Şanlıurfa Metropolitan Municipalty
Turkey /
Sanliurfa /
Urfa /
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/ Turkey
/ Sanliurfa
/ Urfa
World / Turkey / Sanliurfa
city, capital city of state/province/region
Urfa (Arabic الرها Ar-Ruhā, Armenian Ուռհա Uṙha, Kurdish Riha, Syriac ܐܘܪܗ Urhoy), in ancient times Edessa (Έδεσσα in Greek), is a city in south-eastern Turkey, and the capital of Şanlıurfa Province. Urfa is situated on a plain about eighty kilometres east of the Euphrates River. Urfa's climate features extremely hot, dry summers and cool, moist winters.
The city has a population of with 1,845,667 inhabitants (2015 estimate), Kurds, Arabs and Turks.
The history of Urfa is recorded from the 4th century BC, but may date back at least to 9000 BC, when there is ample evidence for the surrounding sites at Duru, Harran and Nevali Cori. Within the further area of the city are three neolithic sites known: Göbekli Tepe, Gürcütepe and the city itself, where the life-sized limestone "Urfa statue" was found during an excavation in Balıklıgöl. The city was one of several in the upper Euphrates-Tigris basin, the fertile crescent where agriculture began.
According to Jewish and Muslim tradition, Urfa is Ur Kasdim, the hometown of Abraham. This identification was disputed by Leonard Woolley, the excavator of the Sumerian city of Ur in 1927 and scholars remain divided on the issue. Urfa is also one of several cities that have traditions associated with Job.
For the Armenians, Urfa is considered a holy place since it is believed that the Armenian alphabet was invented there.
Urfa was conquered repeatedly throughout history, and has been dominated by many civilizations, including the Ebla, Akkadians, Sumerians, Babylonians, Hittites, Armenians, Hurri-Mitannis (Armeno-Aryans), Assyrians, Chaldeans, Medes, Persians, Macedonians (under Alexander the Great), Seleucids, Arameans, Osrhoenes, Romans, Sassanids, Byzantines, and Crusaders.
The city has a population of with 1,845,667 inhabitants (2015 estimate), Kurds, Arabs and Turks.
The history of Urfa is recorded from the 4th century BC, but may date back at least to 9000 BC, when there is ample evidence for the surrounding sites at Duru, Harran and Nevali Cori. Within the further area of the city are three neolithic sites known: Göbekli Tepe, Gürcütepe and the city itself, where the life-sized limestone "Urfa statue" was found during an excavation in Balıklıgöl. The city was one of several in the upper Euphrates-Tigris basin, the fertile crescent where agriculture began.
According to Jewish and Muslim tradition, Urfa is Ur Kasdim, the hometown of Abraham. This identification was disputed by Leonard Woolley, the excavator of the Sumerian city of Ur in 1927 and scholars remain divided on the issue. Urfa is also one of several cities that have traditions associated with Job.
For the Armenians, Urfa is considered a holy place since it is believed that the Armenian alphabet was invented there.
Urfa was conquered repeatedly throughout history, and has been dominated by many civilizations, including the Ebla, Akkadians, Sumerians, Babylonians, Hittites, Armenians, Hurri-Mitannis (Armeno-Aryans), Assyrians, Chaldeans, Medes, Persians, Macedonians (under Alexander the Great), Seleucids, Arameans, Osrhoenes, Romans, Sassanids, Byzantines, and Crusaders.
Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urfa
Nearby cities:
Coordinates: 37°9'30"N 38°47'58"E
- Malatya Metropolitan Municipality 165 km
- Kahramanmaraş Metropolitan Municipality 207 km
- Adana Metropolitan Municipality 328 km
- Sivas 342 km
- Kayseri 368 km
- Niğde 389 km
- Mersin Metropolitan Municipality 389 km
- Bor 395 km
- Niksar 438 km
- Aksaray 456 km
- Industrial Zone 5.9 km
- Sanliurfa Airport (LTCH/SFQ) - Abandoned 8.3 km
- Yeniköy 8.9 km
- Sultantepe 15 km
- Yukari Caykuyu 19 km
- Tarlabaşı 20 km
- Village 26 km
- Keçikıran Köyü 27 km
- Harran Plain 28 km
- Şanlıurfa Province 29 km
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