Van, Turkey
Encyclopedia
Van is a city in southeastern Turkey
and the seat of the Kurdish
-majority Van
Province
, and is located on the eastern shore of Lake Van
. The city's official population in 2010 was 367,419, but many estimates put this as much higher with a 1996 estimate stating 500,000 and former Mayor Burhan Yengun quoted as saying it may be as high as 600,000.
The Van Central district stretches over 2,289 square kilometers.
indicate that the history of human settlement in this region goes back at least as far as 5000 BC. The Tilkitepe Mound, which is on the shores of Lake Van and a few kilometres to the south of Van Castle, is the only source of information about the oldest culture of Van.
, Van was the capital of the Urartian kingdom
in the 9th century BC. The early settlement was centered on the steep-sided bluff now known as Van Castle (Van Kalesi), close to the edge of Lake Van and a few kilometers west of the modern city. Here have been found Urartian cuneiform
inscriptions dating to the 8th and 7th centuries BC. In the trilingual Behistun inscription, carved in the order of Darius the Great of Persia, the country referred to as Urartu
in Babylonian is called Armenia
in Old Persian.
Orontids
in the 7th century BC and later Persians in the mid 6th century BC. In 331 BC, Van was conquered by Alexander the Great and after his death became part of the Seleucid Empire
. By the early 2nd century BC it was part of the Kingdom of Armenia. It became an important center during the reign of the Armenia
n king, Tigranes II, who founded the city of Tigranakert
in the 1st century BC. This region was ruled by the Arsacid Dynasty of Armenia
before 4th century AD. In the History of Armenia attributed to Moses of Chorene, the city is called Tosp, from Urartian Tushpa.
briefly held the region from 628 to 640, after which it was invaded by the Muslim Arabs, who consolidated their conquests as the province of Ermeniye. Decline in Arab power eventually allowed local Armenian
rulers to re-emerge, with the Artsruni
dynasty soon becoming the most powerful. Initially dependent on the rulers of the Kingdom of Ani
, they declared their independence in 908, founding Armenian kingdom of Vaspurakan
. The kingdom had no specific capital: the court would move as the king transferred his residence from place to place, such as Van city, Vostan, Aghtamar, etc. In 1021 the last king of Vaspurakan, John-Senekerim Artsruni, ceded his entire kingdom to the Byzantine empire, who established the Vaspurakan theme
on the former Artsruni territories.
Turks into Vaspurakan started in the 1050s. After their victory in 1071 at the battle of Manzikert
the entire region fell under their control. After them, local Muslim rulers emerged, such as the Ahlatshahs
and the Ayyubids (1207). For a 20 year period, Van was held by the Anatolian Seljuk Sultanate
until the 1240s when it was conquered by the Mongols
. In the 14th century, Van was held by the Kara Koyunlu
Turks, and later by the Timurids.
and the Persian Safavid Empire. The Safavids captured Van in 1502. The Ottomans took the city in 1515 and held it for a short period. The Safavids took it again in 1520 and the Ottomans gained final and definite control of the city in 1548. They first made Van into a sanjak
dependent on the Erzurum eyalet
, and later into a separate Van eyalet in about 1570.
Towards the second half of the 19th century Van began to play an increased role in the politics of the Ottoman Empire due to its location near the borders of the Persian, Russian and Ottoman Empire, as well as its proximity to Mosul.
During the period leading up to the breakup of the Ottoman Empire, Armenians were well represented in the local administration.
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During the early 1900s, the city of Van had eleven Armenian schools and ten Turkish. Armenian churches within the walled city included Saint Tiramayr , Saint Vardan , Saint Poghos , Saint Nshan , Saint Sahak , and Saint Tsiranavor ; in Aygestan , Haykavank , Norashen , Arark , Hankoysner, and other quarters each had a church.
and population statistics became important during the Berlin Conference
.
by Ottoman troops in the opening phases of the Armenian Genocide
. The regional administrator, Jevdet Bey, was reported to have said that "We have cleansed the Armenians and Syriac [Christian]s from Azerbaijan, and we will do the same in Van. Numerous reports from Ottoman officials, such as a parliament deputy, the governor of Allepo as well as the German consul in Van, suggested that deliberate provocations against the Armenians were being orchestrated by the local government. In Mid-April 1915, Jevdet Bey ordered the execution of four Armenian leaders, which drove the Armenians to take up arms in self-defense. On the other hand, writer and genocide scholar Taner Akçam acknowledges that in the case of Van, the deportations may have been driven by military necessity and states the resistance in Van should be examined as a separate case.
