region, 4 Mediterranean Region, 5 Black Sea Region, 6 Southeastern Anatolia, 7 Eastern Anatolia

Geographically, Turkey is divided into seven areas or regions. Four regions are named after the adjacent seas: the Black Sea Region, the Marmara Region, the Aegean Region and the Mediterranean Region. Three regions are named after their location in Anatolia: Central Anatolia, Eastern Anatolia and Southeastern Anatolia. These regions differ greatly in terms of vegetation and weather conditions.

The Marmara Region surrounds the Sea of Marmara and thus lies partly in Europe and partly in Anatolia, which belongs to Asia. The European part north of the Sea of Marmara is Turkish Thrace (Eastern Thrace). The river Meriç forms the border with Greece. The landscape of the Marmara Region is hilly and covered with bushes and forests. In the east the fertile farmland gives way to a steppe landscape. The Istanbul metropolitan region forms the economic centre of Turkey. The city of Bursa, with over a million inhabitants, is a spa town famous for its sulphur and thermal springs; it lies at the foot of the Uludağ mountains. The mountain is a popular destination all year round.The Aegean Region is also used intensively for agriculture. The very hilly landscape extends along the west coast between Çanakkale and Bodrum. The coastal region is one of the most developed tourist regions of Turkey. Besides cypresses and olive trees, vines characterise the landscape. In this region there are many ancient sites from the time of Greek settlement, e.g. Troy, Assos (Behramkale), Pergamon (Bergama), Ephesus (Efes), Priene, Miletus, Didyma and Euromos.

The Black Sea Region comprises the northern coastal strip of Turkey. It is characterised by a mild, humid climate, and large forests stretch across its mountainous landscape. Tea, tobacco, maize and hazelnuts are grown on the very fertile soil.

Agriculturally used Central Anatolian steppe near Kırşehir

The Central Anatolian Region comprises the inner Anatolian plateaus. Here lie the salt lake Tuz Gölü and mountain ranges that in places rise to 3900 metres. In the east lies Cappadocia, famous for its cave dwellings and rock churches carved into tuff in rock cones up to 2000 metres high. Inner Anatolia is predominantly characterised by a steppe landscape, which in large parts is, however, not natural but caused by human intervention such as deforestation and grazing by livestock. It is one of the driest areas of Anatolia; in the region around Tuz Gölü the climate has semi-desert features. For this reason, agricultural use in this region is not as intensive as in the regions mentioned before. The seasonal distribution of precipitation, favourable for field crops, especially grain, with a maximum in spring and early summer, allows rain-fed farming throughout without the need for artificial irrigation. Therefore almost all areas whose soils have not been destroyed by karstification or erosion are used for agriculture. Above all wheat, barley, pulses, especially chickpeas, and fruit are grown here. The climate of this region is characterised by very warm, dry summers with cool nights. In winter very cold temperatures of below −20 degrees Celsius can be reached; in terms of average values the winters resemble those in Germany, but are shorter. In Central Anatolia you can certainly find heat-loving but cold-resistant plants from the Mediterranean region, such as fig, pomegranate or mulberry trees. Viticulture, or the cultivation of table grapes, is also practised there.

Van Fortress on Lake Van in eastern Turkey

Eastern Anatolia, a high-mountain landscape, is home to some of the highest mountains in Turkey, such as Ararat and Süphan Dağı. Here too are the headwaters of the Euphrates, the Murat and the Karasu, as well as the upper course of the Aras, which flows eastwards past Ararat towards the Caspian Sea. Lake Van, at an altitude of 1640 metres and the largest inland lake in the country, is also located in this region. The largest cities are Elazığ, Erzincan, Erzurum, Malatya and Van.

The Mediterranean Region is bounded to the north by the Taurus Mountains and to the east by the Amanus Mountains. In this region mainly citrus fruits, bananas, tomatoes, peanuts and cotton are grown.

Ararat is the highest mountain in Turkey

Southeastern Anatolia is the oldest cultural region of Turkey. It is enclosed by the Taurus Mountains. The two rivers Euphrates and Tigris flow here. Agriculturally, this region is used for growing wheat, barley, grapes, olives and pistachios. Besides mountain ranges, the area east of the Euphrates is characterised by a high plateau. As part of the Southeastern Anatolia Project, numerous dams have been built along the Euphrates and Tigris; some are still under construction.

