Bor, Turkey
Encyclopedia
Bor is a town and district of Niğde Province
in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey
, 14 km (8.7 mi) north of the city of Niğde
, on a high plain (altitude 1100 m (3,608.9 ft)). The district's population is 59,919 of which 38,320 live in the town of Bor.
The area is situated just north of the Taurus Mountains
, not far from the Cilician Gates
(Gülek Boğazı), the mountain pass leading to Cilicia and Syria, and has long been a place of commercial and military importance.
and Assyrians
gave the area the name Tuwanuwa. In the times of Cyrus the Younger
and Alexander the Great it was named Dana and then by the Romans
, Tyana
. The remains of these civilizations can be found in the village of Kemerhisar. Bor is a more modern settlement nearby.
, and subsequently controlled by Assyrians, Phrygians, Persians and Ancient Macedonians
. The Romans
(and from 395 AD onwards Byzantium
) built the ancient city of Tyana
the most southern-most centre of Cappadocia. During the Byzantine period the town was the eastern Mediterranean region’s most important Christian centre, as indicated also by its former Turkish name of Kilisehisar (‘City of the Churches’).
Turks
began to settle in the area in the wake of the Battle of Manzikert
after 1071. In the course of time the fortifications of ancient Tyana vanished among the towns of Bor, Kemerhisar
and Bahçeli
.
Today the economy of Bor depends on grazing animals, plus some carpet weaving and leather-making. The countryside is too dry for planting crops, although there are vineyards and orchards (mainly apple and apricot) in Kemerhisar. This is a relatively poor district and many people have migrated to Europe or the larger cities of Turkey in search of jobs.
Nigde Province
Niğde Province is a small rural province in the southern part of Central Anatolia, Turkey. Population is 337.931 of which 100.418 live in the city of Niğde. The population was 348,081 in 2000 and 305.861 in 1990. It covers an area of 7,312 km²...
in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, 14 km (8.7 mi) north of the city of Niğde
Nigde
Niğde is a small city and the capital of Niğde Province in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey. The population is 109,724 per the 2010 statistics...
, on a high plain (altitude 1100 m (3,608.9 ft)). The district's population is 59,919 of which 38,320 live in the town of Bor.
The area is situated just north of the Taurus Mountains
Taurus Mountains
Taurus Mountains are a mountain complex in southern Turkey, dividing the Mediterranean coastal region of southern Turkey from the central Anatolian Plateau. The system extends along a curve from Lake Eğirdir in the west to the upper reaches of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in the east...
, not far from the Cilician Gates
Cilician Gates
The Cilician Gates or Gülek Pass is a pass through the Taurus Mountains connecting the low plains of Cilicia to the Anatolian Plateau, by way of the narrow gorge of the Gökoluk River. Its highest elevation is about 1000m....
(Gülek Boğazı), the mountain pass leading to Cilicia and Syria, and has long been a place of commercial and military importance.
Etymology
The HittitesHittites
The Hittites were a Bronze Age people of Anatolia.They established a kingdom centered at Hattusa in north-central Anatolia c. the 18th century BC. The Hittite empire reached its height c...
and Assyrians
Assyrian people
The Assyrian people are a distinct ethnic group whose origins lie in ancient Mesopotamia...
gave the area the name Tuwanuwa. In the times of Cyrus the Younger
Cyrus the Younger
Cyrus the Younger, son of Darius II of Persia and Parysatis, was a Persian prince and general. The time of his birth is unknown, but he died in 401 B.C. The history of Cyrus and of the retreat of the Greeks is told by Xenophon in his Anabasis. Another account, probably from Sophaenetus of...
and Alexander the Great it was named Dana and then by the Romans
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
, Tyana
Tyana
Tyana or Tyanna was an ancient city in the Anatolian region of Cappadocia, in modern south-central Turkey. It was the capital of a Luwian-speaking Neo-Hittite kingdom in the 1st millennium BC.-History:...
. The remains of these civilizations can be found in the village of Kemerhisar. Bor is a more modern settlement nearby.
History
The plain has been settled since the time of the HittitesHittites
The Hittites were a Bronze Age people of Anatolia.They established a kingdom centered at Hattusa in north-central Anatolia c. the 18th century BC. The Hittite empire reached its height c...
