Rize Province ( tr, Rize ili) is a
province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...
of northeast
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 ...
, on the eastern
Black Sea
The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Roma ...
coast between
Trabzon
Trabzon (; Ancient Greek: Tραπεζοῦς (''Trapezous''), Ophitic Pontic Greek: Τραπεζούντα (''Trapezounta''); Georgian: ტრაპიზონი (''Trapizoni'')), historically known as Trebizond in English, is a city on the Bl ...
and
Artvin
Artvin (Laz language, Laz and ; hy, Արտուին, translit=Artuin) is a List of cities in Turkey, city in northeastern Turkey about inland from the Black Sea.
It is located on a hill overlooking the Çoruh, Çoruh River near the Deriner Dam ...
. The province of
Erzurum
Erzurum (; ) is a city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010.
The city uses the double-headed eagle as ...
is to the south. It was formerly known as
Lazistan
Lazistan ( lzz, ლაზონა, Lazona; ka, ლაზეთი, Lazeti, or ჭანეთი ''Ç'aneti''; ota, لازستان, Lazistān) is a historical and cultural region of the Caucasus and Anatolia, traditionally inhabited by the Laz ...
, the designation of the term of Lazistan was officially banned in 1926, by patriots. The capital is the city of
Rize
Rize (Greek language, Greek: ρίζα, Laz language, Laz: რიზინი, Georgian language, Georgian: რიზე,
, Ottoman Turkish: ريزه)
is the capital city of Rize Province in the eastern part of the Black Sea Region of Turkey.
Rize ...
.
The province is home to
Laz,
Hemshin,
Turkish people
The Turkish people, or simply the Turks ( tr, Türkler), are the world's largest Turkic ethnic group; they speak various dialects of the Turkish language and form a majority in Turkey and Northern Cyprus. In addition, centuries-old ethnic ...
and
Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
communities.
Etymology
The name comes from
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
(riza), meaning "mountain slopes". The
Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
,
Laz, and
Armenian
Armenian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent
** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...
names are all derived from Greek as well: their names in respective order are ''Rize'' (რიზე), ''Rizini'' (რიზინი), and ''Rize'' (Ռիզե).
History
Ancient history
We have little information as to the prehistory of this region, which being covered in thick forest is difficult to excavate and reveals little.
Colchis
In Greco-Roman geography, Colchis (; ) was an exonym for the Georgian polity of Egrisi ( ka, ეგრისი) located on the coast of the Black Sea, centered in present-day western Georgia (country), Georgia.
Its population, the Colchians a ...
which existed from the 13th to the 1st centuries BC is regarded as an early proto-
Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
polity in this area.
Antiquity
According to
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic '' ...
, from 670 BC onwards the
Aegean Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
community of
Miletus
Miletus (; gr, Μῑ́λητος, Mī́lētos; Hittite transcription ''Millawanda'' or ''Milawata'' (exonyms); la, Mīlētus; tr, Milet) was an ancient Greek city on the western coast of Anatolia, near the mouth of the Maeander River in a ...
established a series of trading posts along the Black Sea coast; one of these was
Rize
Rize (Greek language, Greek: ρίζα, Laz language, Laz: რიზინი, Georgian language, Georgian: რიზე,
, Ottoman Turkish: ريزه)
is the capital city of Rize Province in the eastern part of the Black Sea Region of Turkey.
Rize ...
. in the mid-6th century BC The tribes living in the southern Colchis (
Tibareni
The Tibareni ( ka, ტიბარენები, Tibarenebi; Greek: Τιβαρηνοί and Τιβαρανοί;) were a people residing on the coast of ancient Pontus referred to in Herodotus, Xenophon, Strabo and other classical authors. The Ti ...
,
Mossynoeci
Mossynoeci (Georgian: მოსინიკები, grc, Μοσσύνοικοι, , modern Greek ', "dwellers in wooden towers") is a name that the Greeks of the Euxine Sea (Black Sea) applied to the peoples of Pontus, the northern Anatolian co ...
