General

Official Name: The Republic of Turkey (Türkiye Cumhuriyeti)
Founder: Mustafa Kemal ATATÜRK ( 1881-1938 )
Location: Eastern Mediterranean. Located on two continents: Europe and Asia. The European part of Turkey is called Thrace, while the Asian part is called Anatolia (or Asia Minor)
Area: 814 578 square kilometers (314 500 square miles)
% 3 on the European continent
% 97 on the Asian continent
Capital: Ankara
Population: 67.8 million (as of 2002)
Major Cities: (as of 2002)
Istanbul 10 million
Ankara 4 million
Izmir 3.4 million
Bursa 2.1 million
Konya 2.2 million
Adana 1.8 million
Language: Turkish (uses Latin Alphabet)
Currency: Turkish Lira
Religion: % 99 of the population is Muslim. Turkey is the only country among Islamic countries, which has included secularism in her Constitution and guarantees complete freedom of worship to non-Muslims.
Flag: Red background with a white crescent and star in the middle.

Government: Turkey is democratic, secular and social state governed by the rule of law; committed to the nationalism of Atatürk and based on the principle of the separation of powers;
Legislative power: The Turkish Grand National Assembly
Executive power: President and the Council of Ministers
Judicial power: Independent courts and supreme judiciary organs

Secondary Education: Consists of general and vocational-technical high schools that offer at least three years of education.
Higher Education: Includes all educational institutions where an educational programme of at least two years over and above secondary education is implemented. These educate students at associate's, bachelor's, master's or doctorate degree levels.

Coastline: 8333 Km. (5000 miles) Turkey is surrounded by sea on three sides, by the Black Sea in the North, the Mediterranean in the south and the Aegean Sea in theWest. In the northwest there is also an important internal sea, the Sea of Marmara, between the straits of the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus.
Geographical Regions: Turkey has 80 administrative provinces and seven geographical regions. The first four of the seven regions are given the names the seas which are adjacent to them.

- Black Sea Region
- Marmara Region
- Aegean Region
- Mediterranean Region

The other three regions are named in accordance with their location in the whole of Anatolia.

- Central Anatolia Region
- Eastern Anatolia Region
- Southeastern Anatolia Region

Famous Landmarks: In Istanbul: Ayasofya, Topkapi Palace, Blue Mosque, Dolmabahce Palace, Kariye Museum.
Elsewhere in Turkey: Ancient City of Troy, Ephesus, Aphrodisias, Pergamon, Pamukkale, Goreme-Cappadocia, Mt.Nemrut, Safranbolu, Mevlevi Convent and Museum, Halil Rahman Mosque in Sanli Urfa. Istanbul, Safranbolu, Bogazkoy-Hattushash, Mt. Nemrut Remains, Xanthos-Lethoon, Divrigi Great Mosque and Hospital, Troy, Pamukkale and Goreme-Cappadocia are registered on the World Heritage List to help preserve them for future generations.

Composition of GNP(as of 2001)

Agriculture: 12.9 %
Industry : 25.3 %
Services : 61.8 %

Some Important Products: As of 2000, Turkey has the first place in the world in terms of hard-shell nuts, fig and apricot production, fourth in fresh vegetables, grape and tobacco production and seventh in wheat and cotton production. Turkish delight and helva are famous throughout the world.

Turkey is among the leading countries in the world in textiles and ready to wear clothing production. The exports of this sector constitute 37 percent of total industrial exports. The leather processing industry is also very developed in Turkey both in terms of technological level and high production capacity and comes after textiles in terms of export figures.

High-quality handmade Turkish carpets are also one of the main export items of Turkey the most famous and finest pure silk carpets of the world are produced in the small town of Hereke, 60 km east of Istanbul.

Turkey is Europe's third largest ceramic producer.

Time: Local time is equal to GMT + 2 hours. Same time zone all over the country(seven hours ahead of U.S. -eastern standard time-)
Electricity: 220 volts a.c. all over Turkey
Weights and Measures: Metric and Kilo system

For More Information:

Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Turkish Ministry of Tourism
Turkish Ministry of Culture