, and subsequently controlled by Assyrians, Phrygians, Persians and Ancient Macedonians
Ancient Macedonians
The Macedonians originated from inhabitants of the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, in the alluvial plain around the rivers Haliacmon and lower Axios...
. The Romans
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
(and from 395 AD onwards Byzantium
Byzantium
Byzantium was an ancient Greek city, founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC and named after their king Byzas . The name Byzantium is a Latinization of the original name Byzantion...
) built the ancient city of Tyana
Tyana
Tyana or Tyanna was an ancient city in the Anatolian region of Cappadocia, in modern south-central Turkey. It was the capital of a Luwian-speaking Neo-Hittite kingdom in the 1st millennium BC.-History:...
the most southern-most centre of Cappadocia. During the Byzantine period the town was the eastern Mediterranean region’s most important Christian centre, as indicated also by its former Turkish name of Kilisehisar (‘City of the Churches’).
Turks
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
began to settle in the area in the wake of the Battle of Manzikert
Battle of Manzikert
The Battle of Manzikert , was fought between the Byzantine Empire and Seljuq Turks led by Alp Arslan on August 26, 1071 near Manzikert...
after 1071. In the course of time the fortifications of ancient Tyana vanished among the towns of Bor, Kemerhisar
Kemerhisar
- Geography :Kemerhisar at is a part of Bor district of Niğde Province. Distance to Bor is and to Niğde is . It is only west of Bahçeli another town of Niğde. The population is 5,449 as of 2010.- History :...
and Bahçeli
Bahçeli, Niğde
- Geography :Bahçeli is a part of Bor district of Niğde Province. At it is very close to Kemerhisar, another town in Niğde Province. Distance to Kemerhisar is to Bor is and to Niğde is . The population of the town is 2325 as of 2010 - History :...
.
Today the economy of Bor depends on grazing animals, plus some carpet weaving and leather-making. The countryside is too dry for planting crops, although there are vineyards and orchards (mainly apple and apricot) in Kemerhisar. This is a relatively poor district and many people have migrated to Europe or the larger cities of Turkey in search of jobs.
Places of interest
- Alâeddin Bey (Ulu Cami) Mosque - on the riverbank in the town centre.
- Şeyh İlyas or Kale Camii - 16th century OttomanOttoman EmpireThe Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
mosque. - The rocks where the HittitesHittitesThe Hittites were a Bronze Age people of Anatolia.They established a kingdom centered at Hattusa in north-central Anatolia c. the 18th century BC. The Hittite empire reached its height c...
worshipped the storms gods, in the village of Gökbez. - The ruins of TyanaTyanaTyana or Tyanna was an ancient city in the Anatolian region of Cappadocia, in modern south-central Turkey. It was the capital of a Luwian-speaking Neo-Hittite kingdom in the 1st millennium BC.-History:...
(ancient Tuvanuva, Dana, Tyana) and a number of Roman waterways scattered over three hills between the villages of Bahçeli and Kemerhisar. These include the remains of a complex of Roman baths (Roma Hamamı) and a limestone aqueduct dated from the reign of CaracallaCaracallaCaracalla , was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. The eldest son of Septimius Severus, he ruled jointly with his younger brother Geta until he murdered the latter in 211...
(211-217 A.D.). The original supply of the aqueduct, the monumental pool of Bahçeli (Roma Havuzu, 5.5 km NE) is still well preserved. It sits at the foot of Köşk Höyük, a Hittite settlement excavated in 1981 that is turning out to be of great historical value. There are also other massive foundations of several large buildings, shafts, pillars, and one handsome column (replaced) still standing. - The mineral water and therapeutic mud-baths just south of Kemerhisar. The hot spring (15°C) mentioned in ancient writings still bubbles into a cold swamp. The mineral water is drunk for its healing powers and the site (İçmeler) also includes a bathing pool.
Notable natives
- The philosopher and magician Apollonius of TyanaApollonius of TyanaApollonius of Tyana was a Greek Neopythagorean philosopher from the town of Tyana in the Roman province of Cappadocia in Asia Minor. Little is certainly known about him...
(1st century A.D.) - Ebubekir Hazim Tepeyran (1863-1947) Author and late Ottoman governor