Zonguldak () is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

and the capital of Zonguldak Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey. It was established in 1849 as a port town for the nearby coal mines in Ereğli and the coal trade remains its main economic activity. According to the 2009 census, Zonguldak has a population of 108,792. The current mayor is Ömer Selim Alan, representing the AKP.

Etymology

There are several different theories concerning the origin of the city's name: * That it comes from ''Zone Geul-Dagh'', the name given to the area by

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

and Belgian mining companies from French "zone" and a French spelling of Turkish Göldağı ('Lake Mountain'), the highest mountain in the vicinity of the Devrek district. * That the name came from Turkish which means "swamp", or . * That the name may derive from the name of the nearby ancient settlement of

Sandaraca Sandaraca or Sandarake ( grc, Σανδαράκη) was a coastal town of ancient Bithynia, at a distance of 90 stadia to the east of the river Oxines. Its site is located near Zonguldak Zonguldak () is a city and the capital of Zonguldak Provinc ...

or Sandarake (in Ancient Greek Σανδαράκη). * That the name may have come from "jungle" (which the French entrepreneurs called the area due to its uneven wooded geography) plus Turkish 'mountain'. In a 1920 report, the British Foreign Office spelled Zonguldak ''Zunguldak''.

History

The port city of Zonguldak suffered a heavy bombardment by the Russians during World War I, according to the caption of a Lubok popular print. As of 1920, the port was under the control of the Heraclea Coal Company. The northern part of the bay featured a man-made harbor, for

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

use. At that time, they had two

cranes Crane or cranes may refer to: Common meanings * Crane (bird), a large, long-necked bird * Crane (machine), industrial machinery for lifting ** Crane (rail), a crane suited for use on railroads People and fictional characters * Crane (surname), ...

which distributed coal to exporting vessels.

Climate

According to the Köppen climate classification, for a long time Zonguldak was considered to have an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ( ...

(''Cfb''), with its warmest month being well below the 22 °C threshold, yet in recent decades climate change and global warming has been contributing to its classification in slowly turning humid subtropical (''Cfa'') and therefore the city center on the immediate coastline is currently classified as borderline oceanic-humid subtropical. If this trend continues, coastal Zonguldak will soon be classified as purely humid subtropical. Summers are warm, the average temperature is around 22.5 °C in July and August. Winters are cool, the average temperature is around 6 °C in January and February. Precipitation is frequent, while it is generally heaviest in autumn and early winter, lightest (although still frequent) in spring. The water temperature is cool to mild and fluctuates between 8° C and 20 °C throughout the year.

Health

Because of coal there is a lot of lung disease.

Economy

Jobs in coal in Turkey are being lost and in 2020 the EBRD proposed a

just transition Just transition is a framework developed by the trade union movement to encompass a range of social interventions needed to secure workers' rights and livelihoods when economies are shifting to sustainable production, primarily combating climat ...

Transportation

The city is the terminus of a railway line to

Irmak Irmak is a Unisex Turkish given name. In Turkish, "Irmak" means "river". People Given name * Irmak Arkadaşlar, a Turkish contestant in the north team of Survivor: Büyük Macera. * Irmak Atuk, a Turkish model and titleholder of Best Model of ...

, with the terminating station Zonguldak Railway Station built in 1937.

International relations

Twin towns — sister cities

Zonguldak is twinned with: *

Brindisi Brindisi ( , ) ; la, Brundisium; grc, Βρεντέσιον, translit=Brentésion; cms, Brunda), group=pron is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Histo ...

Apulia it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...

, Italy * Castrop-Rauxel, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany *

Kherson Kherson (, ) is a port city of Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers appr ...

Kherson Oblast Kherson Oblast ( uk, Херсо́нська о́бласть, translit=Khersónsʹka óblastʹ, ), also known as Khersonshchyna ( uk, Херсо́нщина, ), is an oblast (province) in southern Ukraine, currently claimed and partly occupied ...

, Ukraine * Monfalcone, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy

Notable people

Ergün Penbe Ergün Penbe (born 17 May 1972), known by his nickname Kemik –literally meaning ''the Bone''–, is a Turkish former professional footballer who played mostly as a left midfielder and left back, and is currently the manager of Tarsus İdman Yu ...

- Turkish former footballer Murat Boz - Turkish singer-songwriter and actor Nilgün Efes - Turkish entrepreneur and journalist