,
Macrones
The Macrones ( ka, მაკრონები) ( grc, Μάκρωνες, ''Makrōnes'') were an ancient Colchian tribe in the east of Pontus, about the Moschici Mountains (modern Yalnizçam Dağlari, Turkey). The name is allegedly derived fr ...
,
Moschi, and
Marres
The Mares ( ka, მარები ) were an ancient Colchian tribe. They entered ancient history with the writings of Hecataeus of Miletus. He gives a brief description of the tribe and mentions that they lived between closely akin Colchian trib ...
) were incorporated into the
nineteenth Satrapy of
Persia
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
. The Achaemenid Empire was defeated by
Alexander the Great
Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...
, however following of Alexander's death a number of separate kingdoms were established 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 ...
, including
Pontus
Pontus or Pontos may refer to:
* Short Latin name for the Pontus Euxinus, the Greek name for the Black Sea (aka the Euxine sea)
* Pontus (mythology), a sea god in Greek mythology
* Pontus (region), on the southern coast of the Black Sea, in modern ...
, in the corner of the south-eastern
Black Sea
The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Roma ...
, ruled by
Mithridates. Rize was brought into the Kingdom of Pontus by
Pharnaces in 180 BC. The very small number of Hellenistic Greek inscriptions that have been found anywhere in Pontus suggest that
Greek culture
The culture of Greece has evolved over thousands of years, beginning in Minoan and later in Mycenaean Greece, continuing most notably into Classical Greece, while influencing the Roman Empire and its successor the Byzantine Empire. Other cult ...
did not substantially penetrate beyond the coastal cities and the court.
The kingdom was absorbed into the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...
between 10 AD and 395 AD, when it passed to the
Byzantines. By this time writers including
Pliny
Pliny may refer to:
People
* Pliny the Elder (23–79 CE), ancient Roman nobleman, scientist, historian, and author of ''Naturalis Historia'' (''Pliny's Natural History'')
* Pliny the Younger (died 113), ancient Roman statesman, orator, w ...
and the Roman adventurer
Arrian
Arrian of Nicomedia (; Greek: ''Arrianos''; la, Lucius Flavius Arrianus; )
was a Greek historian, public servant, military commander and philosopher of the Roman period.
''The Anabasis of Alexander'' by Arrian is considered the best ...
were describing the inhabitants as
Laz.
Medieval
During the whole medieval period, the region was under Byzantine control, and was mainly populated by Greeks and indigenous Lazs. During the reign of the
Byzantine emperor
This is a list of the Byzantine emperors from the foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD, which marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, to its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as le ...
Justinian I
Justinian I (; la, Iustinianus, ; grc-gre, Ἰουστινιανός ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was the Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565.
His reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renovat ...
( 527–565) the warlike tribes of the interior, called
Sannoi or
Tzannoi, the ancestors of modern Laz people, were subdued,
Christianized
Christianization ( or Christianisation) is to make Christian; to imbue with Christian principles; to become Christian. It can apply to the conversion of an individual, a practice, a place or a whole society. It began in the Roman Empire, conti ...
and brought to central rule. Locals began to have closer contact with the Greeks and acquired various
Hellenic cultural traits, including in some cases the language. Locals were under nominal Byzantine suzerainty in the
theme
Theme or themes may refer to:
* Theme (arts), the unifying subject or idea of the type of visual work
* Theme (Byzantine district), an administrative district in the Byzantine Empire governed by a Strategos
* Theme (computing), a custom graphical ...
of
Chaldia
Chaldia ( el, Χαλδία, ''Khaldia'') was a historical region located in the mountainous interior of the eastern Black Sea, northeast Anatolia (modern Turkey). Its name was derived from a people called the ''Chaldoi'' (or ''Chalybes'') that i ...