While scholars in Turkey allege that the Armenians launched a rebellion in Van in 1915, most historians agree that the Armenian residents, hoping to avoid the slaughter inflicted on the rural populations surrounding Van, defended themselves in the Armenian quarters of the city against the Turks. The Russians finally relieved the Armenian defenders of Van in late May 1915. In August, a victory over the Russian army allowed the Ottoman army to retake Van. In September 1915, the Russians forced the Turks out of Van for the second time. Russian forces began to leave the area after the October Revolution
in Russia in 1917, and by April 1918, it was recaptured by the Ottoman army. According to Taner Akçam, citing the Osmali Belgelerinde Ermeniler 1915–1920 (Armenians in Ottoman Documents, 1915–1920), after the Turks took back the city from the Russians, they killed all Armenians in the city. However, the end of World War I forced the Ottoman army to surrender its claim to Van, although it stayed in Turkish hands following the Turkish War of Independence.
, the Entente Powers
decided to cede the city to the Democratic Republic of Armenia
. Turkish revolutionaries, led by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
rejected the terms of the treaty and instead waged the Turkish War of Independence
. However the idea of ceding Van to the Armenians was flouted, and Ismet Inonu was said to have surveyed army officers on 14 October 1919 on the issue of ceding Van and Bitlis. However the parliament in Ankara rejected any compromise on this issue.By 1920, Van fell under Turkish control again and its remaining Armenian inhabitants were expelled in a final round of ethnic cleansing
. With the Treaty of Lausanne
and Treaty of Kars
, the Treaty of Sèvres was annulled and Van remained officially under Turkish sovereignty.
By the end of the conflicts, the town of Van was empty and in ruins. The city was rebuilt after the war a few kilometers east of the ancient citadel, which is now known as Van Castle (Van Kalesi). The city now lies at about 1,750 metres (5,570 ft) above sea level.
, with cold, snowy winters, and hot, dry summers. Rainfall occurs mostly during the spring and autumn. Under Köppen's climate classification
Van features a semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk).
, at a distance of 5 kilometers from the lake shore.
Van has often been called "The Pearl of the East" because of the beauty of its surrounding landscape. An old Armenian proverb in the same sense is "Van in this world, paradise in the next." This phrase has been slightly modified in Turkish as dünyada Van, ahirette iman or "Van for this world, faith for the next."
The city is home to Van Yüzüncü Yıl Üniversitesi
(Van 100th Year University) and recently came to the headlines for two highly publicized investigations initiated by the Prosecutor of Van, one of which was focused on accusations against the university's rector
, Prof. Hasan Ceylan, who was kept in custody for a time. He was finally acquitted but lost his rectorate. He is a grandson of Agop Vartovyan
, an Ottoman Armenian who is accepted as the founder of modern Turkish theatre. Prof. Hasan Ceylan is also the department chairman of Environmental Engineering in the Van 100th Year University.
In 1941, Van suffered a destructive 5.9 Mw earthquake
. A more severe 7.2 Mw earthquake
occurred on October 23rd, 2011. A 5.7 magnitude aftershock
caused several buildings to collapse on November 9, 2011.
, which is 96 km away on the opposite shore of Lake Van
, by a train ferry
that helps to avoid the necessity to build a 250 km railway through difficult mountainous terrain. The railway will be constructed when traffic increases sufficiently.
Van is connected with the rest of Turkey through the Ferit Melen Airport
.
broadcasting station with a 250 metres tall guyed mast. It went in service in 1990 and operates on 225 kHz with 600 kW.
The Van Cat
is a breed of cat native to this town and named after it. The Van Cat is noted for its white fur, and having different colored eyes.
Turks, Kurds, and others
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
and the seat of the Kurdish
Kurdish people
The Kurdish people, or Kurds , are an Iranian people native to the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a region known as Kurdistan, which includes adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey...
-majority Van
Van Province
Van Province is a province in eastern Turkey, between Lake Van and the Iranian border. It is 19,069 km2 in area and had a population of 1,035,418 at the end of 2010....
