Kahramanmaraş

"Marash" redirects here. For other uses, see Marash (disambiguation).
Kahramanmaraş
Metropolitan Municipality

A view of the city center
Kahramanmaraş

Location of Kahramanmaraş within Turkey.

Coordinates: 37°35′N 36°56′E / 37.583°N 36.933°E / 37.583; 36.933Coordinates: 37°35′N 36°56′E / 37.583°N 36.933°E / 37.583; 36.933
Country Turkey
Region Mediterranean
Province Kahramanmaraş
Area[1]
 • District 3,017.45 km2 (1,165.04 sq mi)
Elevation 67 m (220 ft)
Population (2012)[2]
 • Urban 443,575
 • District 558,664
 • District density 190/km2 (480/sq mi)
Time zone EET (UTC+2)
 • Summer (DST) EEST (UTC+3)
Area code(s) 0344
Licence plate 46
The minaret of Grand Mosque of Kahramanmaras (Kahramanmaraş Ulu Camii), one of the city's many historic mosques

Kahramanmaraş is a city in Akdeniz, Turkey (the Mediterranean Region) and the administrative center of Kahramanmaraş Province. Before 1973, Kahramanmaraş was named Marash. The city lies on a plain at the foot of the Ahir Dağı (Ahir Mountain) and has a population of 575,000 as of 2013. The region is best known for its production of salep, a flour made from dried orchid tubers, and its distinctive ice cream. It is connected by air to Istanbul and Ankara. Turkish Airlines has daily direct flights from İstanbul and also AnadoluJet operates direct flights from Ankara.

History

Early history

In the early Iron Age (late 11th century BC to ca. 711 BC[3]), Maraş was the capital city of the Syro-Hittite state Gurgum (Hieroglyphic Luwian Kurkuma). It was known as "the Kurkumaean city" to its Luwian inhabitants and as Marqas to the Assyrians.[4] In 711 BC, the land of Gurgum was annexed as an Assyrian province and renamed as Marqas after its capital.[5]

Maraş was called Germanicia Caesarea (Γερμανίκεια, Germanikeia, in Greek) in the time of the Roman and Byzantine empires. According to a 2010 Cumhuriyet article, the first ruins of Germanicia have already been unearthed in the Dulkadiroğulları quarters of the city.[6]

In 645 Germanicia was taken from the Byzantines by the Muslim Arabs, to whom the city was known as Marʻash (Arabic: مرعش [ˈmarʕaʃ], which is also the Syriac ܡܪܥܫ). Marash was an important Syrian Orthodox diocese. Mor Dionysius Bar Salibi (died 1171) was its bishop. Over the next three centuries, Marash belonged to the fortified Arab-Byzantine frontier zone (Thughur) and was used as a base for incursions into Byzantine-held Asia Minor by the Arabs. It was destroyed several times during the Arab-Byzantine Wars. It was rebuilt by the Umayyad caliph Muawiya I and was expanded ca. 800 by the Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid. The city was also controlled by the Tulunids, Ikhshidids and Hamdanids before the Byzantines under Nikephoros Phokas recovered it in 962.

After the defeat of Emperor Romanos IV Diogenes at the Battle of Manzikert in 1071, Philaretos Brachamios, a former Byzantine general, founded a principality centred on the city, which stretched from Antioch to Edessa.

Germanikeia was captured by Baldwin I of Jerusalem in 1098 during the First Crusade, and made part of the County of Edessa, becoming an important center during Crusader rule. According to the Chronicle of Matthew of Edessa, it was destroyed by an earthquake and 10,000 people were killed, which is probably an exaggeration. In 1100 it was captured by the Danishmends, followed by the Seljuks in 1103. In 1107 Crusaders led by Tancred retook it with aid from Toros I of Little Armenia. In 1135 the Danishmends besieged Germanikeia unsuccessfully, but captured it next year. However, the Crusaders retook it in 1137.[7] Baldwin of Germanikeia died in a war in 1146 while trying recover Edessa Nur ad-Din Zangi, which had taken the side of Joscelin II of Edessa. His successor Reynald of Germanikeia also died in the Battle of Inab against the Zengids. Sultan Mesud I of the Sultanate of Rum took the city in 1149.

Marash was captured by the Zengids in 1151, but was recaptured by the Seljuks in 1152. Maraş was recaptured by the Zengids in 1173 and was left to Mleh, his collaborator. Marash passed to the Seljuks in 1174 and to the Ayyubids in 1182.

Panorama view (c1875)
View along Trabzon Avenue (Trabzon Caddesi)

Kaykhusraw I, Sultan of Rum captured Marash in 1208. Seljuk rule lasted to 1258. In 1258, Maraş was captured by the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, following the war with the Ilkhanate. Served by an Armenian Apostolic Church Archbishop, it became for a very short period of time, the seat of the Catholicossate of the Great House of Cilicia. Marash was captured by Al-Ashraf Khalil, Mamluk Sultan in 1292. But, it was recaptured by Hethum II, King of Cilician Armenia in 1299. Marash finally was taken by the Mamluks in 1304.

