1. TURKEY

3. COUNTRY PROFILE & FACTS
Official Name
Republic of Turkey
Date of Foundation
29 October 1923
Capital
Ankara
Largest Cities
Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Adana, Antalya
Area
814.578 km2
Coastal Borders
Mediterranean Sea in the south, Aegean Sea in the west and Black Sea in the north
Language
The official language is Turkish. English is widely spoken in major cities.
Currency
TL (Turkish Lira)
Business Hours
The workweek in Turkey runs from Monday to Friday. Banks, government offices
and majority of corporate offices open at 9 AM and close at 5 PM.
Public Holidays
There are two types of public holidays in Turkey: Those that fall on the same day
each year; and the religious festivals, which change according to the lunar calendar
and, therefore, fall on different dates each year.

4. Nature & Geography
Turkey is a vast peninsula, covering an area of 814,578 square kilometres or
314,510 square miles and linking Asia to Europe through the Sea of
Marmara and the Straits of Istanbul and Çanakkale. Across the Sea of
Marmara, the triangular shaped Trace is the continuation of Turkey on the
European continent. Anatolia is rectangular in outline, 1500 kilometres long
and 550 kilometres wide.
It is characterised by a central plateau surrounded by chains of mountains
on the north, west and south and a rugged mountainous region in the east
with an average elevation of 1050 metres. In the west, the mountains
descend gently towards the sea. The northern Anatolia mountain range, and
the Taurus range in the south, stretches like arcs, becoming ever denser in
the east. Turkey's highest mountain peak at 5165 metres or 16,946 feet is
Ağrı Dağı (Mount Ararat), situated in the north east. It is believed to have
been the resting place for Noah's Ark.

5. Nature & Geography
Turkey is like a mosaic made up of many different reliefs and formations:
parallel mountain ranges, extinct volcanoes, plateaux fissured by valleys and
plains. Surrounded on its three sides by warm seas, it falls in the temperate
climate zone.The climate varies considerably however from region to
region: a temperate climate in the Black Sea Region, a Mediterranean
climate on the southern coast and the Aegean, a continental and arid
climate on the central plateau and a harsh mountain climate in eastern
Turkey. Because of these variations in climate, the fauna and flora are
some of the richest in Europe and the Middle East.
Turkey is separated into seven geographical regions, which are, in order of
size: East Anatolia (21 %), Central Anatolia (20%), Black Sea (18%),
Mediterranean (15%), Aegean (10%), Marmara (8.5%) and Southeast
Anatolia (7.5%).

6. History
The Turkish nation engaged in a struggle to restore her territorial
integrity and independence, to repulse foreign aggressors, to
create a new state, to disassociate Turkey from the crumbling
Ottoman dynasty, to eradicate an old and decrepit order and to
build a modern country dedicated to political, social and
economic progress. This was the vision of Atatürk, a general in the
Ottoman army who had distinguished himself in the defence of
Gallipoli (Çanakkale) against the Naval Forces of Britain, France,
Australia and New Zealand. The Ottoman victory over the Allies
at Gallipoli renewed Turkey's visions for the empire Atatürk
wanted a clean break with the past, to unite the nation in the
quest for modernism and to lift Turkey to the level of European
countries. On October 29 1923, the republic was proclaimed and
Atatürk was elected president. Secularism was established by
separating religious and state affairs.The Latin alphabet replaced
the Arabic script and women were given the right to vote and to
be elected as members of parliament. These reforms, as well as
many others in all aspects of social life, put Turkey on the track
towards becoming a thoroughly modern country.

7. History
When Ataturk died in 1938, he left a legacy of which the Turkish people today are proud. A nation
that had regained confidence in itself after the independence war; a society determined to preserve
the political, intellectual, cultural and social values he had bequeathed. The Turkish Republic has now
been a member of the international community for over 80 years. During this period, great changes
have occurred and many difficulties have been encountered. But the country remains firmly attached
to the policies initiated by Ataturk. It has established a democratic multi-party political system,
developed a vibrant civil society, and embarked on the path of industrialisation and market economy.
It has consolidated its ties with the west and with the European Union through membership in
NATO and the Council of Europe and Customs Union. These trends mark a radical change from the
days of the Ottoman Empire. Yet there is also continuity. The Turks have inherited both from the
Islamic past and their Ottoman past. They have also inherited from their western past, as well as
forming a part of the Western present. All these heritages, Eastern and Western, Asian and European,
are intermingled in the civilisation of modem Turkey. A symbol of this union is the two bridges that
span the Istanbul Strait, linking the two continents with many pasts and one future.And Turkey is a
candidate country negotiating with European Union for being a member of EU. A Turkish
government agency; General Secretariat of European Union is responsible for the negotiations.