Province
Provinces of Turkey
Turkey is divided into 81 provinces, called il in Turkish .A province is administered by an appointed governor , and was formerly termed a "governorate" ....
, and is located on the eastern shore of Lake Van
Lake Van
Lake Van is the largest lake in Turkey, located in the far east of the country in Van district. It is a saline and soda lake, receiving water from numerous small streams that descend from the surrounding mountains. Lake Van is one of the world's largest endorheic lakes . The original outlet from...
. The city's official population in 2010 was 367,419, but many estimates put this as much higher with a 1996 estimate stating 500,000 and former Mayor Burhan Yengun quoted as saying it may be as high as 600,000.
The Van Central district stretches over 2,289 square kilometers.
History
Archaeological excavations and surveys carried out in Van provinceVan Province
Van Province is a province in eastern Turkey, between Lake Van and the Iranian border. It is 19,069 km2 in area and had a population of 1,035,418 at the end of 2010....
indicate that the history of human settlement in this region goes back at least as far as 5000 BC. The Tilkitepe Mound, which is on the shores of Lake Van and a few kilometres to the south of Van Castle, is the only source of information about the oldest culture of Van.
Urartu
Under the ancient name of TushpaTushpa
Tushpa was the 9th century BC capital of Urartu, later becoming known as Van which is derived from Biaina the native name of Urartu...
, Van was the capital of the Urartian kingdom
Urartu
Urartu , corresponding to Ararat or Kingdom of Van was an Iron Age kingdom centered around Lake Van in the Armenian Highland....
in the 9th century BC. The early settlement was centered on the steep-sided bluff now known as Van Castle (Van Kalesi), close to the edge of Lake Van and a few kilometers west of the modern city. Here have been found Urartian cuneiform
Cuneiform
Cuneiform can refer to:*Cuneiform script, an ancient writing system originating in Mesopotamia in the 4th millennium BC*Cuneiform , three bones in the human foot*Cuneiform Records, a music record label...
inscriptions dating to the 8th and 7th centuries BC. In the trilingual Behistun inscription, carved in the order of Darius the Great of Persia, the country referred to as Urartu
Urartu
Urartu , corresponding to Ararat or Kingdom of Van was an Iron Age kingdom centered around Lake Van in the Armenian Highland....
in Babylonian is called Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
in Old Persian.
From the Orontids to the Kingdom of Armenia
The region came under the control of the ArmenianArmenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
Orontids
Orontid Dynasty
The Orontid Dynasty The Orontid Dynasty The Orontid Dynasty (also known by their native name, Yervanduni was a hereditary Armenian dynasty and the rulers of the successor state to the Iron Age kingdom of Ararat...
in the 7th century BC and later Persians in the mid 6th century BC. In 331 BC, Van was conquered by Alexander the Great and after his death became part of the Seleucid Empire
Seleucid Empire
The Seleucid Empire was a Greek-Macedonian state that was created out of the eastern conquests of Alexander the Great. At the height of its power, it included central Anatolia, the Levant, Mesopotamia, Persia, today's Turkmenistan, Pamir and parts of Pakistan.The Seleucid Empire was a major centre...
. By the early 2nd century BC it was part of the Kingdom of Armenia. It became an important center during the reign of the Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
n king, Tigranes II, who founded the city of Tigranakert
Tigranakert
Tigranakert was a city possibly located near present-day Silvan, Turkey, east of Diyarbakır. It was founded by the Armenian Emperor Tigranes the Great in the 1st century BC. Tigranakert was founded as the new capital of the Armenian Empire in order to be in a more central position within the...
in the 1st century BC. This region was ruled by the Arsacid Dynasty of Armenia
Arsacid Dynasty of Armenia
The Arsacid dynasty or Arshakuni dynasty ruled the Kingdom of Armenia from 54 AD to 428 AD. Formerly a branch of the Iranian Parthian Arsacids, they became a distinctly Armenian dynasty. Arsacid Kings reigned intermittently throughout the chaotic years following the fall of the Artaxiad Dynasty...
before 4th century AD. In the History of Armenia attributed to Moses of Chorene, the city is called Tosp, from Urartian Tushpa.
