Zonguldak () is a
city
A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
of about 100 thousand people in the
Black Sea 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
Zonguldak Province
Zonguldak Province () is a province along the western Black Sea coast region of Turkey. Its area is 3,342 km2, and its population is 588,510 (2022). Its adjacent provinces are Düzce to the southwest, Bolu to the south, Karabük to the sou ...
and
Zonguldak District.
[İl Belediyesi]
Turkey Civil Administration Departments Inventory. Retrieved 1 March 2023. It was established in 1849 as a port town for the nearby coal mines in
Ereğli. The current mayor is Tahsin Erdem, representing the
CHP.
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 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 or Sandarake (in
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), 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
A ''lubok'' (plural ''lubki''; ) is a Russian popular print, characterized by simple graphics and narratives derived from literature, religious stories, and popular tales. ''Lubki'' prints were used as decoration in houses and inns. Early exampl ...
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 which distributed
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 ...
to exporting vessels.
[
]
Climate
According to the Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
, Zonguldak has a humid subtropical climate
A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...
(''Cfa''), though it was, until recently, considered to have an oceanic climate
An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...
(''Cfb''), with its warmest month being well below the 22 °C threshold. In recent decades climate change
Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...
and the city's urban heat island
Urban areas usually experience the urban heat island (UHI) effect; that is, they are significantly warmer than surrounding rural areas. The temperature difference is usually larger at night than during the day, and is most apparent when winds ar ...
has warmed the city enough to change its classification. 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. Snow is sporadic in winter, but is heavy once it occurs.
The water temperature is cool to mild and fluctuates between 8 °C and 20 °C throughout the year.
Health
It was determined that coal-related lung diseases are more common than normal. During the quarantine period in Turkey, Zonguldak was also quarantined in addition to the metropolitan cities.
Economy
Jobs in coal in Turkey
Coal supplies a quarter of Energy in Turkey, Turkey's primary energy, and the country is one of the largest consumers in the world. The heavily Fossil fuel subsidies#Turkey, subsidised coal industry generates over a third of the Electricity sec ...
are being lost and in 2020 the EBRD
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, shortened to EBRD ( French: ''Banque européenne pour la reconstruction et le développement'' or ''BERD''), is an international financial institution founded in 1991 in Paris. As a multilat ...
proposed a just transition
Just transition is a concept that emerged in the 1980s through efforts by U.S. trade unions to protect workers' rights and livelihoods as economies shift to sustainable production, primarily protecting workers affected by environmental regulati ...
. However a 2021 study said the city was unprepared for coal-phase out. In 2024 a local journalist alleged that hundreds of Afghans
Afghans (; ) are the citizens and nationals of Afghanistan, as well as their descendants in the Afghan diaspora. The country is made up of various ethnic groups, of which Pashtuns, Tajiks, Hazaras, and Uzbeks are the largest. The three main lan ...
were being employed in illegal coal mines, and in 2024 a court case re the death of an Afghan was ongoing.
Transportation
The city is the terminus of a railway line to Irmak, with the terminating station Zonguldak Railway Station built in 1937.
International relations
Zonguldak is twinned with:
* Brindisi
Brindisi ( ; ) 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. Historically, the city has played an essential role in trade and culture due to its strategic position ...
, Apulia
Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...
, Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
* Castrop-Rauxel
Castrop-Rauxel (), often simply referred to as Castrop by locals, is a former coal mining city in the eastern part of the Ruhr Area within the state of North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany.
Geography
Castrop-Rauxel is located in Germany between Dort ...
, North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...
, Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
* Kherson
Kherson (Ukrainian language, Ukrainian and , , ) is a port city in southern Ukraine that serves as the administrative centre of Kherson Oblast. Located by the Black Sea and on the Dnieper, Dnieper River, Kherson is the home to a major ship-bui ...
, Kherson Oblast
Kherson Oblast (, ; ), also known as Khersonshchyna (, ), is an administrative divisions of Ukraine, oblast (province) in southern Ukraine. It is located just north of Crimea. Its administrative center is Kherson, on the northern or right bank ...
, Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
* Monfalcone
Monfalcone (; Venetian language#Regional variants, Bisiacco: ; ; ; archaic ) is a town and (municipality) in the Province of Gorizia, Regional decentralization entity of Gorizia in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, northern Italy, located on the Gulf of Tr ...
, Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Friuli-Venezia Giulia () is one of the 20 regions of Italy and one of five autonomous regions with special statute. The regional capital is Trieste on the Gulf of Trieste, a bay of the Adriatic Sea.
Friuli-Venezia Giulia has an area of and a ...
, Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
Notable people
* Enrico Braggiotti - Turkish-born Monegasque banker
* Ergün Penbe - Turkish former footballer
*Murat Boz
Murat Boz (born 7 March 1980) is a Turkish people, Turkish singer, songwriter and actor.
Boz began his solo career by releasing his first single, "Aşkı Bulamam Ben", in 2006. In the following year his first studio album titled ''Maximum (Mura ...
- Turkish singer-songwriter and actor
* Nilgün Efes - Turkish entrepreneur and journalist
See also
* Zonguldak basin
References
External links
Zonguldak Municipality official website
History of Mind
Zonguldak Documentary
;Videos
Video 1
''Zonguldak Akşamları''
Video 2
''Resimlerle Zonguldak''
{{Authority control
Populated places in Zonguldak District
Black Sea port cities and towns in Turkey
Populated places established in 1849
Mining in Turkey
Populated coastal places in Turkey
1849 establishments in the Ottoman Empire
Greek colonies in Bithynia
Provincial municipalities in Turkey