, with its capital at
Trebizond, governed by the native semi-autonomous rulers, like the
Gabras
Gabras or Gavras ( el, , tr, ) feminine form Gabraina (Γάβραινα), is the name of an important Byzantine aristocratic family which became especially prominent in the late 11th and early 12th centuries as the semi-independent and quasi-h ...
family.
[Hewsen, 47] Following the
Seljuk Turks
The Seljuk dynasty, or Seljukids ( ; fa, سلجوقیان ''Saljuqian'', alternatively spelled as Seljuqs or Saljuqs), also known as Seljuk Turks, Seljuk Turkomans "The defeat in August 1071 of the Byzantine emperor Romanos Diogenes
by the Turk ...
invasion, there has been continuous influx of
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 ...
resulting partial Armenization of the local Tzan population and formation of new
Hemshin identity.
With the
Georgian intervention in Chaldia and
collapse of Byzantine Empire in 1204,
Empire of Trebizond
The Empire of Trebizond, or Trapezuntine Empire, was a monarchy and one of three successor rump states of the Byzantine Empire, along with the Despotate of the Morea and the Principality of Theodoro, that flourished during the 13th through to t ...
was established along the southwestern coast of the Black Sea, populated by a large Lazian-speaking population.
[Mikaberidze, A. (2015). Historical dictionary of Georgia. 2nd ed. Lanham, MD, United States: ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD, p.634.] In the eastern part of the same empire, an autonomous coastal theme of
Greater Lazia was established. Byzantine authors, such as
Pachymeres
George Pachymeres ( el, Γεώργιος Παχυμέρης, Geórgios Pachyméris; 1242 – 1310) was a Byzantine Greek historian, philosopher, music theorist and miscellaneous writer.
Biography
Pachymeres was born at Nicaea, in Bithynia, wher ...
, and to some extent Trapezuntines such as
Lazaropoulos and
Bessarion
Bessarion ( el, Βησσαρίων; 2 January 1403 – 18 November 1472) was a Byzantine Greek Renaissance humanist, theologian, Catholic cardinal and one of the famed Greek scholars who contributed to the so-called great revival of letters ...
, regarded the Trapezuntian Empire as being no more than a Lazian border state. Though Greek in higher culture, the rural areas of Trebizond empire appear to have been predominantly Laz in ethnic composition. Laz family names, with
Hellenized
Hellenization (other British spelling Hellenisation) or Hellenism is the adoption of Greek culture, religion, language and identity by non-Greeks. In the ancient period, colonization often led to the Hellenization of indigenous peoples; in th ...
terminations, are noticeable in the records of the mediaeval empire of Trebizond, and it is perhaps not too venturesome to suggest that the
antagonism between the "town-party" and the "country-party," which existed in the politics of "the Empire," was in fact a national antagonism of Laz against Greek.
In 1282,
kingdom of Imereti besieged Trebizond, however after the failed attempt to take the city, the Georgians occupied several provinces and all the Trebizontine province of Lazia threw off its allegiance to the king of the 'Iberian' and 'Lazian' tribes and united itself with the Georgian
Kingdom of Imereti
The Kingdom of Imereti ( ka, იმერეთის სამეფო, tr) was a Georgian monarchy established in 1455 by a member of the house of Bagrationi when the Kingdom of Georgia was dissolved into rival kingdoms. Before that time, Im ...
.
The Ottoman era
Laz populated area was often contested by different Georgian principalities, however through
Battle of Murjakheti
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...
(1535),
Principality of Guria
The Principality of Guria ( ka, გურიის სამთავრო, tr) was a historical state in Georgia. Centered on modern-day Guria, a southwestern region in Georgia, it was located between the Black Sea and Lesser Caucasus, and was r ...
finally ensured control over it, until 1547, when it was conquered by resurgent
Ottoman forces and reorganized into the
Lazistan sanjak
Lazistan ( lzz, ლაზონა / ''Lazona'', ლაზეთი / ''Lazeti'', ჭანეთი / ''Ç'aneti''; ota, لازستان, ''Lazistān'') was the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman administrative name for the sanjak, under Trebizond Vilayet, ...
as part of
eyalet
Eyalets ( Ottoman Turkish: ایالت, , English: State), also known as beylerbeyliks or pashaliks, were a primary administrative division of the Ottoman Empire.
