Aydın Province ( tr, ) is a province of southwestern

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

, located in the Aegean Region. The provincial capital is the city of Aydın which has a population of almost 200,000 (2012). Other towns in the province include the summer seaside resorts of

Didim Didim is a small town, popular seaside holiday resort, and district of Aydın Province on the Aegean coast of western Turkey, from the provincial capital city of Aydın. Didim is the site of the antique city of Didyma with its ruined Temple ...

and

Kuşadası Kuşadası () is a large resort town on Turkey's Aegean coast, and the center of the seaside district of the same name within Aydın Province. Kuşadası is south of İzmir, and about from Aydın. The municipality's primary industry is tour ...

Geography

Neighboring provinces are

Manisa Manisa (), historically known as Magnesia, is a city in Turkey's Aegean Region and the administrative seat of Manisa Province. Modern Manisa is a booming center of industry and services, advantaged by its closeness to the international port ci ...

to the north east,

İzmir İzmir ( , ; ), also spelled Izmir, is a metropolitan city in the western extremity of Anatolia, capital of the province of the same name. It is the third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara and the second largest urban aggl ...

to the north, Denizli to the east,

Muğla Muğla () is a city in southwestern Turkey. The city is the center of the District of Menteşe and Muğla Province, which stretches along Turkey's Aegean coast. Muğla's center is situated inland at an altitude of 660 m and lies at a dista ...

to the south. The central and western parts of the province are fertile plains watered by the largest river in the Aegean region the

Büyük Menderes River The Büyük Menderes River (historically the Maeander or Meander, from Ancient Greek: Μαίανδρος, ''Maíandros''; tr, Büyük Menderes Irmağı), is a river in southwestern Turkey. It rises in west central Turkey near Dinar before fl ...

, with the Aydın Mountains to the north and the Menteşe Mountains to the south. The western end of the province is the Aegean coast with

Lake Bafa Lake Bafa ( tr, Bafa Gölü) also known as Lake Çamiçi ( tr, Çamiçi Gölü) and in earlier times the Vafi Sea ( tr, Vafi Denizi) is a lake situated in southwestern Turkey, part of it within the boundaries of Milas district of Muğla Province ...

a major feature of the Menderes delta area. The climate is typical of the Aegean region, very hot in summer. The Germencik region contains a number of hot springs.

Districts

Aydın province is divided into 17 districts:

Flora

Much of the countryside is a mix of fig, olive and citrus trees, especially figs.

Economy

The major sources of income are agriculture and tourism.

Tourism

The coastal towns of

and

in particular are tourist resorts. Kuşadası is near to the Dilek Peninsula - Büyük Menderes Delta National Park, while Didim has a temple of Apollo, beaches, and the ancient ruins of

Miletos 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 ...

nearby. The province contains archeological sites, including the ancient Carian cities of

Alinda Alinda ( grc, Ἄλινδα) was an inland city and bishopric in ancient Caria, in Asia Minor ( Anatolia). Modern scholars identify Alinda with the Hellenistic foundation of Alexandria ad Latmum (Ἀλεξάνδρεια πρὸς τῷ Λάτμ� ...

and

Alabanda Alabanda ( grc, Ἀλάβανδα) or Antiochia of the Chrysaorians was a city of ancient Caria, Anatolia, the site of which is near Doğanyurt, Çine, Aydın Province, Turkey. The city is located in the saddle between two heights. The area is ...

Agriculture

Aydın is Turkey's leading producer of

figs The fig is the edible fruit of ''Ficus carica'', a species of small tree in the flowering plant family Moraceae. Native to the Mediterranean and western Asia, it has been cultivated since ancient times and is now widely grown throughout the world ...

and exports dried figs worldwide. The very name by which the fruit was called in the world markets was "Smyrna figs" until recently, due to the preponderance of figs exported from

over other species of the genus. But İzmir got the name by being the center for the wholesale trade and exports, while in fact the fruit was traditionally cultivated in Aydın. The term used within Turkey is "Aydın figs" ( tr, Aydın inciri). Turkey's yearly production of roughly 50,000 tons of dried figs, is almost all from Aydın, Within Aydın province, the best figs are reputed to be grown in

Germencik Germencik is a town and a district of Aydın Province in the Aegean region of Turkey. Geography Germencik is located in the middle of the fertile Büyük Menderes (Meander) plain, inland from the Aegean coastal town of Kuşadası, on the Aydı ...

