Niğde (; grc, Νίγδη;
Hittite: Nahita, Naxita) is a city and the capital of
Niğde province
Niğde Province ( tr, ) is a Provinces of Turkey, province in the southern part of Central Anatolia, Turkey. Population is 341,412 (2013 est) of which 141,360 live in the city of Niğde. The population was 348,081 in 2000 and 305,861 in 1990. It ...
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 an elevation of 1,299 m. In 2017 the city population was 141,010 people.
The city is small with plenty of green space and gardens around the houses. Its people generally tend to be religious and conservative.
Medieval monuments are scattered about the centre of the town, especially around the market place.
The nearest airport is Nevşehir Kapadokya Airport (NAV) which is 90.6 km (50.6 miles) away.
History
![NigdeMuseumAndaval](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/NigdeMuseumAndaval.jpg)
Niğde is located near a number of ancient trade routes, particularly the road from
Kayseri
Kayseri (; el, Καισάρεια) is a large Industrialisation, industrialised List of cities in Turkey, city in Central Anatolia, Turkey, and the capital of Kayseri Province, Kayseri province. The Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality area is comp ...
(ancient
Caesarea Mazaca
Caesarea ( /ˌsɛzəˈriːə, ˌsɛsəˈriːə, ˌsiːzəˈriːə/; el, Καισάρεια, Kaisareia) also known historically as Mazaca ( el, Μάζακα) was an ancient city in what is now Kayseri, Turkey. In Hellenistic and Roman times, the ...
) to the
Cilician Gates
The Cilician Gates or Gülek Pass is a pass through the Taurus Mountains connecting the low plains of Cilicia to the Anatolian Plateau, by way of the narrow gorge of the Gökoluk River. Its highest elevation is about 1000m.
The Cilician Gates hav ...
and thence to the Mediterranean coast. The area has been settled by
Hittites
The Hittites () were an Anatolian people who played an important role in establishing first a kingdom in Kussara (before 1750 BC), then the Kanesh or Nesha kingdom (c. 1750–1650 BC), and next an empire centered on Hattusa in north-centra ...
,
Assyrians,
Greeks
The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...
,
Armenians
Armenians ( hy, հայեր, ''hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...
,
Romans
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
,
Byzantines and
Turks
Turk or Turks may refer to:
Communities and ethnic groups
* Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages
* Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
* Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic ...
. In the early
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
, it was known as Magida ( el, Μαγίδα), and was settled by the remaining inhabitants of nearby
Tyana
Tyana ( grc, Τύανα), earlier known as Tuwana ( Hieroglyphic Luwian: ; Akkadian: ) and Tuwanuwa ( Hittite: ) was an ancient city in the Anatolian region of Cappadocia, in modern Kemerhisar, Niğde Province, Central Anatolia, Turkey. It w ...
after it
fell to the Arabs in 708/709.
By the early 13th century Niğde was one of the largest cities in
Anatolia
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
. After the fall of the
Sultanate of Rûm
fa, سلجوقیان روم ()
, status =
, government_type = Hereditary monarchy Triarchy (1249–1254)Diarchy (1257–1262)
, year_start = 1077
, year_end = 1308
, p1 = ...
(of which it had been one of the principal cities), Niğde was captured by
Anatolian beyliks
Anatolian beyliks ( tr, Anadolu beylikleri, Ottoman Turkish: ''Tavâif-i mülûk'', ''Beylik'' ) were small principalities (or petty kingdoms) in Anatolia governed by beys, the first of which were founded at the end of the 11th century. A secon ...
such as the
Karaman Beylik and
Eretna Beylik. Passing through in the 14th century, the explorer
Ibn Battuta
Abu Abdullah Muhammad ibn Battutah (, ; 24 February 13041368/1369),; fully: ; Arabic: commonly known as Ibn Battuta, was a Berbers, Berber Maghrebi people, Maghrebi scholar and explorer who travelled extensively in the lands of Afro-Eurasia, ...
reported it ruinous. It did not pass into Ottoman hands until 1467.
![Niğde Prodromos church 1311](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/Ni%C4%9Fde_Prodromos_church_1311.jpg)
According to the
Ottoman population statistics of 1914, the
sanjak
Sanjaks (liwāʾ) (plural form: alwiyāʾ)
* Armenian language, Armenian: նահանգ (''nahang''; meaning "province")
* Bulgarian language, Bulgarian: окръг (''okrǔg''; meaning "county", "province", or "region")
* el, Διοίκησι ...
of
Niğde, then part of the
Konya Vilayet, had a total population of 291,117, consisting of 227,100 Muslims, 58,312
Greeks
The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...
, 4,935
Armenians
Armenians ( hy, հայեր, ''hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...
and 769
Protestants
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
. The demographics of the town of Niğde, which was part of the Niğde sanjak, consisted of 52.754 Muslims, 26.156 Greeks, 1.149 Armenians and 137 Protestants. Most of the Christian population of late 19th-century Niğde lived in the Eski Saray Mahallesi near the Sungur Bey Mosque where the remains of two large stone churches still survive in a neglected condition.