From 1453 to the beginning of the nineteenth century the Ottoman local government ...
of
Trabzon
Trabzon (; Ancient Greek: Tραπεζοῦς (''Trapezous''), Ophitic Pontic Greek: Τραπεζούντα (''Trapezounta''); Georgian: ტრაპიზონი (''Trapizoni'')), historically known as Trebizond in English, is a city on the Bl ...
.
From the late-17th century onwards, the Ottoman administration built many elegant
bridges across the Fırtına River and its tributaries.
The province was a site of battles between Ottoman and
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
armies during
Caucasus Campaign
The Caucasus campaign comprised armed conflicts between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire, later including Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, the Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus, the German Empire, the Central Caspian Dicta ...
of
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and was occupied by the Russian forces in 1916–1918. It was returned to the Ottomans with the
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (also known as the Treaty of Brest in Russia) was a separate peace, separate peace treaty signed on 3 March 1918 between Russian SFSR, Russia and the Central Powers (German Empire, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Kingdom of ...
in 1918.
From 1924 onwards, Rize has been a province of the Republic of Turkey. Until tea was planted here in the 1940s this was a poor area at the far end of the country, with only the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
beyond the
Iron Curtain
The Iron Curtain was the political boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. The term symbolizes the efforts by the Soviet Union (USSR) to block itself and its s ...
. Many generations of Rize people left to look for jobs in
Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
or overseas.
In Turkey
In September 1935 the third
Inspectorate General (''Umumi Müfettişlik,'' UM) was created, to which the Rize province was included.
Its establishment was based on the Law 1164 from June 1927,
which was passed in order to
Turkefy the population. The third UM span over the provinces of
Erzurum
Erzurum (; ) is a city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010.
The city uses the double-headed eagle as ...
,
Artvin
Artvin (Laz language, Laz and ; hy, Արտուին, translit=Artuin) is a List of cities in Turkey, city in northeastern Turkey about inland from the Black Sea.
It is located on a hill overlooking the Çoruh, Çoruh River near the Deriner Dam ...
, Rize,
Trabzon
Trabzon (; Ancient Greek: Tραπεζοῦς (''Trapezous''), Ophitic Pontic Greek: Τραπεζούντα (''Trapezounta''); Georgian: ტრაპიზონი (''Trapizoni'')), historically known as Trebizond in English, is a city on the Bl ...
,
Kars
Kars (; ku, Qers; ) is a city in northeast Turkey and the capital of Kars Province. Its population is 73,836 in 2011. Kars was in the ancient region known as ''Chorzene'', (in Greek Χορζηνή) in classical historiography ( Strabo), part of ...
,
Gümüşhane
Gümüşhane () is a city and the capital district of Gümüşhane Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey. The city lies along the Harşit River, at an elevation of , about southwest of Trabzon. According to the 2010 census, population of G ...
,
Erzincan
Erzincan (; ku, Erzîngan), historically Yerznka ( hy, Երզնկա), is the capital of Erzincan Province in Eastern Turkey. Nearby cities include Erzurum, Sivas, Tunceli, Bingöl, Elazığ, Malatya, Gümüşhane, Bayburt, and Giresun. The city is ...
and
Ağrı
Ağrı ( ku, Agirî; ) is the capital of Ağrı Province in eastern Turkey, near the border with Iran. Formerly known as Karaköse ( ku, Qerekose) from the early Turkish republican period until 1946, and before that as Karakilise ( ota, قره ...
. It was governed by an Inspector General seated in the city of
Erzurum
Erzurum (; ) is a city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010.
