Gebze

Gebze
Gebze
Town
	Gebze centrum view of the sky Gebze centrum view of the sky
	Gebze Location in Turkey
	Coordinates: 40°48′N 29°26′E / 40.800°N 29.433°E
Country	Turkey
Region	Marmara
Province	Kocaeli
Government
• Mayor	Adnan Köşker (AKP)
Area
• District	584.45 km2 (225.66 sq mi)
Population (Template:Turkey district populations)Template:Turkey district populations
• Urban	Template:Turkey district populations
• District	Template:Turkey district populations
Postal code	41400
Website	www.gebze.bel.tr

Gebze (Turkish pronunciation: [ˈgebze],) is a district in Kocaeli Province, Turkey. It is situated 65 km (30 mi) southeast of Istanbul, on the Gulf of Izmit, the eastern arm of the Sea of Marmara. Gebze is the second largest district in Kocaeli after İzmit, the provincial centrum in terms of population. Gebze has experienced rapid growth in recent years, from 159,116 residents in 1990 to 299,047 in 2011.

Geography

The district of Gebze is located in the westernmost portion of Kocaeli Province, with neighbors Tuzla to the west; Pendik, northwest; Şile, north; and Körfez, to the east. The district includes 6 municipalities (Gebze, Darıca, Çayırova, Dilovası, Şekerpınar, and Tavşancıl) and 22 villages (Ahatlı, Balçık, Cumaköy, Çerkeşli, Demirciler, Denizli, Duraklı, Elbizli, Eskihisar, Hatipler, Kadıllı, Kargalı, Köseler, Mollafenari, Muallimköy, Mudarlı, Ovacık, Pelitli, Tavşanlı, Tepecik, Tepemanayır (Tepepanayır), and Yağcılar).

The northern terminus of Osman Gazi Bridge falls within this area; the construction — having a total length of 4 kilometers (with a 1,688-meter main span) — bridges the Sea of Marmara from Kababurun to Dilburnu.

Twin towns – sister cities

Gebze is twinned with:^[2]

Karakol, Kyrgyzstan
Garoowe, Somalia

In November 2014, the Garowe Municipality in northeastern Somalia announced that it was slated to meet with the Gebze Municipality in order to finalize a sister city agreement between Gebze and Garowe.^[2]