The Byzantines and the kingdom of Vaspurakan
The Byzantine EmpireByzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
briefly held the region from 628 to 640, after which it was invaded by the Muslim Arabs, who consolidated their conquests as the province of Ermeniye. Decline in Arab power eventually allowed local Armenian
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
rulers to re-emerge, with the Artsruni
Artsruni
Artsruni was an ancient Armenian noble family that claimed descent from Sennacherib, King of Assyria . Although it mirrors the Bagratuni claim of Davidic descent and the Mamikonian claim of descent from the royal Han Dynasty, it is usually interpreted as a piece of genealogical mythology...
dynasty soon becoming the most powerful. Initially dependent on the rulers of the Kingdom of Ani
Ani
Ani is a ruined and uninhabited medieval Armenian city-site situated in the Turkish province of Kars, near the border with Armenia. It was once the capital of a medieval Armenian kingdom that covered much of present day Armenia and eastern Turkey...
, they declared their independence in 908, founding Armenian kingdom of Vaspurakan
Vaspurakan
Vaspurakan was the first and biggest province of Greater Armenia, which later became an independent kingdom during the Middle Ages, centered around Lake Van...
. The kingdom had no specific capital: the court would move as the king transferred his residence from place to place, such as Van city, Vostan, Aghtamar, etc. In 1021 the last king of Vaspurakan, John-Senekerim Artsruni, ceded his entire kingdom to the Byzantine empire, who established the Vaspurakan theme
Theme (Byzantine administrative unit)
The themes or themata were the main administrative divisions of the middle Byzantine Empire. They were established in the mid-seventh century in the aftermath of the Muslim conquests of Byzantine territory and replaced the earlier provincial system established by emperors Diocletian and...
on the former Artsruni territories.
The Seljuk Empire
Incursions by the SeljukGreat Seljuq Empire
The Great Seljuq Empire was a medieval Persianate, Turko-Persian Sunni Muslim empire, originating from the Qynyq branch of Oghuz Turks. The Seljuq Empire controlled a vast area stretching from the Hindu Kush to eastern Anatolia and from Central Asia to the Persian Gulf...
Turks into Vaspurakan started in the 1050s. After their victory in 1071 at 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...
the entire region fell under their control. After them, local Muslim rulers emerged, such as the Ahlatshahs
Ahlatshahs
Ahlahshahs were the 11th-12th century rulers of an Anatolian beylik of the first period founded after the Battle of Manzikert, and centered in Ahlat on the northwestern shore of the Lake Van in Eastern Anatolia...
and the Ayyubids (1207). For a 20 year period, Van was held by the Anatolian Seljuk Sultanate
Sultanate of Rûm
The Sultanate of Rum , also known as the Anatolian Seljuk State , was a Turkic state centered in in Anatolia, with capitals first at İznik and then at Konya. Since the court of the sultanate was highly mobile, cities like Kayseri and Sivas also functioned at times as capitals...
until the 1240s when it was conquered by the Mongols
Mongols
Mongols ) are a Central-East Asian ethnic group that lives mainly in the countries of Mongolia, China, and Russia. In China, ethnic Mongols can be found mainly in the central north region of China such as Inner Mongolia...
. In the 14th century, Van was held by the Kara Koyunlu
Kara Koyunlu
The Kara Koyunlu or Qara Qoyunlu, also called the Black Sheep Turkomans , were a Shi'ite Oghuz Turkic tribal federation that ruled over the territory comprising the present-day Armenia, Azerbaijan, north-western Iran, eastern Turkey and Iraq from about 1375 to 1468.The Kara Koyunlu Turkomans at one...
Turks, and later by the Timurids.
The Ottoman Empire
The first half of the 15th century saw the Van region become a land of conflict as it was disputed by the Ottoman EmpireOttoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
and the Persian Safavid Empire. The Safavids captured Van in 1502. The Ottomans took the city in 1515 and held it for a short period. The Safavids took it again in 1520 and the Ottomans gained final and definite control of the city in 1548. They first made Van into a sanjak
Sanjak
Sanjaks were administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire. Sanjak, and the variant spellings sandjak, sanjaq, and sinjaq, are English transliterations of the Turkish word sancak, meaning district, banner, or flag...
dependent on the Erzurum eyalet
Erzurum Eyalet
The Erzurum Eyalet was an eyalet of the Ottoman Empire. It was established in the 16th century, after the conquest of Western Armenia by the Ottoman Empire. Its reported area in the 19th century was .-History:...
