Güzelyurt, formerly Gelveri (

Cappadocian Greek Cappadocian Greek ( cpg, Καππαδοκικά, Καππαδοκική Διάλεκτος), also known as Cappadocian or Asia Minor Greek, is a dialect of modern Greek heavily influenced by Turkish, originally spoken in Cappadocia (modern-day ...

: Καρβάλη), is a town and district of

Aksaray Province Aksaray Province ( tr, ) is a province in central Turkey. Its adjacent provinces are Konya along the west and south, Niğde to the southeast, Nevşehir to the east, and Kırşehir to the north. It covers an area of . The provincial capital is t ...

in the

Central Anatolia The Central Anatolia Region ( tr, İç Anadolu Bölgesi) is a geographical region of Turkey. The largest city in the region is Ankara. Other big cities are Konya, Kayseri, Eskişehir, Sivas, and Aksaray. Located in Central Turkey, it is bordered ...

region of

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

, at a distance of from the city of

Aksaray Aksaray (, Koine Greek: Ἀρχελαΐς ''Arhelays'', Medieval Greek: Κολώνεια ''Koloneya'', Ancient Greek: Γαρσάουρα ''Garsaura'') is a city in the Central Anatolia Region, Turkey, Central Anatolia region of Turkey and the ca ...

. According to 2000 census, population of the district is 16,836 of which 3,775 live in the town of Güzelyurt. The district covers an area of , and the average elevation is . This area is part of the ancient region of

Cappadocia Cappadocia or Capadocia (; tr, Kapadokya), is a historical region in Central Anatolia, Turkey. It largely is in the provinces Nevşehir, Kayseri, Aksaray, Kırşehir, Sivas and Niğde. According to Herodotus, in the time of the Ionian Revo ...

, near the

Ihlara Valley The Ihlara Valley (or Peristrema Valley; Turkish ''Ihlara Vadisi'') is a canyon which is 15 km long and up to 150 m deep in the southwest of the Turkish region of Cappadocia, in the municipality of Güzelyurt, Aksaray Province. The va ...

History

Cappadocia has an important place in the history of Christianity and

Gregory of Nazianzus Gregory of Nazianzus ( el, Γρηγόριος ὁ Ναζιανζηνός, ''Grēgorios ho Nazianzēnos''; ''Liturgy of the Hours'' Volume I, Proper of Saints, 2 January. – 25 January 390,), also known as Gregory the Theologian or Gregory N ...

lived in the area. A historically large native

population existed in the area until the 1924 population exchange (see

Cappadocian Greeks Cappadocian Greeks also known as Greek Cappadocians ( el, Έλληνες-Καππαδόκες, Ελληνοκαππαδόκες, Καππαδόκες; tr, Kapadokyalı Rumlar) or simply Cappadocians are an ethnic Greek community native to the ...

), when they were replaced with the Turks from

Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and the capi ...

and

Kavala Kavala ( el, Καβάλα, ''Kavála'' ) is a city in northern Greece, the principal seaport of eastern Macedonia and the capital of Kavala regional unit. It is situated on the Bay of Kavala, across from the island of Thasos and on the Egnat ...

. The monastery, churches, refuge caves, and mansions attest to the culture of the indigenous Cappadocian Greek population.

Places of interest

Güzelyurt is known for having three underground cities and over 50 churches carved into the rocky volcanic landscape including: *

* Monastery Valley, "Manastır Vadisi" * Fairy Chimneys, "Peri Bacaları" * Antique Greek houses * Ahmatlı Church * St. Anargiros Church, "Sivişli Kilise" * Koç Church * Cathedral of Selime * The rock monastery of Selime, one of the largest religious buildings in

. * Red Church, "Kızıl Kilise" - a 5th or 6th century church in the village of Sivrihisar * Analipsis Church, "Yüksek Kilise" (High Church) on the hill of Analipsis. Stone age relics have been found nearby. * St. Gregorius Church, "Kilise Cami" - another rock-hewn church, in use today as a mosque * St. Spyridon Church, "Kızıl Kilise" - another red church in the vicinity of Güzelyurt. Other places of interest include: * The tomb of Selime Sultan in the village of Selime. * Linseed House, "Bezirhane" in the village of Belisırma. * Ziga thermal springs, "Ziga kaplıcaları" is located in the village of Yaprakhisar very close to Ihlara Valley. * An underground city is situated in Gaziemir village of Güzelyurt.

Image gallery

Image:IhlaraValley.jpg, Image:St. Gregory of Nazianzos.jpg, Image:Kısıl Kilise (Sivrihisar) 01.jpg,

Kizil Kilise Kızıl Kilise, the Red Church, also known as Sivrihisar Kızıl Kilise to distinguish it from other structures called Kızıl Kilise, is a partially ruined sixth-century church in the Güzelyurt district of Aksaray Province, Turkey. The churc ...

, meaning “Red Church” in Güzelyurt Image:IhlaraTal.jpg, Image:Güzelyurthouses.jpg, Historic houses in Güzelyurt

Notes

References

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External links