İZMİR PROVINCIAL DIRECTORATE OF CULTURE AND TOURISM

İZMİR

P N

''They established their city under the most supreme dome of sky and the best climate in the world'' Aristotle told his student the Great Alexander ''You are not complete if you haven't seen it'' and Victor Hugo said ''İzmir is a princess adorning a necklace''.

Sultan IV . Murat Baghdad gave some land to those who helped him during the Bağdat campaign . He donated Aliağa region to the Abdülkerim Ağa . After Abdülkerim Ağa's death, his lands were shared among his sons and the present-day Aliağa region was left to Çelebi Bey and Ali Ağa . Ali Aga established a large farm here and the region was known by this name.

The name of the village, which was used as Ayesefit in ancient times, was changed to Balchik Havi because of the fact that a large part of the village land was balch, and then the Balchik Ova, which was said to be said, merged and took its current name Balcova.

When Bayındır district was found to be a settlement is not exactly known. Researchs in the region reveal that respectively in 3000 B.C. Hittites, in 700 Phrygians and Lydians ruled in the region. And in 900 A.D. Byzantines, after the year of 1084 Seljukians and also after the year of 1425 Ottomans took over in the region.

The first of the myths of Bayraklı is narrated; Relations with Turkish pirates who chose the West Anatolian coasts as human resources. It is tried to attract volunteer soldiers by coming to İzmir and opening flags. Since the flags are opened at the location of Bayraklı today and the volunteers are written there, the name of the region remains Bayraklı over the years.

Medicine, written knowledge and Zeus is the glory of Pergamon- the name of the ancient city found in the district of Bergama, 100 km from İzmir. Pergamon was one of the important trade centres in the Mysian region during the ancient period. On becoming the capital of the Kingdom of Pergamon between 282 – 133 BC, the city was thus named after Pergamos, a legendary king. By killing the King of Teuthrania, Pergamos captured the city, and so gave it his name.

Richness of nature in terms of geographical location of Beydağ district has gained the admiration of people since ancient times. In this respect, Beydağ has been one of the places where various tribes settled and lived since the early ages of history.

The settlement started in Hellenistic age in Bornova whose oldest known name is Birun-u Abad. Although the name was mentioned in the Ottoman records as Birunabad, that the word ‘birun’ which means ‘’external, outer’’ in Farsi does not generally correspond to the ‘’--abad’’ affix (such as Islamabad, Hyderabad) which is often used together with a special name in place names suggest that ‘’Birunabad’’ is the version of a name which may have been tampered with or modified. It was also suggested that the name was originally referred to as "Burunova".

Buca, which is a district of İzmir Province in the Aegean Region, is surrounded by Bornova in the north, Kemalpaşa in the east, Torbalı in the southeast, and Konak district in the south and southwest. It was founded on a slightly hilly terrain on the southern skirts of Buca Nif Mountain. The Melez Stream, which originates from Mount Nif, pours into the sea in Halkapınar and irrigates the district's territory.

Çeşme is a charming holiday resort with healing hot waters, sand and sun. Çeşme is located at the very end of the peninsula bearing its name, on 94 km west of Izmir. It was named as a small harbor by sailors. However, the region was called Çeşme because of the abundance of spring waters in and around Çeşme, and because of the icy water that flows out of its fountains which increased in the number over time. Building fountains around these constantly flowing resources has been among our old traditions as it is today.

In ancient times, it is known that the district was called “ÇİĞLİ” by the first inhabitants, since the district consisted of swamps and reeds in general, and because of its proximity to the sea, the green areas were very dewy.

Dikili is 120 km. north of the provincial centre of İzmir. It is a lovely district appealing to local and foreign tourists alike. The Sub-District of Çandarlı, a major tourist spot with its rich history and extraordinary beauty, is a part of Dikili. Natural attractions include a crater lake in Merdivenli Village, and pine forests and historical caves in Demirtaş and Deliktaş villages.