, and later into a separate Van eyalet in about 1570.
Towards the second half of the 19th century Van began to play an increased role in the politics of the Ottoman Empire due to its location near the borders of the Persian, Russian and Ottoman Empire, as well as its proximity to Mosul.
During the period leading up to the breakup of the Ottoman Empire, Armenians were well represented in the local administration.
City life
Demographics
The demographics of Ottoman Van are a debated and contentious point as they relate directly to claims of ownership by either side prior to the outbreak of World War I. Based on the official 1914 Ottoman Census the population of Van province consisted of 179,422 Muslims and 67,797 Armenians. The Ottoman Census figures include only male citizens, excluding women and children. According to a more recent research, the corrected estimates for Van province (including women and children) was; 313,000 Muslims, 130,000 Armenians, and 65,000 others, including Syriac Christians and Nestorians. The demographics of Van are a greatly debated point given the changing of provincial borders. For example, in 1875 the province was divided and Van and Hakkari separated, only to be rejoined in 1888 which drastically changed the make up of any census, and some writers argue that this merging was done to keep the Armenians from forming a majority. In 1862 it was estimated that in Van there were 90,100 Christians (including Nestorians) and 95,100 Muslims. The French Consul in Van reported that in Van and Bitlis 51.46% were Kurds, 32.70 were Armenians and 5.53% were Turks. On the other hand, the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople estimated 185,000 Armenians in Van, 180,000 Assyrian Jacobites, 72,000 Kurds, 47,000 Turks, 25,000 Yezidis and 3,000 Gypsis. Both sides have been accused of overcounting the numbers at the time given the revival of the Armenian QuestionArmenian Question
The term "Armenian Question" as used in European history, became common place among diplomatic circles and in the popular press after the Congress of Berlin; that in like Eastern Question, refers to powers of Europe's involvement to the Armenian subjects of the Ottoman Empire beginning with the...
and population statistics became important during the Berlin Conference
Berlin Conference
The Berlin Conference of 1884–85 regulated European colonization and trade in Africa during the New Imperialism period, and coincided with Germany's sudden emergence as an imperial power...
.
World War I and Armenian Genocide
The province's Armenian population was devastated during World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
by Ottoman troops in the opening phases of the Armenian Genocide
Armenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
. The regional administrator, Jevdet Bey, was reported to have said that "We have cleansed the Armenians and Syriac [Christian]s from Azerbaijan, and we will do the same in Van. Numerous reports from Ottoman officials, such as a parliament deputy, the governor of Allepo as well as the German consul in Van, suggested that deliberate provocations against the Armenians were being orchestrated by the local government. In Mid-April 1915, Jevdet Bey ordered the execution of four Armenian leaders, which drove the Armenians to take up arms in self-defense. On the other hand, writer and genocide scholar Taner Akçam acknowledges that in the case of Van, the deportations may have been driven by military necessity and states the resistance in Van should be examined as a separate case.
While scholars in Turkey allege that the Armenians launched a rebellion in Van in 1915, most historians agree that the Armenian residents, hoping to avoid the slaughter inflicted on the rural populations surrounding Van, defended themselves in the Armenian quarters of the city against the Turks. The Russians finally relieved the Armenian defenders of Van in late May 1915. In August, a victory over the Russian army allowed the Ottoman army to retake Van. In September 1915, the Russians forced the Turks out of Van for the second time. Russian forces began to leave the area after the October Revolution
October Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
in Russia in 1917, and by April 1918, it was recaptured by the Ottoman army. According to Taner Akçam, citing the Osmali Belgelerinde Ermeniler 1915–1920 (Armenians in Ottoman Documents, 1915–1920), after the Turks took back the city from the Russians, they killed all Armenians in the city. However, the end of World War I forced the Ottoman army to surrender its claim to Van, although it stayed in Turkish hands following the Turkish War of Independence.
Turkish War of Independence and Republic
In the Treaty of SèvresTreaty of Sèvres
The Treaty of Sèvres was the peace treaty between the Ottoman Empire and Allies at the end of World War I. The Treaty of Versailles was signed with Germany before this treaty to annul the German concessions including the economic rights and enterprises. Also, France, Great Britain and Italy...
