Antalya Province

Template:Infobox Province TR Antalya Province is located on the Mediterranean coast of south-west Turkey, between the Taurus Mountains and the Mediterranean sea. Area 20,723 km².

Antalya Province is the centre of Turkey's tourism industry, attracting 30% of foreign tourists visiting Turkey. It features a shoreline of 657 km with beaches, ports, and ancient cities scattered throughout, including the World Heritage Site Xanthos. The provincial capital is Antalya city with a population of 714,000.

Antalya is the fastest-growing province in Turkey; with a 4.17% yearly population growth rate between years 1990-2000, compared with the national rate of 1.83%. This growth is due to a fast rate of urbanization, particularly driven by tourism & other service sectors on the coast.

Etymology

The city and thus the province are named after Attalos II, king of Pergamon, who founded the city in the 2nd century BC.

History

Antiquity

Antalya has been settled for a long, long time. Evidence of human habitation dating back to early Paleolithic age (150,000-200,000) years has been discovered in the Karain caves, 30 km of the north of Antalya city.^[1] Other finds dating back to the Mesolithic (Beldibi caves), Neolithic (Bademağacı Höyüğü) and more recent periods show that the area has been populated by various civilizations throughout the ages.

There are long periods shrouded in mystery until records from the Hittite period refer to the area as part of the "Lukka Lands" (from which "Lycia" is derived) and document the lively interaction going on between provinces in the second millennium BC. Like their descendants, the Lukkans or Lycians were known for their seamanship (especially their piracy) and demonstrated a fiery independent spirit. Neither the Hittites, nor the kingdom of Arzawa on the west coast, could ever keep them at peace for long. Legends of Ancient Greece tell us that these communities grew into independent cities, the area as a whole came to be called Pamphylia and in a federation of these cities was set up. There are also tales of the migration of the Akha clan to the area after the Trojan war and eventually Greek settlements were built along the coast and inland.

In the Hellenistic period the western parts of Antalya province were in Lycia, the east was in Pamphylia, and at the extremes east, in ancient Cilicia, while Pisidia was to the north.

Even before the Ancient Roman conquest Lycia was a kingdom with the first democratic constitution in the world, which later inspired the American Constitution [1] [2].

Antalya was part of the Lydian kingdom from the 7th century BC until Lydia was defeated by the Persians during the battle of Sardis in 546 BC. The Macedonian commander Alexander the Great ended Persian rule and in around 334 BC conquered the cities of the area one by one—except for Termessos and Sillyon which managed to repulse his armies in 333 BC. Antalya itself was founded later. With the death of Alexander in 323 BC, a long battle erupted between his commanders that lasted until 188 BC.

With the defeat of the Seleucid army at Apamea began the reign of the kingdom of Pergamon and the foundation of the city of Antalya. When Attalos III, the last king of Pergamom, died in 133 BC he left his kingdom to the Ancient Romans. At this time the area is dominated by pirates based in small cities along the coast.

The Byzantines

During the mid-Byzantine era (the 5th and 6th centuries) the city of Antalya grew beyond the city walls.

From the 7th century Muslim Arabs started to be dominant in the region and Antalya later played a part in the Christian Crusades against Islam. The army of Louis VII. sailed from Antalya for Syria in 1148, and the fleet of Richard of England rallied here before the conquest of Cyprus. Between the years 1120-1206, Antalya was again under the sovereignty of Byzantines.

The Seljuk Turks

The area was conquered by the Seljuk Turks and recaptured by the Byzantines again and again from 1076 onwards as the Seljuks strove to establish a trading base on the Mediterranean. At one stage Turkish lord Kilij Arslan had a palace here. In 1220 Byzantine rule ended for the last time and the city was quickly divided into Christian and Muslim sections, the Christian trading communities including Venetians and Genoese. Alanya also grew and thrived during the Seljuk period.

The Ottoman Empire onwards

The area passed through many hands before its final occupation by the Ottoman Empire under Murad II in 1432. Ottoman rule of the coast persisted until the end of the First World War, when Antalya was briefly occupied by Italian troops before becoming part of the Republic of Turkey in 1921.

There are many archaeological sites in the province including three National Parks and three Specially Protected Areas.