Foca (Phocaea) was one of the most important settlements of Ionia. Present western civilization was founded in Ionia in 6th century BC. Ionia at that time led the fields of philosophy, architecture and sculpture. Telephanes of Phocaea (5th century BC) was such a successful sculptor that he decorated to Persian palaces with his work. Theodoros (4th century BC) was a famous architect. Dionysos, a commander who led the Battle of Lade, was from Phocaea. This commander was named after ‘God of Wine’- Dionysos who is one of the biggest heroes of mythology.

It was among the foundations of ‘Zawiya of Seyyid Mükerremüddin’ by “Gazi Umur Bey” (Ghazi Umur Bey) during the Beylik of Seydikoy Aydınogullari at the beginning of the 14th century and it reached the condition of a large village demographically and economically in the 15th and 16th centuries. Its improvement compared to nearby other settlements made it the center of township after the second half of the 19th century. Although the center was moved to Cumaovasi due to totally being destroyed during invasion years, its name was not changed. It continued to be administrative center by reconstruction with the settlement of exchanged immigrants.

The name of Klazomenai established in 7th century BC, turned to Klizman in colloquial language over time. This name had been used through long ages. However, Governor Kazim DIRIK visiting the district in 1936 after the establishment of Republic of Türkiye made a proposal. This proposal was related to the name of the place being Kizilbahce because the land of this region was scarlet and a lot of martyr blood was shed here during the War of Independence. This proposal was approved and after that date, the name of Kizilbahce started to be used. But, in the direction of reactions appearing in time about the word of ‘Scarlet’, the name was changed again and became ‘Guzelbahce’ during the foundation of the municipality in 1954.

t is one of the oldest settlements of Izmir. Emrez and Aktepe were covered by vineyards almost 200 year ago. It is known that vineyards of Bozyaka, which were mentioned in Resat Nuri Guntekin’s novels in 1920s, were protected until 1970s. His house where he wrote his novel called as ‘Calikusu’ and it was located in Bozyaka was turned to a library bearing his name in recent years.

There are many various opinions and assumptions about the origin of its name. The fact that the name of the peninsula was ‘Capo Calaberno’ makes people think that the name came phonetically from the phrase by changing. According to an assumption, by considering the color of the rocks, the peninsula was called as ‘Karaburun (Black Headland)’ because people saw firstly a place called ‘Komur Burnu (Headland of Coal)’ when going to the peninsula by sea. Another assumption was based on the reason that the direction of north called ‘Kara’ and the direction of south called ‘Ak’ in the old Turkish naming methods. The present district center was mentioned as ‘Karaburun’, the headland of Esendere was mentioned as ‘Akburun (White Headland) in old maps.

Cordelio is one of the oldest names of Karsiyaka. The name of Karsiyaka comes from ‘Coeur de Lion’. It means ‘Lion Heart’ in French. In 3rd Crusades, armies of Lion heart Richard stayed Karsiyaka and gave the name of Cordelion, which is the name of Lion Heart Richard, to this region. Coeur de Lion turned into Cordelieu, Cordelion, Kordelya (Cordelio) and finally Karsiyaka in time. There are many cafes named ‘Kordelya’ even today.

The district is located 29 km east of İzmir, 8 km south of Izmir-Ankara Highway. There is Turgutlu in the east, Manisa in the north, Bornova and the center of Izmir in the west, Torbali and Bayindir in the south. Its surface area is 658 km2 and its altitude is 225 meters.

Kiraz is a district in the Aegean region, located in a small part of the Aegean Region, on the plain overlooking a beautiful plain near Bozdağ. It forms a passage from Bozdağ to Salihli, from Aydın mountains to Nazilli and Alaşehir. Its height (altitude) is 312 meters from the sea, and its surface area is 585 km2. (58.582 Hectares) Its distance from İzmir is 140 km.

Throughout history, İzmir has been a port city and Konak has been the city centre of İzmir. Following recent restorations this area has also been turned into a recreational centre, and thus is now a lively spot throughout the day. In the square can be seen: - the monumental statue of Hasan Tahsin, who fired the “first bullet” at the occupation forces during the War of Liberation, the Yalı Mosque decorated with tiles from Kütahya, the Clock Tower, the Municipality Building and the Governor’s Office.