The city uses the double-headed eagle as ...
.
The Inspectorate General was dissolved in 1952 during the Government of the
Democrat Party.
Life in Rize today
The city of
Rize
Rize (Greek language, Greek: ρίζα, Laz language, Laz: რიზინი, Georgian language, Georgian: რიზე,
, Ottoman Turkish: ريزه)
is the capital city of Rize Province in the eastern part of the Black Sea Region of Turkey.
Rize ...
is a coastal town on a narrow strip of flat land between the mountains and the sea. Today the area is wealthier although there is a marked difference between the lifestyle of the people in the relatively wealthy city of Rize and those in the remote villages where wooden houses perch on the steep mountainside with the rain beating down. The province is known in Turkey for the production of
Rize tea.
Geography
Rize is located between the
Pontic Mountains
The Pontic Mountains or Pontic Alps (Turkish language, Turkish: ''Kuzey Anadolu Dağları'', meaning North Anatolian Mountains) form a mountain range in northern Anatolia, Turkey. They are also known as the ''Parhar Mountains'' in the local Turki ...
and the
Black Sea
The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Roma ...
. It is considered to be the "wettest" corner of Turkey and is the country's main
tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and northe ...
producing region. In addition to tea, the region is also known for growing kiwi fruit. The province is largely rural and very scenic, containing many mountain valleys and elevated ''yayla''s (meadows). The district of
Çamlıhemşin
Çamlıhemşin, formerly Vice, ( lzz, ვიჯა ''Vija'' or ვიჯე ''Vije'' ; ka, ვიჯა ''Vija'' ) is a small town and district of Rize Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey.
With its mountains and valleys in all shades of ...
is one of Turkey's most popular venues for trekking and outdoor holidays. Roads are scarce in some of the more remote regions, so electrical powered
cable car Cable car most commonly refers to the following cable transportation systems:
* Aerial lift, such as aerial tramways and gondola lifts, in which the vehicle is suspended in the air from a cable
** Aerial tramway
** Chairlift
** Gondola lift
*** Bi ...
s have been installed to transport people and supplies into the mountains. Summers are cool (July average 22 °C) and winters are mild (January average 7 °C) with high levels of precipitation all year long.
The new Black Sea coast road has made Rize more accessible, but has drawn criticism for its negative effect on the region's wildlife. Since the early 2000s, Rize has seen an increase in visitors from outside the province, particularly tourist from urban areas. This increase in tourism has raised concerns among locals that the traditional way of life and the unblemished character of the natural surroundings is being endangered. The provincial governor, Enver Salihoglu (as of 2005) has stated his opposition to the expansion of the road network and has advocated a commercial focus on beekeeping, trout farming, and the growing of organic teas.
Native plants include the
Cherry Laurel
''Prunus'' subg. ''Padus'' is a subgenus of ''Prunus'', characterised by having racemose inflorescences. ''Padus'' was originally a distinct genus, but genetic and morphological studies have shown that ''Padus'' is polyphyletic. It has been prop ...
( tr, taflan or karayemiş), the fruit of which is an edible small dark plum that leaves a dark stain on the mouth and teeth. In addition, the
Bilberry
Bilberries (), or sometimes European blueberries, are a primarily Eurasian species of low-growing shrubs in the genus ''Vaccinium'' (family Ericaceae), bearing edible, dark blue berries. The species most often referred to is ''Vaccinium myrtillus ...
, which are now being actively cultivated, can be found growing the region. Rize is traversed by the northeasterly line of equal latitude and longitude.
Mountains
Notable mountains
*
Kaçkar (3.937 m)
*
Barut (3.251 m)
*
Ziglat (3.511 m)
*
Verçenik (3.711 m)
*
Hipot A dielectric withstand test (or pressure test, high potential or hipot test) is an electrical test performed on a component or product to determine the effectiveness of its insulation. The test may be between mutually insulated sections of a part ...
