Hoşab (also: ''Hoşap'' or ''Xoşabê'') is the historical name of a neighbourhood of the municipality and district of Gürpınar,

Van Province Van Province (, , Armenian: Վանի մարզ) is a province and metropolitan municipality in the Eastern Anatolian region of Turkey, between Lake Van and the Iranian border. Its area is 20,921 km2, and its population is 1,128,749 (2022). ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. Its present name is Güzelsu. Its population is 1,256 (2022). The Kurdish name (Hoşap) and the Turkish name (Güzelsu) of the village both translate as "beautiful water", referring to the

Hoşap River The Hoşap River or Güzelsu River () is a river in the Van Province of Turkey. Its catchment area approximately coincides with the Gürpınar District. Geography From its source in the İspiriz Mountains near Başkale on the southeast borders of ...

on whose banks the village is sitting. Güzelsu is at a distance of approximately 50 km east of the city of

Van A van is a type of road vehicle used for transporting goods or people. There is some variation in the scope of the word across the different English-speaking countries. The smallest vans, microvans, are used for transporting either goods or ...

Description

Located on the flat ground north of the

Hoşap Castle Hoşap Castle (, , ) is a large 17th-century castle located in the village of Hoşab, Gürpınar District, Van, Turkey. It is at a distance of approximately 50 km to the city center of Van. History The castle was built upon the founda ...

rock, Güzelsu is surrounded by a mud-brick wall, much eroded today, but still quite striking. Flat roofed homes and stables made of mud-brick are filling a low depression between the castle mound and the mud-brick wall, while the new village is sitting on the opposite bank of the river along the Van-

Hakkari Hakkari or Hakkâri may refer to: *Hakkari (historical region), a historical region in modern-day Turkey and Iraq *Hakkâri (city), a city and the capital of Hakkâri Province, Turkey *Hakkâri Province Hakkâri Province (, ; ), is a province i ...

Highway (D.975).The Güzelsu village
Retrieved 15 October 2023. A 32 m long, 6 m wide and 5 m high historic bridge spans the Hoşap River, providing access to the castle. it features three

pointed arch A pointed arch, ogival arch, or Gothic arch is an arch with a pointed crown meet at an angle at the top of the arch. Also known as a two-centred arch, its form is derived from the intersection of two circles. This architectural element was partic ...

es, one main span flanked by two smaller ones. It is made entirely of cut white stone, while its downstream façade is adorned with alternating rows of black and white stones. Two foundation plaques, which are placed between the arches, are framed with carved muqarnas and floral motifs and protected with stone eaves. They are from 1671 and written in a mixture of Turkish, Persian and Arabic in honour of the bridge's builder, Zeynel Bey, the head of the local Mahmudi tribe governing Hoşab under Ottoman rule at that time.A historic bridge spanning the Hoşap River
Retrieved 15 October 2023.

References

{{Authority control Neighbourhoods in Gürpınar District Kurdish settlements in Turkey