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Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a smaller part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Iran to the east; Iraq, Syria, and the Mediterranean Sea to the south; and the Aegean Sea, Greece, and Bulgaria to the west. Turkey is home to over 85 million people; most are ethnic Turks, while ethnic Kurds are the largest ethnic minority. Officially a secular state, Turkey has a Muslim-majority population. Ankara is Turkey's capital and second-largest city, while Istanbul is its largest city and economic and financial center. Other major cities include İzmir, Bursa, and Antalya.

Turkey was first inhabited by modern humans during the Late Paleolithic. Home to important Neolithic sites like Göbekli Tepe and some of the earliest farming areas, present-day Turkey was inhabited by various ancient peoples. The Hattians were assimilated by the Anatolian peoples, such as the Hittites. Classical Anatolia transitioned into cultural Hellenization following the conquests of Alexander the Great; Hellenization continued during the Roman and Byzantine eras. The Seljuk Turks began migrating into Anatolia in the 11th century, starting the Turkification process. The Seljuk Sultanate of Rum ruled Anatolia until the Mongol invasion in 1243, when it disintegrated into Turkish principalities. Beginning in 1299, the Ottomans united the principalities and expanded; Mehmed II conquered Istanbul in 1453. During the reigns of Selim I and Suleiman the Magnificent, the Ottoman Empire became a global power. From 1789 onwards, the empire saw a major transformation, reforms, and centralization while its territory declined.

In the 19th and early 20th centuries, persecution of Muslims during the Ottoman contraction and in the Russian Empire resulted in large-scale loss of life and mass migration into modern-day Turkey from the Balkans, Caucasus, and Crimea. Under the control of the Three Pashas, the Ottoman Empire entered World War I in 1914, during which the Ottoman government committed genocides against its Armenian, Greek, and Assyrian subjects. Following Ottoman defeat, the Turkish War of Independence resulted in the abolition of the sultanate and the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne. The Republic was proclaimed on 29 October 1923, modelled on the reforms initiated by the country's first president, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Turkey remained neutral during most of World War II, but was involved in the Korean War. Several military interventions interfered with the transition to a multi-party system.

Turkey is an upper-middle-income and emerging country; its economy is the world's 17th-largest by nominal and 12th-largest by PPP-adjusted GDP. It is a unitary presidential republic. Turkey is a founding member of the OECD, G20, and Organization of Turkic States. With a geopolitically significant location, Turkey is a regional power and an early member of NATO. An EU candidate, Turkey is part of the EU Customs Union, CoE, OIC, and TURKSOY.

Turkey has coastal plains, a high central plateau, and various mountain ranges; its climate is temperate with harsher conditions in the interior. Home to three biodiversity hotspots, Turkey is prone to frequent earthquakes and is highly vulnerable to climate change. Turkey has a universal healthcare system, growing access to education, and increasing levels of innovativeness. It is a leading TV content exporter. With 21 UNESCO World Heritage sites, 30 UNESCO intangible cultural heritage inscriptions, and a rich and diverse cuisine, Turkey is the fifth most visited country in the world. (Full article...)

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Map of the TCDD railway network as of 2023. TCDD owns and maintains all railway infrastructure in Turkey, while TCDD Transport owns and runs the trains.

The State Railways of the Republic of Turkey (Turkish: Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Devlet Demiryolları), abbreviated as TCDD, is a government-owned national railway company responsible for the ownership and maintenance of railways in Turkey, as well as the planning and construction of new lines. TCDD was formed on 4 June 1929 as part of the nationalisation of railways in Turkey.

The Turkish State Railways owns and maintains all public railways in Turkey. This includes railway stations, ports, bridges and tunnels, yards and maintenance facilities. In 2016, TCDD controlled an active network of 12,532 km (7,787 mi) of railways, making it the 22nd-largest railway system in the world. Apart from railway infrastructure, TCDD also owns several rail transport companies within Turkey as well as a 50% share of the İzmir-area commuter rail system, İZBAN. (Full article...)

