| Where
is Turkey? |
The map at the top of the page
shows Turkey's location (shown in pink) relative to Europe and the Mediterranean. The map
on the right shows Turkey in the context of the
Middle East. Turkey's geography has always placed
it between two worlds: Asia and the Middle East
on one side, and Europe on the other. This has
always made for interesting history and fascinating
mixing of cultures in Turkey.
Turkey borders seven nations:
Greece, Bulgaria, Georgia, Armenia, Iran, Iraq
and Syria.
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The modern Republic
of Turkey is a nation of about 65 million people.
It is approximately the area of Texas. It is mostly
in Asia (the areas once known as Asia Minor and
Anatolia), with only a small area west of Istanbul
in Europe. Asia and Europe are divided by an important
water passage between the Black and Mediterranean
Seas (the Dardenelle, the Sea of Marmara and the
Bosphorus).
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| What
about Istanbul? |
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Istanbul, once Constantinople,
is the largest city in Turkey (somewhere between
8 and 12 million people). It is a city on two continents,
built on both sides of the Bosphorus Straights which
connect the Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea. The
map on the right shows the region of Northwestern
Turkey around the Sea of Marmara. Istanbul is shown
in yellow.
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This highway map
zooms in to the scale of Greater Istanbul. The old
city is the point that sticks out at the mouth of
the Sea of Marmara.
As you can see,
there are two bridges over the Bosphorus, the only
road links between the two continents (at least
in this part of the world). Many Istanbul residents
cross between the two continents everyday, either
on the bridges or the many ferries.
I have also added
the general location of Atasehir (look for red on
the right side), the neighborhood where we are living.
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The neighborhoods
of Istanbul are distinguished in the map on the
right. Atasehir is actually a part of Kadikoy, in
the Northeast part of it. Eyuboglu is in Umraniye,
just north of us.
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This map shows
the most historical and most visited areas in Istanbul,
located around the Golden Horn, an inlet off the
Bosphorus. The Old City of Istanbul, south of the
Golden Horn, includes the Ayasofya, the imperial
mosques, and the Topkapi Palace. North of the Golden
Horn is Beyoglu, home through history of many foreigner
communites, and now busy, dense, and cosmopolitian.
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More
Maps Online
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I hope you enjoyed Istanbul Geography 101! Press back to return to where
you were,
or click here to return to the main page.
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