Varto (, ku, Gimgim, grc-x-medieval, Barzanissa) is a town and district in

Muş Province Muş Province ( tr, Muş ili, Armenian: Մուշի մարզ, ku, Parêzgeha Mûşê) is a province in eastern Turkey. It is 8,196 km2 in area and has a population of 406,886 according to a 2010 estimate, down from 453,654 in 2000. The provin ...

, Turkey. The population of Varto city is around 13,000 with another 17,000 living in the villages. The largest population from Varto in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

is in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

History

Some 5,200

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 ...

were living in the district of Varto in 1914, including 600 in the town of Varto. Eight churches, 3 monasteries and 5 schools tended to their to spiritual needs. In June 1915 during the

Armenian genocide The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was ...

, a great number of Varto's Armenians were massacred in the valley of Newala Ask. Varto was the site of major fighting during the Sheikh Said rebellion in 1924, and was the epicenter of the 1966 earthquake that killed nearly 3,000 people. In the 1990s Varto was one of the hotbeds of Kurdish militancy led by the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Although the city did not see ongoing battles, it was the hometown of many fighters and leading PKK commanders. The Turkish military garrison stationed in the city is surrounded by barbed wire and sandbags. The garrison patrols the city in armored personnel carriers (cars), though there was no fighting in or around the city since the 1990s until August 2015 when fighting between Turkish security forces and PKK began again. Most

Kirmancki Zaza or Zazaki (), is an Iranian language spoken primarily in eastern Turkey by the Zazas. The language is a part of the Zaza–Gorani language group of the northwestern group of the Iranian branch. The glossonym Zaza originated as a pejorativ ...

Zazaki language speakers are

Alevis Alevism or Anatolian Alevism (; tr, Alevilik, ''Anadolu Aleviliği'' or ''Kızılbaşlık''; ; az, Ələvilik) is a local Islamic tradition, whose adherents follow the mystical Alevi Islamic ( ''bāṭenī'') teachings of Haji Bektash Veli, wh ...

, whereas most

Kurmanci Kurmanji ( ku, کورمانجی, lit=Kurdish, translit=Kurmancî, also termed Northern Kurdish, is the northern dialect of the Kurdish languages, spoken predominantly in southeast Turkey, northwest and northeast Iran, northern Iraq, northern S ...

Kurdish language speakers are

Sunnis Sunni Islam () is the largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word ''Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia ...

. The communities had a separate and quiet existence until the 1980s. There are about a hundred villages in the Varto district.

Politics

The former mayor

Sabite Ekinci Sabite Ekinci (born 1970, Varto, Turkey) is a Turkish film director, teacher and politician of Kurdish descent. She has been the mayor of Varto and her documentary ''Corpses without souls'' won an award at the Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival. ...

Peace and Democracy Party The Peace and Democracy Party ( tr, Barış ve Demokrasi Partisi, ku, Partiya Aştî û Demokrasiyê, BDP) was a Kurdish political party in Turkey existing from 2008 to 2014. Development BDP succeeded the Democratic Society Party (DTP) in 20 ...

(BDP), was arrested on 9 November 2016 on charges of "being a member of a terrorist organization" and removed from her duty. District Governor Mehmet Nuri Çetin was appointed as trustee in her stead. The current mayor Ülkü Karaaslan was elected in the local elections in March 2019 and as district governor, Ertuğrul Avci was appointed.

References

External links

Vartositesi.com
Populated places in Muş Province Districts of Muş Province Towns in Turkey Kurdish settlements in Turkey {{Muş-geo-stub

History

Politics

References

Further reading

External links