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General images

The following are images from various Turkey-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1The Bath-Gymnasium complex at Sardis in Turkey. (from History of Turkey)
Image 2Map of earthquakes in Turkey 1900–2023 (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 3Map of the Lydian Kingdom in its final period of sovereignty under Croesus, c. 547 BC. (from History of Turkey)
Image 4Roosevelt, İnönü and Churchill at the Second Cairo Conference which was held between 4–6 December 1943. (from History of Turkey)
Image 5Ankara Opera House, designed by Şevki Balmumcu (1933–34) and renovation by Paul Bonatz (1946–47). (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 6Antalya (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 7Night view of the Taksim Mosque (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 8Butterfly Valley on the Turkish Riviera. (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 9Map of Istanbul by the miniature artist Matrakçı Nasuh (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 10Fazıl Hüsnü Dağlarca was one of the most prolific Turkish poets of the Turkish Republic with more than 60 collections of his poems published, laureate of the Struga Poetry Evenings Golden Wreath Award. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 11Map showing the Anatolian Plate, the North Anatolian Fault and East Anatolian Fault in Turkey. (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 12Yalikavak Palmarina in Bodrum (2014) designed by Emre Arolat (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 13View of Beydağları Coastal National Park (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 14The sultan of the golden age, Suleiman the Magnificent. (from History of Turkey)
Image 15Turkish coffee (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 16View from Levent district in Istanbul. Istanbul's skyline has changed especially since the early 2000s. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 17Namık Kemal was a prominent Turkish poet, novelist, playwright and journalist of the late-19th-century Ottoman Empire. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 18Sami Frashëri (1850–1904) and his wife Emine, May 1884. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 19An Oil wrestling tournament in Istanbul. This has been the national sport of Turkey since Ottoman times. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 20Anıtkabir designed by Emin Halid Onat and Ahmet Orhan Arda (1944–53) (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 21Lake Van (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 22Kaçkar Mountains (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 23Karagöz and Hacivat are the lead characters of the traditional Turkish shadow play, popularized during the Ottoman period. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 24Recaizade Mahmud Ekrem (1847–1914) was another prominent Turkish poet of the late Ottoman era. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 25Turkish national basketball team won the silver medal in the 2010 FIBA World Championship. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 26Atatürk on the cover of the Time magazine, Vol. I No. 4, March 24, 1923. Title: "Mustapha Kemal Pasha" (from History of Turkey)
Image 27The Nation's Library of the Presidency, Ankara (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 28View of Dilek Peninsula-Büyük Menderes Delta National Park (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 29Istanbul Sapphire (2006–11) is the tallest building in Turkey and 4th in Europe. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 30Tevfik Fikret (1867–1915) was a prominent Turkish poet of the late Ottoman era. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 31A view of Levent from Kanlıca across the Bosporus (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 32Mount Ararat (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 33Istanbul University Faculty of Science and Faculty of Literature Buildings (1944–52) designed by Sedad Hakkı Eldem and Emin Onat (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 34The empire in 555 under Justinian the Great, at its greatest extent since the fall of the Western Roman Empire (its vassals in pink) (from History of Turkey)
Image 35Originally a church, later a mosque, and now a Grand mosque, the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul was built by the Byzantines in the 6th century. (from History of Turkey)
Image 36Designed by Şekip Akalın, Ankara Central Station (1937) is a notable art deco design of its era. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 37Ankara (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 38Orhan Veli Kanık was the founder of the Garip Movement in Turkish poetry. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 39Istanbul (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 40Thrace and the Thracian Odrysian kingdom in its maximum extent under Sitalces (431-424 BC) (from History of Turkey)
Image 41Mount Erciyes near Kayseri (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 42Orhan Pamuk, winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Literature. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 43Köppen climate types of Turkey (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 44Turkish delight (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 45Mount Nemrut, Adıyaman (from Geography of Turkey)
Image 46The Ottoman Empire in 1683, at the start of the Great Turkish War (1683–1699) (from History of Turkey)
Image 47First Ziraat Bank Headquarters (1925–29) in Ankara designed by Giulio Mongeri is an important symbol of the First National Architectural Movement. (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 48Selimiye Mosque in Edirne (1568–1574) (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 49Map showing events of the first phases of the Greco-Persian Wars (from History of Turkey)
Image 50Entrance portal of the Karatay Madrasa in Konya (c. 1251) (from Culture of Turkey)
Image 51Mehmed II enters Constantinople by Fausto Zonaro (from History of Turkey)
Image 52Beaches and marina of Kemer near Antalya on the Turkish Riviera (from Geography of Turkey)

Did you know - show different entries

... that local boyars protested against the Russian annexation of Bessarabia after the Russo-Turkish War in 1812, arguing that the Ottoman Empire had no right to cede a Moldavian territory that was not theirs in the first place? (February 3, 2008) Wikipedia:Recent additions 203
... that the world's longest tunnel system is the two parallel tunnels at the Atatürk Dam of Şanlıurfa in southeastern Turkey? (February 14, 2008)
... that modern nursing was founded by Florence Nightingale at the Selimiye Barracks in Istanbul, Turkey during the Crimean War (1854-1856)? (May 22, 2007) Wikipedia:Recent additions 142
... that the lighthouse Rumeli Feneri was built in 1855 in order to provide safe navigation for the French and British war ships entering the Istanbul Strait from Black Sea during the Crimean War? (June 14, 2010)
... that visitors to the Ulucanlar Prison Museum who pay extra to be handcuffed and locked in an isolation cell for a limited time may not leave it before the agreed time is up? (April 26, 2013)
... that Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
(pictured), founder of the Republic of Turkey, established the first commercial Turkish winery in 1925? (December 20, 2007) Wikipedia:Recent additions 193
... that Istanbul Hezarfen Airfield hosts around 30,000 music fans every September for the annual Rock'n Coke open air music festival? (January 20, 2009) Wikipedia:Recent additions 239