, the Entente Powers
Allies of World War I
The Entente Powers were the countries at war with the Central Powers during World War I. The members of the Triple Entente were the United Kingdom, France, and the Russian Empire; Italy entered the war on their side in 1915...
decided to cede the city to the Democratic Republic of Armenia
Democratic Republic of Armenia
The Democratic Republic of Armenia was the first modern establishment of an Armenian state...
. Turkish revolutionaries, led by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was an Ottoman and Turkish army officer, revolutionary statesman, writer, and the first President of Turkey. He is credited with being the founder of the Republic of Turkey....
rejected the terms of the treaty and instead waged the Turkish War of Independence
Turkish War of Independence
The Turkish War of Independence was a war of independence waged by Turkish nationalists against the Allies, after the country was partitioned by the Allies following the Ottoman Empire's defeat in World War I...
. However the idea of ceding Van to the Armenians was flouted, and Ismet Inonu was said to have surveyed army officers on 14 October 1919 on the issue of ceding Van and Bitlis. However the parliament in Ankara rejected any compromise on this issue.By 1920, Van fell under Turkish control again and its remaining Armenian inhabitants were expelled in a final round of ethnic cleansing
Ethnic cleansing
Ethnic cleansing is a purposeful policy designed by one ethnic or religious group to remove by violent and terror-inspiring means the civilian population of another ethnic orreligious group from certain geographic areas....
. With the Treaty of Lausanne
Treaty of Lausanne
The Treaty of Lausanne was a peace treaty signed in Lausanne, Switzerland on 24 July 1923, that settled the Anatolian and East Thracian parts of the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire. The treaty of Lausanne was ratified by the Greek government on 11 February 1924, by the Turkish government on 31...
and Treaty of Kars
Treaty of Kars
The Treaty of Kars was a "friendship" treaty signed in Kars on October 13, 1921 and ratified in Yerevan on September 11 1922.Signatories included representatives from the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, which in 1923 would declare the Republic of Turkey, and also from Soviet Armenia, Soviet...
, the Treaty of Sèvres was annulled and Van remained officially under Turkish sovereignty.
By the end of the conflicts, the town of Van was empty and in ruins. The city was rebuilt after the war a few kilometers east of the ancient citadel, which is now known as Van Castle (Van Kalesi). The city now lies at about 1,750 metres (5,570 ft) above sea level.
Climate
Van has a harsh, dry continental climateContinental climate
Continental climate is a climate characterized by important annual variation in temperature due to the lack of significant bodies of water nearby...
, with cold, snowy winters, and hot, dry summers. Rainfall occurs mostly during the spring and autumn. Under Köppen's climate classification
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by Crimea German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen himself, notably in 1918 and 1936...
Van features a semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk).
Van today
The modern city is located on the plain extending from the Lake VanLake Van
Lake Van is the largest lake in Turkey, located in the far east of the country in Van district. It is a saline and soda lake, receiving water from numerous small streams that descend from the surrounding mountains. Lake Van is one of the world's largest endorheic lakes . The original outlet from...
, at a distance of 5 kilometers from the lake shore.
Van has often been called "The Pearl of the East" because of the beauty of its surrounding landscape. An old Armenian proverb in the same sense is "Van in this world, paradise in the next." This phrase has been slightly modified in Turkish as dünyada Van, ahirette iman or "Van for this world, faith for the next."
The city is home to Van Yüzüncü Yıl Üniversitesi
Van Yüzüncü Yil Üniversitesi
Van Yüzüncü Yıl Üniversitesi is a large university, run by the Turkish State, situated within an extensive campus, located on the outskirts of the city of Van. It was established in 1982....
(Van 100th Year University) and recently came to the headlines for two highly publicized investigations initiated by the Prosecutor of Van, one of which was focused on accusations against the university's rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
, Prof. Hasan Ceylan, who was kept in custody for a time. He was finally acquitted but lost his rectorate. He is a grandson of Agop Vartovyan
Güllü Agop
Agop Vartovyan, better known as Güllü Agop, , was an Ottoman Armenian theatre director as well as an occasional actor. He is widely credited with having laid the bases for Turkey's modern and nationally renowned performing arts institution that became İstanbul City Theatres...