(3.560 m)
Rivers
From east to the west
*
Fındıklı Deresi
*
Büyükdere
*
Pazar Suyu
* Karadere
*
İyidere
İyidere is a town and district of Rize Province on the Black Sea coast of north-eastern Turkey, 14 km from the city of Rize.
Formerly known as ''Aspet'', İyidere is a green rural district. The local economy depends on growing and process ...
Geology
Part of the
Pontic Mountains
The Pontic Mountains or Pontic Alps (Turkish language, Turkish: ''Kuzey Anadolu Dağları'', meaning North Anatolian Mountains) form a mountain range in northern Anatolia, Turkey. They are also known as the ''Parhar Mountains'' in the local Turki ...
(Eastern Black Sea Mts.), Rize was formed in the
Palaeozoic
The Paleozoic (or Palaeozoic) Era is the earliest of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic Eon.
The name ''Paleozoic'' ( ;) was coined by the British geologist Adam Sedgwick in 1838
by combining the Greek words ''palaiós'' (, "old") and '' ...
period. Valleys first appeared during the
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 79 million years, it is the longest geological period of th ...
period and have since expanded due to erosion.
Climate
The region's climate is characterized by relatively mild to warm temperatures and evenly distributed precipitation throughout the year. The
Köppen Climate Classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
subtypes for this climate are ''Cfa'' (Humid Subtropical Climate) and ''Cfb'' (Oceanic Climate).
Culture
Cuisine
Traditional cuisine in the city quite rich and the
anchovy
An anchovy is a small, common forage fish of the family Engraulidae. Most species are found in marine waters, but several will enter brackish water, and some in South America are restricted to fresh water.
More than 140 species are placed in 1 ...
forms the basic for many of the dishes peculiar to the region. Soups,
salad
A salad is a dish consisting of mixed, mostly natural ingredients with at least one raw ingredient. They are typically served at room temperature or chilled, though some can be served warm. Condiments and salad dressings, which exist in a va ...
s,
pilaf
Pilaf ( US spelling) or pilau ( UK spelling) is a rice dish, or in some regions, a wheat dish, whose recipe usually involves cooking in stock or broth, adding spices, and other ingredients such as vegetables or meat, and employing some techniq ...
s and even desserts are made of anchovy. Some of the local dishes are hamsi buğulama (boiled anchovy), hamsi stew, and kamsi köfte (anchovy meatballs). Lahana çorbası (
cabbage
Cabbage, comprising several cultivars of ''Brassica oleracea'', is a leafy green, red (purple), or white (pale green) biennial plant grown as an annual vegetable crop for its dense-leaved heads. It is descended from the wild cabbage ( ''B.&nb ...
soup),
muhlama (made of
cheese
Cheese is a dairy product produced in wide ranges of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During production, ...
, cornmeal and
butter
Butter is a dairy product made from the fat and protein components of churned cream. It is a semi-solid emulsion at room temperature, consisting of approximately 80% butterfat. It is used at room temperature as a spread, melted as a condiment ...
) and
pide
The International and State Defense Police ( pt, Polícia Internacional e de Defesa do Estado; PIDE) was a Portuguese security agency that existed during the '' Estado Novo'' regime of António de Oliveira Salazar. Formally, the main roles of the ...
s (
pita
Pita ( or ) or pitta (British English), is a family of yeast-leavened round flatbreads baked from wheat flour, common in the Mediterranean, Middle East, and neighboring areas. It includes the widely known version with an interior pocket, als ...
bread topped with various fillings) are also other local delicacies.
Rize tea
Rize tea is a major agricultural product to the region and has changed the local economy. Rize Province is also one of the largest consumers of Rize tea too.
The province of Rize has prided itself of being the largest tea producer within Turkey.
In 2021, the Rize Commerce Exchange started the construction of a seven-floor building in the shape of the traditional tulip-shaped tea glasses called ''ince belli,'' in hopes to boost local tourism''.''
