Ağrı Province
The Ağrı Province ( tr, Ağrı ili, ku, Parêzgeha Agiriyê) is a Provinces of Turkey, province in eastern Turkey, bordering Iran to the east, Kars Province, Kars to the north, Erzurum Province, Erzurum to the northwest, Muş Province, Muş a ...
in the
Eastern Anatolia
The Eastern Anatolia Region ('' tr, Doğu Anadolu Bölgesi'') is a geographical region of Turkey. The most populous province in the region is Van Province. Other populous provinces are Malatya, Erzurum and Elazığ.
It is bordered by the Black Se ...
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 ...
. It is the seat of
Taşlıçay District
Taşlıçay District is a district of Ağrı Province of Turkey. Its seat is the town Taşlıçay.İlçe Belediyesi Turkey Civil Administration Departments Inventory. Retrieved 12 January 2023. Its population is 6,140 (2021). It is located in the valley of the
Murat River
The Murat River, also called Eastern Euphrates ( tr, Murat Nehri, , hy, Արածանի, translit=Aratsani), is a major source of the Euphrates River. The Ancient Greeks and Romans used to call the river ''Arsanias'' ( gr, Ἀρσανίας). It ...
on the road from the city of
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 ...
Iran
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 ...
. Its altitude is 1,660 m. The mayor is İsmet Taşdemir ( AKP).
Taşlıçay is surrounded by high mountains (2,000m plus), including; to the north Perili, Balıkgölü (3,159 m) and Ziyarettepe (1,800 m) of the South Aras range; and to the south the
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 ...
Kandil
Kandil (from ar, قنديل, qindil) refers to five Islamic holy nights, celebrated in Turkey and Muslim Balkan communities, related to the life of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, when the minarets are illuminated and special prayers are made. It is ...
(2,750 m).
History
A
burial mound
Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...
( höyük) to the south of Taşlıçay and numerous other ruins in the district indicate a long and varied human presence in the region. There is an
Urartu
Urartu (; Assyrian: ',Eberhard Schrader, ''The Cuneiform inscriptions and the Old Testament'' (1885), p. 65. Babylonian: ''Urashtu'', he, אֲרָרָט ''Ararat'') is a geographical region and Iron Age kingdom also known as the Kingdom of Va ...
temple and an
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
n monastery on the hill above the village of
Taşteker
Bagavan (also spelled Bagawan; hy, Բագաւան) was an ancient locality in the central part of Armenia in the principality of Bagrevand. The site is located in the village of Taşteker to the west of modern Diyadin, Turkey. Situated on a tribu ...