, an Ottoman Armenian who is accepted as the founder of modern Turkish theatre. Prof. Hasan Ceylan is also the department chairman of Environmental Engineering in the Van 100th Year University.
In 1941, Van suffered a destructive 5.9 Mw earthquake
1941 Van-Erciş earthquake
The 1941 Van-Erciş earthquake occurred at 23:53 local time on 10 September. It had an estimated magnitude of 5.9 and a maximum intensity of VIII on the Mercalli intensity scale, causing 192 casualties....
. A more severe 7.2 Mw earthquake
2011 Van earthquake
The Van earthquake was a destructive magnitude 7.1 Mw earthquake that struck eastern Turkey near the city of Van on Sunday, 23 October 2011 at 13.41 local time. It occurred at a shallow depth of 20 km , causing heavy shaking across much of eastern Turkey and lighter tremors across neighboring parts...
occurred on October 23rd, 2011. A 5.7 magnitude aftershock
Aftershock
An aftershock is a smaller earthquake that occurs after a previous large earthquake, in the same area of the main shock. If an aftershock is larger than the main shock, the aftershock is redesignated as the main shock and the original main shock is redesignated as a foreshock...
caused several buildings to collapse on November 9, 2011.
Cuisine
In culinary terms, as some cities in Turkey became renowned for their kebap culture or other types of traditional local dishes, Van has distinguished itself with its breakfast culture.Transport
At present, Van is connected with TatvanTatvan
Tatvan is a city at the western end of Lake Van, and is the regional center of the identically-named district within Bitlis Province in eastern Turkey. It has about 96,000 inhabitants. The mayor is Abdullah Ok .- Transport :...
, which is 96 km away on the opposite shore of Lake Van
Lake Van
Lake Van is the largest lake in Turkey, located in the far east of the country in Van district. It is a saline and soda lake, receiving water from numerous small streams that descend from the surrounding mountains. Lake Van is one of the world's largest endorheic lakes . The original outlet from...
, by a train ferry
Train ferry
A train ferry is a ship designed to carry railway vehicles. Typically, one level of the ship is fitted with railway tracks, and the vessel has a door at the front and/or rear to give access to the wharves. In the United States, train ferries are sometimes referred to as "car ferries", as...
that helps to avoid the necessity to build a 250 km railway through difficult mountainous terrain. The railway will be constructed when traffic increases sufficiently.
Van is connected with the rest of Turkey through the Ferit Melen Airport
Van Ferit Melen Airport
Van Ferit Melen Airport is an airport in Van, the city in eastern region of Turkey. It is named after the Turkish politician and former prime minister Ferit Melen .-Airlines and destinations:- Traffic Statistics :Source: DHMI.gov.tr...
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Media
Near Van, there is a longwaveLongwave
In radio, longwave refers to parts of radio spectrum with relatively long wavelengths. The term is a historic one dating from the early 20th century, when the radio spectrum was considered to consist of long, medium and short wavelengths...
broadcasting station with a 250 metres tall guyed mast. It went in service in 1990 and operates on 225 kHz with 600 kW.
The Van Cat
Van Cat
The Van Cat is a distinctive breed of domestic cat that is found mainly in the Lake Van region of eastern Turkey. It is large, all-white, and frequently odd eyed.- History :...
is a breed of cat native to this town and named after it. The Van Cat is noted for its white fur, and having different colored eyes.
Notable residents
Armenians- Mkrtich AvetisianMkrtich AvetisianMkrtich Avetisi Avetisian was an Armenian journalist and political figure, one of the founders of Armenakan organization.He studied in Van, then became a student of Mekertich Portukalian. In this period he participated to "Black Cross" liberational organization, founded the Armenian Patriotic...
, an ArmeniaArmeniaArmenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
n journalist and political figure, one of the founders of Armenakan organizationRamgavar PartyThe Armenian Democratic Liberal Party or the Ramgavar Party, , also known by its Armenian initials or its English initials ADL is an Armenian political party in Armenia and the Armenian diaspora including the Middle East, Europe, the Americas and Australia.It was established in the...
. - Mkrtich KhrimianMkrtich KhrimianMkrtich Khrimian , also known as Khrimian Hayrik , was an Armenian writer, newspaper editor, and political and religious leader. He served as the Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople , Prelate of Van and Catholicos of All Armenians...
