East Anatolia Region, Turkey

The Eastern Anatolia region () 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 Sea Region and Georgia in the north, the Central Anatolia Region in the west, the Mediterranean Region in the southwest, the Southeastern Anatolia Region and Iraq in the south, and Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Iran in the east.

The region encompasses most of Western Armenia and had a large population of indigenous Armenians until the Armenian genocide. The Anatolia peninsula historically never encompassed what is now called "Eastern Anatolia" which was, instead, referred to as the Armenian highlands. It was renamed by the newly founded Turkish Republic in the 1920s. This has been seen as an attempt by Turkey to erase the Armenian history of the region.

It has the highest average altitude, largest geographical area, and lowest population density of the seven Turkish regions.

Etymology

The English-language name ''Anatolia'' () derives from the Greek () meaning "the East" and designating (from a Greek point of view) eastern regions in general. Traditionally, Anatolia was considered to be a peninsula the eastern boundary of which was a line from the Black Sea to the Gulf of Alexandretta, which is to the west of what is now the Eastern Anatolia Region.Stephen Mitchell (1995). ''Anatolia: Land, Men, and Gods in Asia Minor. The Celts in Anatolia and the impact of Roman rule''. Clarendon Press, 266 pp.

As a geographical term, this definition continues to be used.

Historically, the region was referred to as the Armenian highlands or Western Armenia. In 1923, the newly founded Republic of Turkey renamed the territory "Eastern Anatolia" as part of a wider policy of removing all non-Turkish names of places following the Armenian genocide. Beginning in 1880, the name Armenia was forbidden to be used in official documents of the Ottoman Empire, in an attempt to play down the role of Armenians in the region. The government of Sultan Abdul Hamid II replaced the name Armenia with such terms as "Kurdistan" or "Anatolia". The Sublime Porte believed there would be no Armenian question if there was no Armenia. The process of "nationalization" of toponyms was continued and gained momentum under the Kemalists after the foundation of the Republic of Turkey.

The region encompasses most of Western Armenia () and had a large population of indigenous Armenians until the Armenian genocide. The Anatolia peninsula never encompassed what is now called "Eastern Anatolia", which has been seen as an attempt by Turkey to erase the Armenian history of the region.

Subdivision

Eastern Anatolia Region has four subdivisions:
* Upper Euphrates division ()
* Erzurum-Kars division ()
* Upper Murat-Van division ()
* Hakkari division ()

Provinces

Provinces that are entirely in the Eastern Anatolia Region:

* Ağrı
* Bingöl
* Malatya
* Hakkari
* Iğdır
* Kars
* Muş
* Tunceli
* Van

Provinces that are mostly in the Eastern Anatolia Region:
* Ardahan
* Erzurum
* Şırnak

Location and borders

The Eastern Anatolia Region is located in the easternmost part of Turkey. It is bounded by Turkey's Central Anatolia Region to the west; Turkey's Black Sea Region to the north; Turkey's Southeast Anatolia Region and Iraq to the south; and Iran, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia to the east, where Eastern Anatolia overlaps and converges with the South Caucasus region and Lesser Caucasus mountain plateau.

The area of the region is , which comprises 20.9% of the total area of Turkey.

Population

The total population of the region is 5,966,101 (2019 estimate), down from 6,100,000 at the 2000 census. The population density () is lower than the average for Turkey (). The region has the second most rural population in Turkey after the Black Sea region. Migration, especially to Marmara Region, is high. Migration to other regions and abroad is higher than the natural population increase. Until the Armenian genocide, the region also had a large population of indigenous Armenians, when it was also known as Western Armenia, and in addition had significant minorities of Georgians, Pontic Greeks and Caucasus Greeks.

Geography

The average altitude is . Major geographic features include plains, plateaus and massifs. There is some volcanic activity today.

Lakes and rivers

* Located in the Eastern Anatolia Region Aras and Kura rivers flooded the shed outside the territory of Turkey to the Caspian Sea. Euphrates, the Tigris and the Zab river waters are poured back onto the Persian Gulf Turkey outside.
* The regime of the streams of the region is irregular. This is because; the irregularity of the precipitation regime and the fall of winter precipitation in the form of snow. As the snow falls on the ground for a long time without melting, the flow rates of the rivers decrease. The snow melting in spring and summer causes streams to increase their flow rates and flow enthusiastically. On the other hand, the rivers of the region have high hydroelectric energy potential. The reason for this is that it has high elevations and slopes.
* Lakes were formed on the fault lines throughout the region. Turkey's largest lake, Lake Van along with Lake Çıldır, Lake Nazik, Lake Erçek, Lake Hazar, Lake Balık, Lake Haçlı and Lake Akdoğan are located within the region.

Massifs and mountains

*There are three massif lines running north–south:
**To the north, the Çimen Dağı, Kop Dağı and Yalnızçam mountains, Allahuekber Mountains, Aras Mountains and Mount Ararat.
**In the centre, the Munzur, Karasu Dağı, Aras Dağı, Bingöl Mountains and Akdoğan mountains.
**To the south, Southeast Tauros; Karaçavuş Mountains, and Buzul mountains.
*The volcanic mountains Nemrut, Süphan, Tendürek and Ararat are in the region.

Plateaus and plains

*The largest plateau in the region is Erzurum-Kars Plato.
*The region includes the Malatya, Elazığ, Bingöl plains and the Van Lake basin.
*The largest plain in the region is the Iğdır Plain. The second largest plain is the Muş Plain.

Lakes

Rivers

Climate and nature

Since most of the region is far from the sea, and has high altitude, it has a harsh continental climate with long winters and short summers. During the winter, it is very cold and snowy, during summer the weather is cool in the highlands and warm in the lowlands.

The region's annual temperature difference is the highest in Turkey. Some areas in the region have different microclimates. As an example, Iğdır (near Mount Ararat) has a milder climate.

The region contains 11% percent of the total forested area of Turkey, and it is rich in native plants and animals. Oak and yellow pine trees form the majority of the forests.

The region has high potential for hydroelectric power.

Gallery

File:Iğdırdan Ağrı Dağı.jpg, View of Mount Ararat (Ağrı in Turkish) from Iğdır
File:Erzurum Cumhuriyet Caddesi3.jpg, Cumhuriyet Avenue in Erzurum
File:Erzurum Cifte Minareli Sunrise.JPG, The 13th-century Çifte Minareli Medrese is an architectural monument of the late Seljuk period in the city of Erzurum
File:Erzurum,Yakutiye-W.jpg, The 14th-century Yakutiye Medresesi in Erzurum
File:Io panoramic1 (Large).JPG, Panoramic view of the city of Bingöl, with the Castle of Kars in the background
File:Kars evleri.jpg, Kars city centre
File:Akhtamar Island on Lake Van with the Armenian Cathedral of the Holy Cross.jpg, Akdamar Island and the Armenian Cathedral of the Holy Cross, a 10th-century Armenian church and monastic complex
File:Fountain at Yeni Cami Sq. Malatya 03.jpg, Ottoman era Yeni (New) Mosque in Malatya
File:Harput kalesi-Harput-Elazığ - panoramio.jpg, Harput Castle in Harput

Endnotes

External links

{{Authority control

Regions of Turkey
Historical geography of Armenia
Historiography of Turkey
Aftermath of the Armenian genocide
Geographical naming disputes