Folk dances and traditional costumes
Folk dancers perform
horon
Horon ( pnt, χορόν, khorón) is a traditional folk dance from Pontus or Eastern Black Sea Region in Turkey.
Name Etymology
The term ''horon'' derives from Greek ''choros'' ( el, χορός, khorós), which means "dance." The earliest ins ...
energetically when it is accompanied by
kemenche
Kemenche ( tr, kemençe) or Lyra is a name used for various types of stringed bowed musical instruments originating in the Eastern Mediterranean, particularly in Armenia, Greece, Iran, Turkey, and Azerbaijan. and regions adjacent to the Black S ...
. However this
folk dance can also be accompanied by
Tulum
Tulum (, yua, Tulu'um) is the site of a pre-Columbian Mayan walled city which served as a major port for Coba, in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo. The ruins are situated on cliffs along the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula on the Caribb ...
or
kaval
The kaval is a chromatic end-blown flute traditionally played throughout the Balkans (in Albania, Romania, Bulgaria, Southern Serbia, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Northern Greece, and elsewhere) and Anatolia (including Turkey and Armenia). The ka ...
. Folk dancers wear traditional costumes while performing horon. Men wear shirt, vest, jacket,
zipka (pants made of
wool
Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool.
As ...
and gathered at knees) and black boots. On their jackets are silver embroideries,
amulet
An amulet, also known as a good luck charm or phylactery, is an object believed to confer protection upon its possessor. The word "amulet" comes from the Latin word amuletum, which Pliny's ''Natural History'' describes as "an object that protects ...
s, and with religion expressions put inside these small
silver
Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...
containers to br protected against
evil's eye. On the other hand, women dancers wear colorful dresses and traditional hand painted head scarves including various motifs.
People of Black Sea Region of Turkey
Handicrafts
Rize offers a rich variety of traditional handicrafts and handmade souvenirs to visitors. Some of them include: copper works, wicker baskets, butter churns, woven socks, shoulder bags, and spoon made of boxwood
''Buxus'' is a genus of about seventy species in the family Buxaceae. Common names include box or boxwood.
The boxes are native to western and southern Europe, southwest, southern and eastern Asia, Africa, Madagascar, northernmost South ...
. Linen of Rize (Turkish: ''Rize Bezi'') is a handwoven textile and is often used as part of the under layer of a dress. Kemençe
Kemenche ( tr, kemençe) or Lyra is a name used for various types of stringed bowed musical instruments originating in the Eastern Mediterranean, particularly in Armenia, Greece, Iran, Turkey, and Azerbaijan. and regions adjacent to the Black ...
is a traditional 3-stringed string instrument which is made in this province.
Districts
Rize province is divided into 12 districts
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...
, including Rize
Rize (Greek language, Greek: ρίζα, Laz language, Laz: რიზინი, Georgian language, Georgian: რიზე,
, Ottoman Turkish: ريزه)
is the capital city of Rize Province in the eastern part of the Black Sea Region of Turkey.
Rize ...
the capital district. The others include:
* Ardeşen
*Çamlıhemşin
Çamlıhemşin, formerly Vice, ( lzz, ვიჯა ''Vija'' or ვიჯე ''Vije'' ; ka, ვიჯა ''Vija'' ) is a small town and district of Rize Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey.
With its mountains and valleys in all shades of ...
*Çayeli
Çayeli ( lzz, მაფავრი, ) is a town and district of Rize Province on the Black Sea coast of eastern Turkey, 18 km east of the city of Rize.
''Çay'' means ''tea'' in Turkish and a large percentage of Turkey's tea is indeed gr ...
*Derepazarı
Derepazarı is a town and district of Rize Province on the Black Sea coast of Turkey between the cities of Rize and Trabzon, 8 km weast of the city of Rize.
Features
The district consists of a small town on the coast and an area of countrysi ...