. Aydın produces olives from the varieties of Memecik, Manzanilla, and

Gemlik Gemlik is a town and center of the Gemlik District of Bursa Province. It is located in the east of the Gulf of Gemlik. It is approximately away from Bursa. In antiquity, Gemlik was the location of the ancient Greek town of Cius. Gemlik is an in ...

, as well as chestnuts, cotton, citrus fruits, water melons and other fruits. Orange and tangerine cultivation has increased in Aydın in recent years.

Industry

Aydın has some light industry

Adnan Menderes University Adnan ( ar, عدنان, 'adnān) is the traditional ancestor of the Adnanite Arabs of Northern, Western, Eastern and Central Arabia, as opposed to the Qahtanite Arabs of Southern Arabia who descend from Qahtan. His ancestry can be traced back t ...

was built in the city of Aydın in 1990s and has branches throughout the province.

Places of interest

The city of Aydın has a number of antique ruins and Ottoman period mosques. The province's countryside and scenery include a stretch of the Aegean coast and a number of historic sites including: *

coastal resort with large temple of

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label= Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label ...

and nearby ** Miletus ruins of an

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 p ...

city *** Ilyas Bey Complex, a cultural heritage of Turkey built in 1403 *

coastal resort, near to the Dilek Peninsula - Büyük Menderes Delta National Park * Kirazli - a traditional Turkish village with old stone houses *

- ancient ruins *

- ancient ruins * Magnesia ad Maeandrum - ancient ruins, on the Ortaklar- Söke road in

Nysa Nysa may refer to: Greek Mythology * Nysa (mythology) or Nyseion, the mountainous region or mount (various traditional locations), where nymphs raised the young god Dionysus * Nysiads, nymphs of Mount Nysa who cared for and taught the infant ...

- another ruined Carian city, in Sultanhisar *

Aphrodisias Aphrodisias (; grc, Ἀφροδισιάς, Aphrodisiás) was a small ancient Greek Hellenistic city in the historic Caria cultural region of western Anatolia, Turkey. It is located near the modern village of Geyre, about east/inland from the ...

- more ancient ruins, including tombs, friezes and sculpture, in

Karacasu Karacasu is a town and a district of Aydın Province in the Aegean region of Turkey, from the city of Aydın. Formerly known as "Yenişehir", Karacasu is reached by turning off the Aydın - Denizli road south-east at Kuyucak and following the ...

Priene Priene ( grc, Πριήνη, Priēnē; tr, Prien) was an ancient Greek city of Ionia (and member of the Ionian League) located at the base of an escarpment of Mycale, about north of what was then the course of the Maeander River (now called th ...

- another ruin, near Söke *

Mycale Mycale (). also Mykale and Mykali ( grc, Μυκάλη, ''Mykálē''), called Samsun Dağı and Dilek Dağı (Dilek Peninsula) in modern Turkey, is a mountain on the west coast of central Anatolia in Turkey, north of the mouth of the Maeander an ...

Mountains

Culture

Aydın is the home of the Zeybek folk art. This involves a special type of war dance which is performed in a ring to resemble birds. The Zeybek is performed to sounds of the Kiteli and other Turkish folk instruments. The folk songs of Aydın are famously short, indeed a popular saying in the Aegean region to get someone to stop talking, is ''Keep it short, make it an Aydın tune''. The cuisine features the typical Turkish pastries,

köfte Kofta is a family of meatball or meatloaf dishes found in Balkan, Middle Eastern, South Caucasian, South Asian and Central Asian cuisines. In the simplest form, koftas consist of balls of minced meatusually beef, chicken, pork, lamb or mut ...

and kebab.

Transport

Roads

Izmir to Aydın motorway, Motorway O-31, was built in the 1990s and is the city's main thoroughfare. An extension of this motorway to Denizli is currently under construction, with longer-term plans to extend it to

Antalya la, Attalensis grc, Ἀτταλειώτης , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 07xxx , area_code = (+90) 242 , registration_plate = 07 , blank_name = Licence plate ...

Railway

There is a passenger train service passing through Aydın, connecting the city to Izmir and Denizli. This passenger train runs five trains per day. Rail-Turkey TR - İzmir Denizli treni
/ref>

Notable people

* Mustafa Kemal Atatürk - the Republic of Turkey founder and the first

President of Turkey The president of Turkey, officially the president of the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Cumhurbaşkanı), is the head of state and head of government of Turkey. The president directs the executive branch of the national govern ...