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Image 1An airplane with a nazar boncuğu symbol that is said to offer protection from the "evil eye".
Image 2Ölüdeniz
Image 3Rize
Image 4Antalya
Image 5The Temple of Athena at Priene, an ancient site near Turunçlar in Aydın province.
Image 6The tughra of Mahmud II. "Mahmud Han bin Abdulhamid muzaffer daima" ("Mahmud Khan son of Abdulhamid is forever victorious").
Image 7Iznik, 16th-century vase
Image 8Cappadocia
Image 9the Bosphorus Bridge
Image 10A faculty of Sakarya University
Image 11Kemer
Image 121. picture on portal: The prominent towers of Dayro d-Mor Gabriel; 15th December 2005
Image 13Mount Nemrut
Image 14The sun setting over the Golden Horn in the city of Istanbul.
Image 15A tram in Istanbul
Image 16Safranbolu
Image 17the Selimiye Mosque in Edirne
Image 18Tarkan with Hungarian fans
Image 1918th-century Ottoman barber's apron
Image 20Lake Akdoğan in Muş
Image 21Tünel, Istanbul
Image 22Flag of Turkey, from flowers
Image 23Aydilge Sarp; Turkish singer, songwriter and novelist
Image 24The ancient Lake Abant Nature Park in Bolu
Image 25A Kocek
Image 26Atatürk praying
Image 27Lahmacun

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Juneyd or Junayd Bey (Turkish: İzmiroğlu Cüneyd; fl. before 1402 – 1425) was the last ruler (bey) of the Aydınid principality in what is now central western Turkey. His exact relationship with the Aydınid dynasty is unclear. His father was a long-time and popular governor of Smyrna under the Ottoman sultan Bayezid I. This allowed Junayd to consistently rely on the loyalty of the area's populace.

Bayezid was defeated by Timur at the Battle of Ankara, beginning a civil war for succession between his sons – a period known as the "Ottoman Interregnum". Taking advantage of the situation, Junayd attacked the Aydınid brothers, Isa and Umur II, who had been restored by Timur. By early 1406, Isa and Umur were dead and Junayd was the undisputed ruler of the former Aydınid domains. Like all the rulers of the region, Christian and Muslim alike, Junayd was also an active participant in the civil war between Bayezid's sons İsa, Süleyman, Musa and Mehmed, in which he changed his allegiance several times. He supported İsa against Mehmed, and became a vassal of Süleyman. His persistent attempts to exploit the conflict to broaden his power and independence forced Süleyman to send him as provincial governor of Ohrid in Rumeli in 1410. After Süleyman's overthrow and death in 1411 at the hands of his brother Musa, Junayd returned to Anatolia and seized Smyrna, but had to recognize the suzerainty of Mehmed. During Mehmed's absence in Rumeli to campaign against Musa, Junayd reclaimed his independence and attacked his neighbouring rulers. As a result, in 1414 Mehmed led a regional coalition against Junayd. Junayd's mother was able to save his life, but once again Junayd was dispossessed and sent to Rumeli as governor of Nicopolis. From there, he joined the unsuccessful rebellion of Mustafa Çelebi, until the Byzantines agreed to intern him and Mustafa in 1416. (Full article...)

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Burak Yılmaz Piri Reis Mustafa Kemal Atatürk Ahmet Necdet Sezer Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Alp Arslan Nureddin Pasha Tuncay Şanlı İsmet İnönü Sıla (singer) Orhan Pamuk Erol Gelenbe Kemal Derviş Hande Yener Sertab Erener Said Altınordu Tarkan (singer) Daron Acemoglu

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A traditional Turkish dance competition in Goreme, Turkey, 2012

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Videos from Turkey on Wikimedia Commons

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“

A satiated man doesn't know what's hunger, a healthy man doesn't know what's disease.

”

Turkish proverb

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Turkish proverbs in Wikiquote

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Recognized content

	Alanya, Byzantine Empire, SMS Goeben, The Turk, List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire, Istanbul, Italian War of 1521–1526, Italian War of 1542–1546, List of battleships of the Ottoman Empire, Rhodes blood libel
	2004 Istanbul summit, 2008 Turkish Grand Prix, Battle of Manzikert, Battle of Marash, Battle of Vaslui, Church of St. Polyeuctus, First Crusade, Great Zab, Hood event, Limyra Bridge, Siege of Szigetvár, Night Attack at Târgoviște, Third Perso-Turkic War, Walls of Constantinople, Gallipoli Campaign, Battle of Lone Pine