8. Turkish Art & Culture: Past & Present
DANCE
 Turkey has a very ancient folk dance tradition, which varies from region to region, each dance being
colourful, rhythmic, elegant and stylish. The following are among the most popular: “Çayda Çıra” from
the Sivas region in Central Anatolia is performed by young girls dressed in silver and gold
embroidered kaftans who dance in the dark with lighted candles in their hands. In the “Silifke
Yoğurdu” from the Mersin region in the South Mediterranean, dancers click wooden spoons
together above their heads. “Şeyh Şamil" from the Kars region in the East, is a beautifully
dramatised legend of a Caucasian hero. "Kılıç Kalkan” is an epic dance performed with swords and
shields from the region of Bursa, and “Zeybek” from Izmir is another epic and vigorous folk dance
performed, by male dancers who bang their knees on the floor in between steps.
 Folklore has also had a considerable influence on ballet. First imported from Europe and Russia,
ballet became institutionalised in the Republican era along with other performing arts. The Turkish
State Ballet owes its momentum and development to the great British choreographer Dame Ninette
de Valois. The State Ballet in both Ankara and İstanbul has, for decades, performed many world
classics. Several new foreign and Turkish productions have been introduced into the repertoire over
the years and a number of modern dance groups like the infamous “Fire of Anatolia” (Anadolu Atesi)
have recently begun to give performances all over the world.

9. Turkish Art & Culture: Past & Present
MUSIC
 Turkish music evolved from the original folk form into classical through the emergence of a Palace culture.
It attained its highest point in the 16th century through the composer “Itri”. Great names in Turkish
classical music include “Dede Efendi”, “Hacı Arif Bey” and “Tamburi Cemil Bey”. It is a form that continues
to be professionally performed and one that attracts large audiences.Turkish music, locally called Turkish
Classical Music, is a variation of the national musical tradition, played with instruments such as the
tambur, kanun, ney and ud.
 Folk music has developed gradually over the centuries in the rural areas of Turkey. It is highly diversified
with many different rhythms and themes. Musical archives contain almost 10,000 such folk songs.Turkish
religious music, mostly in the form of songs, is centuries old and rich in tradition, embodied most perfectly
by Sufi (Mevlevi) music.
 The Turks were introduced to western classical music through orchestras, which were invited to the
Sultan's Palace to celebrate occasions such as weddings.The great Italian composer, Donizetti, conducted
the Palace Orchestra for many years. The first military band was founded in the 19th century. During the
Republican era, the Presidential Symphony Orchestra, founded in 1924, and the Orchestra of the Istanbul
Municipality Conservatory played a leading role in introducing and popularising classical music in Turkey.
Turkish composers drew their inspiration from Turkish folk songs and Turkish classical music.Today,
conductors such as Hikmet Şimşek and Gürer Aykal, pianists like İdil Biret and the Güher and Süher
Pekinel sisters, and violinists like Suna Kan are internationally recognised virtuosos. Leyla Gencer was one
of the leading sopranos of La Scala Opera, wildly acclaimed whenever she performed in her native
Istanbul.