Highest mountains in Turkey

Most important rivers in Turkey

Lakes of Turkey

Important islands of Turkey

Mount Ararat (Büyük Ağrı Dağı) – 5137 m

Kızılırmak 1355 km

Lake Van 3713 km²

Gökçeada 279 km²

Buzul Dağı – 4135 m

Euphrates (Fırat)

Tuz Gölü 1500 km² (salt lake)

Marmara Island 117 km²

Süphan Dağı – 4058 m

Sakarya

Beyşehir Gölü 656 km²

Bozcaada 36 km²

Little Ararat (Küçük Ağrı Dağı) – 3896 m

Murat and Karasu

Eğirdir Gölü 468 km²

Uzunada 25 km²

Kaçkar Dağı – 3932 m

Tigris (Dicle)

Akşehir Gölü 353 km²

Alibey 23 km²

Erciyes Dağı – 3891 m

Seyhan

İznik Gölü 298 km²

Paşalimanı 21 km²

Climate

Climate chart of Istanbul

Climate chart of Ankara

Climate chart of Antalya

Climate chart of Van

Climate data of Turkey by region[11]

Region

Average temperature (°C)

Maximum temperature (°C)

Minimum temperature (°C)

Average humidity (%)

Average precipitation (mm)

Marmara Region

−27.8

Aegean Region

−45.6

Mediterranean Region

−33.5

Black Sea Region

−32.8

Central Anatolia

−36.2

Eastern Anatolia

Southeastern Anatolia

−24.3

Flora and fauna

Anatolia has many endemic species of mullein, here: Verbascum wiedemannianum.

The flora of Turkey is considered the most diverse and varied in the Middle East. More than 9,000 species from over 850 genera have now been identified. About a third of these species are endemic.[12] The reasons for this extremely high rate of endemism are the meeting of different phytogeographical regions, the climatic diversity and a mountainous landscape; factors that allow strong differentiation. The genera Verbascum and Astragalus have their centre of distribution here. However, many endemic species are endangered.

The central steppe areas are dominated by thorny cushion plants and shrubs, e.g. thistles, which withstood centuries of grazing by the herds of nomads. In the north, especially on the Black Sea coast, there are extensive coniferous forests and commercially used hazelnut, maize and tea plantations; in the south, rather fruit and cotton plantations.

Many species of small game and wild boar are also native, although their numbers are constantly being reduced by hunting. The main livestock are cattle, horses, buffalo, sheep and goats. The number of camels has declined steadily in recent decades; today they are bred primarily for sporting competitions and no longer as beasts of burden.

On the Turkish coast you will also find a wide variety of fish species and also dolphins. Occasionally different species of shark are encountered in the sea, but they tend not to come close to the coast. The monk seal, thought to be extinct in Europe, can now be found again on the Aegean coast of Turkey and Greece.

The largest predators still living in Turkey today include the brown bear, wolf, golden jackal and Eurasian lynx. The striped hyena lives in the southeast of the country. Occasionally you can also find civets and wildcats and, in the southeast of the country, desert monitors and Egyptian mongooses. Over time, predators have been hunted and exterminated. The last Asiatic lion was killed in 1870.[13] The last Caspian tiger was shot in 1970. The Anatolian leopard, declared extinct in 1974, was rediscovered in the Black Sea region in 2013 after several years of research.

Bee-eater in Diyarbakır Province, Southeastern Anatolia

Turkey is a breeding and wintering ground for numerous bird species. South of Bandırma – in the Kuşcenneti National Park – lies a well-known bird paradise where pelicans, wild ducks, storks, cormorants, nightingales and pheasants have found a home. Important colonies of greater flamingos are found in the interior and in the south of the country

Nature reserves

1.3 % of the area of Turkey is under nature protection. This includes ten coastal protection areas, 18 nature reserves and 41 national parks, two of which have been declared World Natural Heritage Sites by UNESCO. Turkey also has a share in the European Green Belt, and the European part of the country lies in the Blue Heart of Europe.[14][15]

However, the low financial resources of the Ministry of the Environment currently prevent adequate protection of the areas. Moreover, no national park or protected area in Turkey corresponds to the international IUCN categories

Beaches and landscapes

In total, 235 (as of 2007) beaches in Turkey have been awarded the Blue Flag, which is awarded every year to beaches and marinas that maintained a consistently high standard of bathing water quality in the previous season.

The south coast between Antalya in the west and Cape Anamur in the east of Turkey, also known as the Turkish Riviera, is one of the tourist centres of the country. Besides Antalya, Alanya is the most important town. In addition, the southern Aegean coast is very popular with beach holidaymakers. Another very popular seaside resort is Bodrum. Besides its exuberant nightlife, Bodrum is known for its medieval Crusader castle (Bodrum Kalesi). Fethiye is known for its bays, islands and beaches. Nearby is Myra, where, besides Lycian rock tombs, the Church of St Nicholas is located.

Cappadocia is a region in Central Anatolia. One of the best-known places is Göreme with its cave churches carved out of soft tuff. The area consists of tuff, which weathers only slowly because of the low rainfall and the wind. Harder rock remains standing, so that fairy chimneys are formed.

Administrative divisions

For local administration, Turkey is divided into 81 provinces (il or valilik), each administered by a governor (vali). The individual provinces are further divided into districts and municipalities. The districts (ilçe or kaymakamlık) are headed by a kaymakam, who is appointed by the Minister of the Interior. Mayors (belediye başkanı) and village heads (muhtar) are elected by the people.