* Atçalı Kel Mehmet Efe, folk hero, leader of a public revolt during the decline of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

Yörük Ali Efe Yörük Ali Efe (1895 – 23 September 1951) was a Turkish guerilla leader in the Ottoman Empire, and an officer in the Turkish Army during the Turkish War of Independence. He was an important leader in Kuva-yi Milliye of the Aegean Region. Aft ...

, hero of the

Turkish War of Independence The Turkish War of Independence "War of Liberation", also known figuratively as ''İstiklâl Harbi'' "Independence War" or ''Millî Mücadele'' "National Struggle" (19 May 1919 – 24 July 1923) was a series of military campaigns waged by th ...

* Demirci Mehmet Efe, the hero for

Kuva-yi Milliye The Kuva-yi Milliye ( ota, قواى مليه; 'National Forces' or 'Nationalist Forces') were irregular Turkish militia forces active in the early period of the Turkish War of Independence. These irregular forces emerged after the occupation of ...

and

Ali Rıza Efendi Ali Rıza Efendi (1839–1888) was an official, and the father of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and the husband of Zübeyde Hanım. He was born in Selanik, (modern Thessaloniki in present-day Macedonia, Greece), back then the most important city ...

, the Ataturk's father *

Makbule Atadan Makbule Atadan (1885 – 18 January 1956Mürşit Balabanlılar, Şebnem Kandır, Mine Söğüt, ''Türkiye'nin Yetmiş Yılı: 1923-1993: Gün Gün Cumhuriyet Tarihi'', 1. cilt, Hürgüç Gazetecilik, 1994p. 142./ref>) was the sister of Mustafa K ...

, the Ataturk's sister * Adnan Menderes, Turkish Prime Minister (1950-1960) *

Gökhan Kırdar Gökhan Kırdar (born 2 June 1970) is a Turkish musician and film score composer. He attended Yıldız University in Istanbul to study architecture in 1988. However, he devoted himself to music and soon gained success with his soundtrack, rele ...

, musician, composer and producer * Fatih Portakal, journalist * Ümit Aktan, TV speaker * Şebnem Bursalı, journalist *

Aydın Menderes Aydın Menderes (5 May 1946 – 23 December 2011) was a Turkish politician. He was a deputy, who represented various parties from 1977 to 2002. He was the youngest son of former prime minister Adnan Menderes.

, politican and Adnan Menderes's son * Yüksel Yalova, politican * Melike Yalova, actress *

Necati Çelim Nuh Necati Çelim (1909, in Köşk, Aydın Province, Ottoman Empire – 5 March 1986, in Izmir, Turkey) was a Turkish politician, physician, and Member of Parliament (MP) for the Democrat Party (''Demokrat Parti''). He represented the Aydın P ...

, MP for Aydın, doctor, founding Chairman of Aydın Tekstil Fabrikası, born in

Köşk Köşk is a district in Aydın Province, Aegean Region, Turkey. Köşk is a noun in Turkish and refers to an ornate wooden mansion, smaller than a palace. References External links the municipalitythe district governorate Populated places ...

İlhan Selçuk İlhan Selçuk (11 March 1925 – 21 June 2010) was a Turkish lawyer, journalist, author, novelist and editor. Biography Selcuk was born in the western Turkish Aydın Province in 1925. His mother, who was Armenian, hid her Armenian roots. He ea ...

, editor of the

Cumhuriyet ''Cumhuriyet'' (; English: " Republic") is the oldest up-market Turkish daily newspaper. It has been described as "the most important independent public interest newspaper in contemporary Turkey". The newspaper was awarded the ''Freedom of Pr ...

newspaper *

İsmet Sezgin İsmet Sezgin (6 January 1928 – 7 December 2016) was a Turkish politician who served as the Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey and Minister of National Defense from 1997 to 1999, as the Speaker of the Grand National Assembly in 1995, as the Mini ...

, former minister *

Atilla Koç Atilla Koç (born March 1, 1946) is a Turkish politician of the Justice and Development Party. He was the Minister of Culture and Tourism in the first cabinet of Recep Tayyip Erdogan. After graduating from Ankara University, he worked in the M ...

, MP for Aydın, former minister of culture and tourism, born in

* Güven Önüt, former Beşiktaş footballer * Rıdvan Dilmen, retired footballer, team manager and sports commentator