10. Turkish Art & Culture: Past & Present
THEATRE AND CINEMA
 Turkish theatre is thought to have originated from the popular Karagöz shadow plays, a cross between moralistic Punch
and Judy and the slapstick Laurel and Hardy. It then developed along an oral tradition, with plays performed in public
places, such as coffee houses and gardens, exclusively by male actors.
 Atatürk gave great importance to the arts, and actively encouraged theatre, music and ballet, prompting the foundation
of many state institutions.Turkey today boasts a thriving arts scene, with highly professional theatre, opera and ballet
companies, as well as a flourishing film industry.
 The making of films in the true language of the cinema, free from the influence of the theatre, began towards the 1950s.
One of the first of these directors was Ömer Lütfi Akad. Towards the 1960s, some 60 films a year were being made.
Starting from that time, directors such as Metin Erksan, Halit Refiğ, Ertem Göreç, Duygu Sağıroğlu, Nevzat Pesen and
Memduh Ün produced successful films taking social problems as their subject matter. The period that began in the late
1960s, when television was having an adverse effect on the cinema, saw such prominent directors as Yılmaz Güney, Atıf
Yılmaz, Süreyya Duru, Zeki Ökten, Şerif Gören, Fevzi Tuna, Ömer Kavur and Ali Özgentürk.
 Nuri Bilge Ceylan, Fatih Akın, Ferzan Özpetek, Abdullah Oğuz and Semih Kaplanoğlu are successful directors of today’s
Turkish cinema. Nuri Bilge Ceylan's film “Uzak” won Grand Prix at Cannes Film Festival in 2003. “The Edge Of Heaven”
(Yaşamın Kıyısında) which directed by Fatih Akın (2006), won the Award for Best Screenplay (Prix De Scénario) at
Cannes 2007. The record holder of Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival “Egg” (Yumurta), film of Semih Kaplanoğlu, was
awarded with Best 2nd Film in Estoril European Film Festival, which took place in Portugal and honoured with
Eurimages Award by the jury of Sevilla Film Festival in Spain. “Bliss” (Abdullah Oğuz, 2007) has been rewarded with
European Council's 'Human Rights Award'. Nuri Bilge Ceylan won the best director award in the 2008 Cannes Film
Festival for his Üç Maymun (Three Monkeys).
 The country enjoys numerous performing arts festivals throughout the year, the most prestigious of which is the
Istanbul International Festival and the Antalya Film Festival.

11. Turkish Art & Culture: Past & Present
FINE ARTS
Until the 18th century, painting in Turkey was mainly
in the form of miniatures, usually linked to books in
the form of manuscript illustrations. In the 18th
century, trends shifted towards oil painting, beginning
with murals. Thereafter, under European inspiration,
painting courses were introduced in military schools.
The first Turkish painters were therefore military
people. The modernisation of Turkish painting,
including representation of the human figure,
started with the founding of the Academy of Arts
under the direction of Osman Hamdi Bey, one of the
great names in Turkish painting. In 1923, following
the proclamation of the Republic, a society of
contemporary painting was set-up, followed by many
other such schools. Art exhibitions in Turkey’s cities
multiplied, more and more people started to acquire
paintings, and banks, and companies began
investing in art.

12. Turkish Art & Culture: Past & Present
LITERATURE
 Literature has long been an important component of Turkish cultural life, reflecting the history of the people, their
legends, their mysticism, and the political and social changes that affected this land throughout its long history. The
oldest literary legacy of the pre-Islamic period are the Orhon inscriptions in northern Mongolia, written in 735 on two
large stones in honour of a Turkish king and his brother. During the Ottoman period, the prevailing literary form was
poetry, the dominant dialect was Anatolian or Ottoman, and the main subject beauty and romance. The Ottoman Divan
literature was highly influenced by Persian culture and written in a dialect, which combined Arabic, Persian and Turkish.
Separate from the aristocratic Divan literature, folk literature continued to dominate Anatolia where troubadour-like
poets celebrated nature, love and God in simple Turkish language. Towards the 20th century, the language of Turkish
literature became simpler and more political and social in substance. The great and politically controversial poet, Nazım
Hikmet, inspired by the Russian poet Mayakowski, introduced free verse in the late 1930s. Nowadays, the irrefutable
master of the Turkish popular novel is Yaşar Kemal, with his authentic, colourful and forceful description of Anatolian
life.Young Turkish writers tend to go beyond the usual social issues, preferring to tackle problems such as feminism and
aspects of die East-West dichotomy that continues to fascinate Turkish intellectuals.
 The most well-known and widely-read writers of the 1950-1990 period can be listed as follows: Tarik Dursun K., Atilla
lhan,Yasar Kemal, Orhan Kemal, Kemal Tahir, Tarik Bugra, Aziz Nesin, Mustafa Necati Sepetçioglu, Firuzan, Adalet Agaoglu,
Sevgi Soysal, Tomris Uyar, Selim Ileri, Cevat Sakir (Halikarnas Balıkçısı), Necati Cumalı, Haldun Taner. Prominent poets in
this period are: Behçet Kemal Çaglar, Necati Cumalı , Oktay Rıfat, Melih Cevdet Anday, Cemal Süreya, Edip Cansever,
Özdemir İnce, Ataol Behramoğlu, Ismet Özel, Ece Ayhan, Turgut Uyar, Sezai Karakoç, Bahaettin Karakoç, Ümit Yasar
Oguzcan, Orhan Pamuk .
 The Nobel Prize in Literature for 2006 was awarded to the Turkish writer Orhan Pamuk who in the quest for the
melancholic soul of his native city discovered new symbols for the clash and interlacing of cultures.