Districts and cities

The coastal districts are; Antalya, Gazipaşa, Alanya, Manavgat, Serik, Kemer, Kumluca, Finike, Kale and Kaş.
The inland districts are high in the Taurus Mountains, at elevations approx 900-1000 m above sea level. These are; Gündoğmuş, Akseki, İbradı, Korkuteli and Elmalı.

Geography

The land of the province is 77.8% mountain, 10.2% plain and 12% uneven. Many of the peaks of the Taurus mountains are above 2500-3000 metres. The Teke peninsula in the west includes wide plateaus and river basins. Climate, agriculture, demographics and habitation patterns differ greatly between the inland mountain areas and the coastal plain.

Places of interest

The highest point of the Taurus mountains is Akdağ at an altitude of 3025 metres. Located to the northwest of the city centre and at a distance of 50 km is the Saklıkent ski and recreation centre on Beydağları. Here one can ski and then go down to the shore and into the sea during the months of January-April. In Saklıkent there are two teleski and ski courses along with villas and accommodation facilities available in the area. Situated on Bakırlı Hill behind Saklıkent is the Antalya National Space Observatory. It is possible to watch meteor showers and shooting stars on certain days of the year. In rivers rafting and canoeing sports and on the Taurus mountains jeep safari, hunting and trekking tours are organised. Alternatively, there is rock-climbing, bird watching tourism, photo-safari, mountain tourism, line fishing and health tourism at the thalasso and dialysis centres in Geyikbayırı. Holy tourism activities are organized in Myra and Patara where St Nicholas was born and lived. In the area of Belek, 30 km. east of Antalya, there is a big potential for golf tourism with the bonus of the cultural, historical and natural sightseeing of the region. There are five golf facilities already operating in Belek. There are underwater diving centres on the coast, primarily in Kemer, Çamyuva, Olympos, Adrasan, Kaş, Kalkan, Üçağız, Kekova, Side and Alanya. In addition, yacht tours are organized from the port of Antalya to Düden Waterfall-Karpuzkaldıran and Kemer, from Side to Alanya, from Demre-Çayağzı to Kekova, from Kaş to Kekova, from Kemer to Çıralı-Olympos-Adrasan and Cape Gelidonya. There are also boat tours on Manavgat creek and canoe tours on Xanthos creek. In addition, Blue Cruise, which covers the southwestern Anatolian coast, ends in Antalya. There are ferryboat trips from Alanya to Cyprus and from Antalya to Italy. Antalya today is a world tourism centre with its unique touristic accommodation facilities, nature and historical beauties.

Ancient cities and ruins

There are sites of historical and archaelogical interest all over Antalya including:

The Pisidian city of Ariassos 48 km. along the Antalya- Burdur highway.
In the district of Kumluca: Acaliasos, Cormus, Gagae, Idebessos, and the ancient Lycian city of Olympos,
In the district of Kale: Andriake, Antiphellos, Apallai, Myra, Phellos, Sure
In the district of Üçağız: Apollonia, Hysa, Ilysa, Istloda, Teimiusa
In the district of Finike: Arycanda, Limyra, Melanippe, Trebema, and Lycian rock graves
In the district of Kemer, (southwest of Antalya): Idyros, and the Lycian city of Phaselis
In Side; the town itself, Seleucia (Pamphylia), and a temple of Athena.
The church of Saint Nicholas in Demre
The caves of Beldibi, Damlataş and Karain
Hadrian's Gate, the Roman fortification and the clock tower in the city of Antalya itself. Also near the city the Pamphilian city of Aspendos, Perge (on two hills, once the capital of Pamphylia) and the Pisidian city of Termessos, high in the mountains 35km northwest of Antalya.
Karaburun and Seyamük in Elmalı
Kyneai in Kaş
Poğla in Korkuteli
Silliyon (the town of Serik), dates back to 4th.century BC.
Simena in Kekova
Tlos
The ancient Lycian city of Xanthos (Kınık)

National parks

Sites of natural beauty

Solar eclipse of 2006

On March 29, 2006 a total solar eclipse occurred over Antalya, lasting almost 4 minutes, the centre line passing over the resorts of Side and Manavgat. A solar eclipse is a rare natural event that one can see maybe only once in a lifetime. Website of the TUBITAK National Observatory in Antalya

External links

37°10′54″N 30°56′00″E / 37.18167°N 30.93333°E / 37.18167; 30.93333

^ See [3] and [4]

[1] See [3] and [4]

[1]