* Fındıklı
* Güneysu
*Hemşin
Hemşin ( Armenian: Համշէն ''Hamshen'' or Համամաշէն ''Hamamashen'', literally "Hamam's Hamlet"; Laz and Georgian: ზუგა ''Zuga''), is a town and district of Rize Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey, 57 km from t ...
*İkizdere
İkizdere is a town and district of Rize Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey.
Etymology
Formerly known as ''Dipotamos'' and ''Kuray-ı Sab'', İkizdere means "twin streams" in both the Pontic Greek and Turkish languages, and indeed the ...
*İyidere
İyidere is a town and district of Rize Province on the Black Sea coast of north-eastern Turkey, 14 km from the city of Rize.
Formerly known as ''Aspet'', İyidere is a green rural district. The local economy depends on growing and process ...
*Kalkandere
Kalkandere is a town in Rize Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey, west of the city of Rize. It is the seat of Kalkandere District.
* Pazar
Places of interest
Sites in the province include:
* '' Ayder'' - A yayla (high meadow) area with hot springs, hotels and restaurants, and from here you can climb up to higher and more remote meadows and villages.
* ''Çamlık'' - riverside area of forest park
* ''Fırtına Vadisi'' - the valley is now a protected site
* ''Ovit
Hovit ( hy, Հովիտ) is a village in the Akhuryan Municipality of the Shirak Province of Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The U ...
'' - mountain pass on the Erzurum
Erzurum (; ) is a city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010.
The city uses the double-headed eagle as ...
road in Ikizdere, , forest and mountain viewpoint
* The village and waterfall of ''Palovit'', high in the mountains.
* Avup Dağı, the mountain between Rize and Çamlıhemşin
Çamlıhemşin, formerly Vice, ( lzz, ვიჯა ''Vija'' or ვიჯე ''Vije'' ; ka, ვიჯა ''Vija'' ) is a small town and district of Rize Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey.
With its mountains and valleys in all shades of ...
, between ''Fırtına Deresı'' and ''Ortaköy Deresi''. There are four Byzantine castles situated high on rocks on the mountainside including;
* ''Kale-i Balâ'' and Zilkale
Zilkale is a medieval castle located in the Fırtına Valley (literally "Storm Valley") within the Pontic Mountains, and is one of the most important historical structures in the Çamlıhemşin district of Rize Province, within the Black Sea ...
* '' Huser Yaylası'' - Huser plateau is connected to Çamlıhemşin district of Rize. Huser Plateau, one of the highest plateaus of the Black Sea, must be visited with its unique view.
Other buildings of note include:
* The watch tower, ''Kız Kalesi'' on the sea front in Pazar.
See also
*Kaçkar Mountains
The Kaçkar Mountains ( tr, Kaçkar Dağları; hy, Խաչքարի լեռներ, lit=Mountains of Khachkars), formerly known as the Lazistan Mountains or the Mountains of Khaghtik (), are a mountain range that rises above the Black Sea coast in n ...
*Limanköy, Çayeli
Limanköy is the largest neighborhood of the Çayeli district of Rize, a province on the Black Sea coast of eastern Turkey.
Infrastructure
Limanköy consists of two boathouses, a harbor, two swimming areas, and a beach. Next to the coast is a h ...
*Lazistan
Lazistan ( lzz, ლაზონა, Lazona; ka, ლაზეთი, Lazeti, or ჭანეთი ''Ç'aneti''; ota, لازستان, Lazistān) is a historical and cultural region of the Caucasus and Anatolia, traditionally inhabited by the Laz ...
References
External links
*
Rize governor's official website
*
Rize municipality's official website
*
Rize weather forecast information
*
Rize photo gallery
{{Coord, 40, 55, 54, N, 40, 50, 52, E, display=title, region:TR-53_type:adm1st_source:dewiki
States and territories established in 1924
Tao-Klarjeti