The Menderes district is 20 km. from İzmir. The ancient city of Lebedos is in the Ürkmez location, in the west of the district. The ruins of the ancient cities of Colophon, Claros, Notion and Lebedos, located adjacent to each other, are the important archaeological reference points concerning the history of the area. The sub-district of Gümüldür located in this region is the producer of “satsuma”, a world famous type of tangerine. The subdistrict of Özdere is a location not only popular for its clean sea and coast, but also for offering great fishing opportunities for amateur fisherman. Beads produced by the local people in the Village of Görece in Menderes are used to avert the evil eye, a place of particular interest to local and foreign tourists alike.

Menemen connected to Izmir Province is 35 km away from Izmir. Menemen is 27.4 degrees longitude and 38.35 degrees latitude. It is surrounded by Manisa Province in the east, Foca District in the west, Aegean Sea and Aliaga District in the north, Cigli District in the south. Its height above sea level is 20 m on average.

Narlidere, located in the west of Izmir, borders with Balcova and Guzelbahce districts. Narlidere, which has the cleanest waters of the Gulf of Izmir, is an oxygen reservoir with pine forests covering Catalkaya Mountain. Narlidere, which is one of the districts with the widest green texture of Izmir thanks to its modern residences and its regular urbanization, has been among the most popular districts of Izmir thanks to these features. Within the boundaries of the district, there is the world's second largest nursing home and a 5-star tourist hotel in terms of modernity and size. Narlidere's biggest goal is to host investments for thermal tourism.

The ruins of the ancient city of Hypaiapa, excavated to the north of Ödemiş district and located 113 km east of İzmir, demonstrate that the history of the local settlement dates back to ancient times. The historical significance of Ödemiş and its environs originates from a nearby settlement, Birgi, which functioned as the capital in the Aydınoğulları era.

45 km. from İzmir in a western direction brings you to the charming place of Seferhisar. A lovely area surrounded by olive and citrus fruit trees, and one which displays all the typical characteristics of the Aegean.

The Selçuk District is on the İzmir – Aydın Highway, 74 km. South from İzmir. Selçuk rightfully prides itself as a home to a large number of historic works and ruins, over an area of 10 km² These include: the Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World; House of the Virgin Mary, which is sacred for Christians; the Ancient City of Ephesus, which is the most splendid ancient city in Türkiye; the tomb and church of St John, who was one of Jesus Christ’s disciples; Seven Sleepers Cave; İsa Bey Mosque; Selçuk Castle; aqueducts; and civil architecture examples in Şirince Village. This locality, which was for centuries filled with the alluvium from the River of Küçük Menderes, is just 8 km. from the Bay of Pamucak, a preservation site with a crystal clear sea and a glittering beach.

80 km. from İzmir and 40 km. from Selçuk, Tire is one of the most popular sites in the AegeanRegion, particularly for its cultural and natural assets. It is a tourist’s treasure trove comprising of hundreds of historic structures, a museum, handicrafts, authentic houses, a bazaar and local cuisine. It is possible and easy to do this tour as a day trip.

Torbalı, which is on the İzmir – Efes Highway, is located on a hill overlooking the plain between the villages of Yeniköy and Özbey. The first settlement in this region between the ancient cities of Ephesus (Efes), Smyrna (İzmir), Kolophon (Değirmendere) and Notion (Ahmetbeyli) was built during the reign of the Seleucid Kingdom of in the 3rd century B.C. and this settlement was named Metropolis, meaning “the City of the Mother Goddess”.

Located in the west of Izmir and in the center of the peninsula bearing its name, Urla's history dates back to ancient times. After the reign of the city states, the region came under the dominion of Persia-Alexander, Roman and Byzantine empires. Then, the domination of the Great Seljuks, Anatolian Beyliqs, Anatolian Seljuks and Ottoman Empire was in place. Urla remained 3 years under occupation during the First World War and then on September 12, 1922 the region was taken under the administration of the Republic of Türkiye.