13. Turkish Art & Culture: Past & Present
OPERA AND BALLET
In the period prior to the proclamation of the Republic in Turkey, opera, ballet and the theatre were
mostly centred around Istanbul and Izmir. The first showing of opera at the imperial court was by artists
trained by Guiseppe Donizetti (1788-1856) from the Italian opera. During the Republic, Ahmet Adnan
Saygun, Necil Kazım Akses and Cemal Reşit Rey were the first composers of opera, operettas and
musicals.
 A. Adnan Saygun's first two operas, Özsoy and Tasbebek, Necil Kazım Akses's Bay Önder staged in
Ankara, a Mozart musical Bastien and Bastienne staged at the Ankara State Conservatory with pupils
playing libretto in Turkish (1936),and the staging of western operas such as Madame Butterfly and Tosca
(1940-1941).The orchestrations, chorus and solo recitals of 1950-1952 all contributed to form a
foundation for the establishment of today's State Opera and Ballet.
 Meanwhile in 1947, the famous ballerina and teacher Ninette de Valois was invited to Istanbul and
through her efforts, the National Ballet School at Yeşilköy was set up. In 1956-57, the first dancers
graduated from Ankara State Conservatory and in 1959-60, the State Opera formed a corps de ballet.
"Çesmebaşı" which is one of the most important works in Turkish ballet history was first performed in
1965.
 Notwithstanding the short history of opera in Turkey which only spans 56 years, the General
Directorate of State Opera and Ballet counts amongst its members many artists of international fame,
and aside from Ankara and Istanbul, many other branches have been set up in cities around the country
and the results everywhere have been very successful.

14. Turkish cuisine
Turkish cuisine is renowned as one of the world's best. It is considered to be one of the three
main cuisines of the world because of the variety of its recipes, its use of natural
ingredients, its flavours and tastes that appeal to all palates and its influence throughout
Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. The cuisine originated in central Asia, the first
home of the Turks, and then evolved with the contributions of the inland and
Mediterranean cultures with which Turks interacted after their arrival in Anatolia.
Turkish cuisine is in a sense a bridge between far-Eastern and Mediterranean cuisines,
with the accent always on enhancing the natural taste and flavour of the ingredients. There
is no one dominant element in Turkish cuisine, like sauces in French and pasta in Italian
cuisines.
While the Palace cuisine was developing in İstanbul, local cuisines in Anatolia were multiplying
in several regions, all displaying different geographical and climactic characteristics. These
cuisines, after remaining within regional borders for centuries, are now being transported
to the big cities and their suburbs as a consequence of large-scale urbanisation and
migration towards new urban centres. As a result, the national Turkish cuisine has been
enriched by the contribution of a great number of local recipes.

15. Turkish cuisine
A main meal will usually start with soup and the meze, a variety of small cold and hot dishes,
which are made for sharing. In many restaurants, a waiter will bring these around on a tray for
you to look and make your choice. Tarama salad, cacık (tzatziki), dolma (vine leaves or peppers
stuffed with rice), börek (pastries), beyaz peynir (similar to feta) arnavut ciğeri (cubed fried
liver) are amongst the many types of mezes found in most of the restaurants.
The main course is usually meat or fish.Turks always eat bread with their meal and main courses
are usually served with rice. Typically, çoban salatası, a salad made of tomato, cucumber, parsley
and onion, dressed with olive oil and lemon juice, will be offered as a side dish. Lamb is the
most popular meat and prepared in a variety of ways, including “şiş kebap” (grilled cubes of
seasoned meat on a skewer). “Köfte”, which are like small lamb meatballs and are well worth
trying. Those who prefer something hot and spicy should try “Adana kebap”, which is made of
minced lamb but with the addition of hot peppers and spices formed around a flat skewer.
There are numerous variations and regional specialities of kebap. Somewhat rich but very tasty,
is the İskender or Bursa kebab, named respectively after Alexander the Great and the town in
which it originated. It consists of slices of döner meat laid over small bites of a freshly cooked
flat bread and covered with tomato sauce and hot butter all served with yoghurt. Turks are
traditionally fond of stews called sulu yemek or ev yemeği (home cooked) and therefore there
are many restaurants offering these foods which are usually displayed in the entrance of the
restaurant in large glass displays making it easier to choose.