, an Armenian writer, religious leader, and Catholicos of All Armenians (1892–1907). - Bedros Kapamacıyan, OttomanOttoman TurksThe Ottoman Turks were the Turkish-speaking population of the Ottoman Empire who formed the base of the state's military and ruling classes. Reliable information about the early history of Ottoman Turks is scarce, but they take their Turkish name, Osmanlı , from the house of Osman I The Ottoman...
-ArmeniaArmeniaArmenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
n mayor of Van killed by Tashnak assassins on 10 December 1912. - Vahram AlazanVahram AlazanVahram Alazan was an Armenian poet, writer and public activist, the First Secretary of the Writers Union of Armenia from 1933 to 1936....
, an Armenian poet, writer and public activist, the First Secretary of the Writers Union of ArmeniaWriters union of ArmeniaThe Writers' Union of Armenia was founded in August 1934, simultaneously with the USSR Union of Writers and as a component part of the USSR Union.-1930s:...
from 1933 to 1936. - Arshile GorkyArshile GorkyArshile Gorky was an Armenian-born American painter who had a seminal influence on Abstract Expressionism. As such, his works were often speculated to have been informed by the suffering and loss he experienced of the Armenian genocide.-Early life:...
, an Armenian-American painter who had a seminal influence on Abstract ExpressionismAbstract expressionismAbstract expressionism was an American post–World War II art movement. It was the first specifically American movement to achieve worldwide influence and put New York City at the center of the western art world, a role formerly filled by Paris...
. - Panos TerlemezianPanos TerlemezianPanos Terlemezian was an Armenian painter, recognized with the People's Artist of Armenian SSR title in 1935. One of the leaders of Van Resistance, 1915....
, painter, a People's artist of Armenian SSR. - Aghasi KhanjianAghasi KhanjianAghasi Khanjian, also Aghasi Khanchian or Agasi Khandzhan , was First Secretary of the Communist Party of Armenia from May 1930 to July 1936....
, the leader of Soviet Armenia from 1930 to 1936. - Vardan AjemianVardan AjemianVardan Mkrtchi Ajemian was a Soviet Armenian theatral director and actor, People's Artist of USSR . Hero of Socialist Labour .He studied in Yerevan and Moscow. In 1928 he founded the Second Armenian State Theatre , in 1939 he moved to Yerevan Sundukian Theatre and became its artistic director...
, an Armenian theatral director and actor, People's Artist of the USSR. - Gurgen MahariGurgen MahariGurgen Mahari was an Armenian writer and poet.- Biography :In 1915 during the Armenian genocide Gurgen's family emigrated to Russia. His first book, Titanic was published in 1924...
, an Armenian writer and poet. - Haig PatigianHaig PatigianHaig Patigian was an Armenian-American sculptor born on January 22, 1876 in the city of Van, Armenia, in the Ottoman Empire and died on September 19, 1950 in San Francisco, California. His parents were teachers at the American Mission School in Armenia...
, an Armenian-American sculptor. - Nairi ZarianNairi ZarianNairi Zarian was a Soviet Armenian poet and writer, the chairman of Armenian SSR Committee for the Defense of Peace....
, a Soviet Armenian poet and writer.
Turks, Kurds, and others
- Sinan ÇetinSinan ÇetinSinan Çetin is a Turkish actor, film director, and producer.Çetin was born as the son of a customs officer and studied art history at Hacettepe University. Çetin has produced full-length films and television series, and foremost, commercials...
, movie director, was born on March 1, 1953. - Ferit MelenFerit MelenFerit Sadi Melen was a Turkish civil servant, politician and Prime Minister of Turkey.-Biography:After finishing the high school in Bursa, he obtained a degree in finance from the School of Political Science at Ankara University in 1931...
, a politician and prime minister of TurkeyPrime Minister of TurkeyThe Prime Minister of the Turkey is the head of government in Turkish politics. The prime minister is the leader of a political coalition in the Turkish parliament and the leader of the cabinet....
between 1972–1973. - Ruhi SuRuhi SuMehmet Ruhi Su was a Turkish opera singer, Turkish folk singer and saz virtuoso of Armenian origin.-Early life:Mehmet Ruhi Su was born 1912 in Van, Turkey to an Armenian family...
, TurkishTurkish languageTurkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
folk singer.