Republican era
More recent immigrants include
Turks from Bulgaria and
other Balkan countries, who were settled here by the Turkish authorities in the 1950s and 1960s.
![Gumusler_Monastery_Courtyard_1202](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/Gumusler_Monastery_Courtyard_1202.jpg)
The opening of
Niğde University
Niğde (; grc, Νίγδη; Hittite: Nahita, Naxita) is a city and the capital of Niğde province in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey at an elevation of 1,299 m. In 2017 the city population was 141,010 people.
The city is small with plenty ...
in 1992 started to bring more cultural and social amenities to what was at the time essentially a large town with a rather rural feel to it.
Geography
Climate
Niğde has a
cold semi-arid climate
A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi-ar ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
: ''BSk'',
Trewartha: ''BS''), bordering on a
temperate continental climate
A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
: ''Dsa'',
Trewartha: ''Dc''). Niğde has hot, dry summers and cold, snowy winters.
Geology
The town is located between the volcanic
Melandiz Mountains, which include the
Mount Hasan
Mount Hasan ( tr, Hasan Dağı) is a volcano in Anatolia, Turkey. It has two summits, the high eastern Small Hasan Dagi and the high Big Hasan Dagi, and rises about above the surrounding terrain. It consists of various volcanic deposits, includ ...
Stratovolcano
A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a conical volcano built up by many layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with a summit crater and per ...
near 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 ...
to the north, and the Niğde Massif to the south-southeast. The
massif
In geology, a massif ( or ) is a section of a planet's crust that is demarcated by faults or flexures. In the movement of the crust, a massif tends to retain its internal structure while being displaced as a whole. The term also refers to a ...
is a
metamorphic rock
Metamorphic rocks arise from the transformation of existing rock to new types of rock in a process called metamorphism. The original rock (protolith) is subjected to temperatures greater than and, often, elevated pressure of or more, causin ...
dome that contains abandoned antimony and iron mines. Several marble quarries are currently being used to dig out the pure white crystalline marble of the massif.
Sightseeing
In town
*Sungur Bey Mosque, a unique early 14th-century mosque in the town centre which combines elements of Selçuk and Gothic architecture, including quadripartite vaulting and a rose window. Standing on a platform above the market place, it was recently restored.
*
Alaaddin Mosque, a 13th-century mosque whose portal is decorated with
muqarnas
Muqarnas ( ar, مقرنص; fa, مقرنس), also known in Iranian architecture as Ahoopāy ( fa, آهوپای) and in Iberian architecture as Mocárabe, is a form of ornamented vaulting in Islamic architecture. It is the archetypal form of I ...
. Shadows cast on the stone masonry around the entrance at a specific time on specific days of the year are said to form an image of a woman's face with a crown and long hair (Islam forbade human imagery but tessellations and calligraphic pictures were allowed, so "accidental" silhouettes became a creative escape).
*
Hudavend Hatun Türbe, the finest of several Selçuk tombs in the centre of Niğde, dates back to the early 14th century.
* Ak Medrese (White Medrese), built in 1409 during the years when the Karamanoğlu dynasty ruled Niğde.
* Niğde Castle (Niğde Kalesi) looms above the town, its location made obvious by a clocktower (1902) inside it. It dates back in part to Selçuk times. Its interior is now a public park.
*
Niğde Archaeological Museum, one of whose star attractions is the
Niğde Stele which was recovered from the Dışarı Mosque where it was being used as a door lintel.
Around town
*
Eski Gümüşler Monastery, a rock-cut frescoed monastery built by the Byzantines and containing unique paintings of stories from Aesop's Fables. It was only rediscovered in 1963
*
Kemerhisar
Kemerhisar is a belde (town) in Niğde Province, Turkey
Geography
Kemerhisar at is a part of Bor district of Niğde Province. Distance to Bor is and to Niğde is . It is only west of Bahçeli another town of Niğde. The population is 5, ...
, the site of ancient
Tyana
Tyana ( grc, Τύανα), earlier known as Tuwana ( Hieroglyphic Luwian: ; Akkadian: ) and Tuwanuwa ( Hittite: ) was an ancient city in the Anatolian region of Cappadocia, in modern Kemerhisar, Niğde Province, Central Anatolia, Turkey. It w ...
, especially noted for a lengthy surviving stretch of Roman aqueduct.
*
Aladağlar
The Anti-Taurus Mountains (from el, Αντίταυρος) are a mountain range in southern and eastern Turkey, curving northeast from the Taurus Mountains.
At , Mount Erciyes ( Turkish: Erciyes Dağı) is the highest peak not just in the ran ...
and
Bolkar Mountains, which are popular with mountaineers and trekkers.
