Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
, and the administrative centre of
Elazığ Province
Elazığ () is a city in the Eastern Anatolia Region, Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey, and the administrative centre of Elazığ Province and Elazığ District. Founded in and around the former city of Harput, it is located in the uppermost Euph ...
and Elazığ District. Founded in and around the former city of Harput, it is located in the uppermost
Euphrates
The Euphrates ( ; see #Etymology, below) is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of West Asia. Tigris–Euphrates river system, Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia (). Originati ...
valley. The plain on which the city extends has an altitude of . Elazığ resembles an inland peninsula surrounded by the natural Lake Hazar and
reservoir
A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation.
Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...
In 1927 the office of the Inspector General was created, which governed with martial law. The province was included in the first Inspectorate General (''Umumi Müfettişlik'', UM) over which the Inspector General ruled. The UM spanned over the provinces of Hakkâri, Siirt, Van,
Mardin
Mardin (; ; romanized: ''Mārdīn''; ; ) is a city and seat of the Artuklu District of Mardin Province in Turkey. It is known for the Artuqids, Artuqid architecture of its old city, and for its strategic location on a rocky hill near the Tigris ...
,
Bitlis
Bitlis ( or ; ) is a city in southeastern Turkey. It is the seat of Bitlis District and Bitlis Province.Şanlıurfa, Elazığ and
Diyarbakır
Diyarbakır is the largest Kurdish-majority city in Turkey. It is the administrative center of Diyarbakır Province.
Situated around a high plateau by the banks of the Tigris river on which stands the historic Diyarbakır Fortress, it is ...
.
In December 1935, the Tunceli Law was passed, which demanded a more powerful Government in the region. In January 1936 the Elazığ Province was transferred under the authority of the newly established Fourth Inspectorate General, which span over the provinces of Elazığ, Erzincan, Bingöl and Tunceli and its seat was in the city of Elazığ.Soner Çaǧaptay, ''Islam, Secularism, and Nationalism in Modern Turkey: Who is a Turk?'', Taylor & Francis, 2006, , p. 48 The fourth UM was governed by a Governor-Commander. Most of the employees in the municipalities had to be from the military and the Governor-Commander had the authority to evacuate whole villages and resettle them in another part of the province. In 1946 the Tunceli Law was abolished and the state of emergency removed but the authority of the fourth UM was transferred to the military.
The Inspectorates General were dissolved in 1952 during the Government of the Democrat Party.
The province has experienced many earthquakes, including a magnitude 6.1 earthquake on 8 March 2010 and a magnitude 6.7 earthquake on 24 January 2020.
Geography
Elazığ stretches in a general west-southwest to east-northeast direction, along the line of equal geographic latitude and longitude. The source of the
Euphrates
The Euphrates ( ; see #Etymology, below) is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of West Asia. Tigris–Euphrates river system, Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia (). Originati ...
river is located in this province. of its area is covered by reservoirs and natural lakes.
Districts
Elazığ province is divided into 11
districts
A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...
(capital district in bold):
Economy
Historically, Elazığ Province produced
silver
Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...
, which ceased being mined in 1885. The Turkish government attempted to modernize the mines; however, the cost of fuel and energy caused the shut down. There was a
silver
Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...
coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.
Coal i ...
. Coal is also found in other areas of the province.
Gold
Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...
and
salt
In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as r ...
was also produced.
Education
Education is provided by the Elazığ Provincial Directorate for National Education. It currently views over 442 educational institutions, both formal and informal ones.
Archaeology
Altınova, Elazığ was an important archaeological site in the Altınova plain that was excavated in the 1970s. It was later flooded by the Keban Dam. Other sites in the Altınova plain were also Tepecik, Korucutepe, Değirmentepe, and Körtepe.
Gallery
2013-06-17_Elazig_Istasiyon2.jpg, Elazığ Train Station
Palo 2019.jpg, Palu and the
Murat river
The Murat River, also called Eastern Euphrates (, , ), is a major source of the Euphrates River. The Ancient Greeks and Romans used to call the river ''Arsanias'' (). It originates near Mount Ararat north of Lake Van, in Eastern Turkey, and flows ...
TCDD DE24 184 Pınarlı.jpg, DE 24 184 of TCDD (Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Devlet Demiryollari) at Pınarlı, Turkey.
ElazigCultureParkNight.jpg, Culture Park
Hazar Gölü hazar Baba kayak merkezinden görünümü 2.jpg, Lake Hazar
Harput Akşam 2.jpg, City view at night
Palu Brücke.jpg, Stone Bridge, Palu