Sultandağı is a town of

Afyonkarahisar Province Afyonkarahisar Province (), often shortened to Afyon Province, is a Provinces of Turkey, province in western Turkey. Its area is 14,016 km2, and its population is 747,555 (2022). The provincial capital is Afyonkarahisar. Adjacent provinces a ...

in the Aegean region of

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 ...

. It is the seat of Sultandağı District.İlçe Belediyesi
Turkey Civil Administration Departments Inventory. Retrieved 12 January 2023. Its population is 5,195 (2021). It is located at 68 km from the city of

Afyon Afyonkarahisar (, 'poppy, opium', ''kara'' 'black', ''hisar'' 'fortress') is a major city in western Turkey. It is the administrative centre of Afyonkarahisar Province and Afyonkarahisar District. Its population is 251,799 (2021). Afyon is in the ...

on the road to

Konya Konya is a major city in central Turkey, on the southwestern edge of the Central Anatolian Plateau, and is the capital of Konya Province. During antiquity and into Seljuk times it was known as Iconium. In 19th-century accounts of the city in En ...

, near Lake Akşehir at the foothills of the Sultan Mountains (Sultandağ), a meeting point of the Aegean and central

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

n geographical zones. The mayor is Osman Acar ( CHP).

History

The area has been settled since antiquity but the town that stands today, formerly known as İshaklı, was founded by the

Seljuk Seljuk (, ''Selcuk'') or Saljuq (, ''Saljūq'') may refer to: * Seljuk Empire (1051–1153), a medieval empire in the Middle East and central Asia * Seljuk dynasty (c. 950–1307), the ruling dynasty of the Seljuk Empire and subsequent polities * S ...

lord İshak Bey and named after him. The name Sultandağı comes from the mountains' use as a stronghold for the armies of the Seljuk sultan when fighting the Byzantines. At that time the

Silk Road The Silk Road was a network of Asian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over , it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and religious interactions between the ...

from the

Arabian Peninsula The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...

passed through here on the way to the Aegean coast. Sultandağı is famous for cherries which is exported to over 50 countries. Every year, "Cherry Festival" takes places in Sultandagi. In this festival, the farmers competes to exhibit their cherries to the jury. taking the "size" criteria into consideration, the jury tries to decide the owner of the biggest cherries in the related year. Usually, the first winner is awarded with gold, fuel for their tractors, etc. During the festival, famous singers performs on the stage. Some of these singers are Orhan Hakalmaz, Murat Basaran, Izzet Altinmese, Lara, Sumer Ezgu, etc. There was a large earthquake in 2001 which caused little loss of life; it was this event which led most people to focus their attention on the town.

References

Populated places in Afyonkarahisar Province Sultandağı District District municipalities in Turkey {{Afyonkarahisar-geo-stub