*
Çiniligöl
*
Çiftehan thermal springs
Gallery
File:Nigde Alaadin mosque 1251.jpg, Portal of Alaadin Mosque, Niğde
File:Nigde Gundogdu mausoleum 1276.jpg, Gündoğdü türbe (tomb), Niğde
File:Nigde 060.jpg, Sungurbey Mosque and mausoleum, Niğde
File:Nigde Town view 1293.jpg, Hükümet Meydan (Government Square) in Niğde
File:Yelatan Aladağlar 07.jpg, Aladağlar (Ala Mountains), near Niğde
File:Yelatan Aladağlar 01.jpg, Aladağlar (Ala Mountains), near Niğde
File:Yelatan Aladağlar 06.jpg, Aladağlar (Ala Mountains), near Niğde
File:Gumusler Monastery Courtyard 1202.jpg, Eski Gümüşler Monastery, near Niğde
File:Niğde kalesi ve saat kulesi.jpg, Niğde Castle and Clock tower
File:Çiftehan, Niğde, Turkey.jpg, Çiftehan
File:Tyana, Cappadocia, Turkey (37581916866).jpg, Ruins of Roman aqueduct in Tyana (Kemerhisar), near Niğde
File:TyanaAquädukt2.jpg, Ruins of Tyana (Kemerhisar) aqueduct, near Niğde
File:Tyana, Cappadocia, Turkey (37630877571).jpg, Ancient Tyana
File:Tyana, Cappadocia, Turkey (23777522658).jpg, Roman pool in ancient Tyana (Kemerhisar), near Niğde
File:Nigde Hudavent Hatun mausoleum 1269.jpg, Hüdavent Hatun Mausoleum, Niğde
File:Nigde museum Porsuk inscription Late Hittite 8th BC 0922.jpg, Late Hittite inscription from Porsuk (8th century) in Nigde museum
File:NigdeMuseumTyana.jpg, Finds from Tyana in Niğde Museum
File:NigdeMuseumKösk1.jpg, Niğde Museum
File:NigdeMuseumMumieIhlara1.jpg, Niğde Museum: mummy thought to be of 1000-year-old nun
File:The 'Nigde' Carpet MET DP170574.jpg, Niğde Carpet
File:Kirche Küçükköy 07.jpg, Inside Küçükköy Church
Notable people
*
Abdullah Durak, footballer
*
Ayhan Şahenk
Ayhan Şahenk (11 June 1929 – 1 April 2001) was a Turkish businessman and founder of the Doğuş Group.
Father of the current chairman of Dogus Holding Ferit Şahenk
Ferit Şahenk (, born 1964) is the Chairman of Turkey's Doğuş Group and ...
, businessman
*
Nükhet Duru
Nükhet Duru (born 19 May 1954) is a Turkish singer. She started singing at Florya Deniz Club in Istanbul in 1971. She released her first 45 album “Aklımda Sen Fikrimde Sen – Karadır Kaşların” in 1974. It was followed by many singles lik ...
, singer
*
Emre Altuğ
Niyazi Emre Altuğ (born 14 April 1969) is Turkish actor and singer.
Biography
Emre Altug was born in Levent, Beşiktaş, Istanbul as the second son to a housewife mother and dentist father. His family is of Niğde origiHe graduated from thea ...
, Singer and actor
*
Ebubekir Hazım Tepeyranbr>
* , (1934-2014), Member of Parliament (1977-1980) from the Nigde District
*
Yıldız Kenter
Ayşe Yıldız Kenter (11 October 1928 – 17 November 2019) was a Turkish actress and lecturer, who was of English descent from her maternal side. Kenter was also a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.
Early years
Ayşe Yıldız Kenter was born to diplo ...
, actress
*
Leonidas Kestekides (1876–1954), a
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 ...
chocolate manufacturer from
Nigde,
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 ...
and founder of the internationally famous
Leonidas
Leonidas I (; grc-gre, Λεωνίδας; died 19 September 480 BC) was a List of kings of Sparta#Heraclids, king of the Greek city-state of Sparta, and the 17th of the List of kings of Sparta#Agiad dynasty, Agiad line, a dynasty which claimed d ...
company in Belgium
*
Petros Petridis (1892–1977), prominent
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 ...
composer and conductor, born in
Nigde (Cappodocia)
*
Thanassis P. Aghnidès, (1889–1980), born in family estates (Kayabashi), graduated from Université Impériale de Constantinople with a law degree and the Sorbonne in Paris, France. He was a Greek-Ottoman diplomat, joined the SDN in 1919 and became undersecretary Geneva 1938-1942, chairman of the disarmament section at U.N. 1946-1960. He also served as Greek ambassador to the Court of St James in London 1942-1945.
*
Elie P. Aghnidès (1901–1988), iInventor, best known of his inventions is the faucet aerator and the massage shower. Another of his inventions was the Rhino, an amphibious, 5-ton, 4-wheeled vehicle designed for multiple terrains. The prototype was built by Marmon-Harrington in Indianapolis.
*
Nicholas P. Aghnidès, (1883–1974), author, Professor at Columbia University best seller Mohammedan Theories of finance.
See also
*
Anatolian Tigers
In the context of the Turkish economy, Anatolian Tigers ( tr, Anadolu Kaplanları) are a number of cities in Turkey which have displayed impressive growth records since the 1980s, as well as a defined breed of entrepreneurs rising in prominence a ...
*
Niğde Stele
References
*
External links
District governor's official website
District municipality's official website
Yesilburç VillageA web portal of Niğde
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nigde
Cappadocia
Populated places in Niğde Province
Districts of Niğde Province
World Heritage Tentative List for Turkey