Marash was ruled by Dulkadirs as vassals of the Mamluks between 1337-1515 before being annexed to the Ottoman Empire. In the early days of Ottoman rule (1525-6) there were 1,557 adult males (total population 7,500); at this time all the inhabitants were Muslims,[8] but later a substantial number of non-Muslims immigrated into the city, mainly in the 19th century.[9]

Modern period

During the Ottoman rule, the city was at first centre of Eyalet of Dulkadir (Also called Eyalet of Zûlkâdiriyye) before the first half of the 19th century, later it was a sanjak centre in the Vilayet of Aleppo before 1918. It was controlled first by British troops between 22 February 1919 and 30 October 1919, after by French ones after signing Armistice of Mudros. It was taken over by the Turkish National Movement after the Battle of Marash on 13 February 1920. Afterward a massacre of Armenian civilians took place.[10] Roving Turkish bands threw kerosene-doused rags on Armenian homes and laid a constant barrage upon the American relief hospital.[11] The Armenians themselves, as in previous times of trouble, sought refuge in their churches and schools.[12] Women and children found momentary shelter in Marash's six Armenian Apostolic, three Armenian Evangelical churches and in the city's sole Catholic cathedral. All the churches, and eventually the entire Armenian districts, were set alight.[13][14][15] When the 2,000 Armenians who had taken shelter in the Catholic cathedral attempted to leave, they were shot by Turkish rifles and machine guns..[16] Early reports put the number of Armenians dead at no less than 16,000, although this was later revised down to 5,000–12,000.[17][18]

In 1973, Marash's name was changed to Kahramanmaraş when the Turkish government added "Kahraman" to the name, in reference to the bravery of the people of the city in resisting against the French occupation after the First World War. Kahraman means "hero" in Turkish.[19]

In December 1978, Kahramanmaraş was the site of a massacre of leftist Alevis. A Turkish nationalist group, the Grey Wolves, incited the violence that left 800-1000 dead. The incident was important in the Turkish government's decision to declare martial law, and the eventual military coup in 1980.[20]

Year Population[21]
1525-6 7,500
1564-5 13,500
1914 32,700
1927 25,672
1940 27,744
1945 33,104
1950 34,641
1960 54,447
1970 110,761
1980 178,557

Climate

Kahramanmaraş has a mediterranean climate. Summers are hot and dry with an average of 35 °C (95 °F) but can go higher than +40 °C (104 °F). The highest recorded temperature being 45.2 °C (113.36 °F) on 30 July 2007. Winters are cold and damp with temperatures ranging from 0-5 °C (32-41 °F). The coldest temperature recorded was -9.6 °C (14.72 °F) on 6 February 1997.

Climate data for Kahramanmaraş
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 18.7
(65.7)		 21.8
(71.2)		 29.2
(84.6)		 36.0
(96.8)		 38.0
(100.4)		 42.0
(107.6)		 45.2
(113.4)		 44.4
(111.9)		 41.3
(106.3)		 37.2
(99)		 27.2
(81)		 24.0
(75.2)		 45.2
(113.4)
Average high °C (°F) 9.1
(48.4)		 10.9
(51.6)		 15.7
(60.3)		 21.1
(70)		 26.7
(80.1)		 31.9
(89.4)		 35.6
(96.1)		 35.9
(96.6)		 32.4
(90.3)		 25.8
(78.4)		 17.2
(63)		 10.9
(51.6)		 22.77
(72.98)
Average low °C (°F) 1.3
(34.3)		 2.2
(36)		 5.6
(42.1)		 9.9
(49.8)		 14.2
(57.6)		 18.9
(66)		 22.1
(71.8)		 22.2
(72)		 18.4
(65.1)		 12.9
(55.2)		 6.8
(44.2)		 3.1
(37.6)		 11.47
(52.64)
Record low °C (°F) −7.8
(18)		 −9.6
(14.7)		 −7.6
(18.3)		 −0.6
(30.9)		 5.0
(41)		 11.0
(51.8)		 15.6
(60.1)		 16.0
(60.8)		 8.6
(47.5)		 2.2
(36)		 −4.4
(24.1)		 −7.6
(18.3)		 −9.6
(14.7)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 125.4
(4.937)		 112.3
(4.421)		 94.8
(3.732)		 76.1
(2.996)		 39.3
(1.547)		 7.4
(0.291)		 2.5
(0.098)		 1.5
(0.059)		 9.3
(0.366)		 53.1
(2.091)		 93.5
(3.681)		 129.2
(5.087)		 744.4
(29.306)
Average rainy days 12.4 12.2 12.3 11.6 8.1 2.7 1.5 1.3 2.7 6.7 9.1 12.1 92.7
Mean monthly sunshine hours 108.5 117.6 173.6 204 263.5 312 341 319.3 273 213.9 135 102.3 2,563.7
Source: Devlet Meteoroloji İşleri Genel Müdürlüğü[22]

Industry

The Covered Market (Kapalı Çarşı) of Kahramanmaraş

Some of the internationally-known ice-cream companies like MADO, Yaşar Pastanesi, EDO and Ferah Pastanesi started their business in this ice-cream city and thousands of people visit Kahramanmaraş because of its ice-cream (dondurma in Turkish).

Sports

The city has a local football team called; Kahramanmaraşspor which plays in the Turkish 2nd Division league. Kahramanmaraşspor plays its home games in Hanefi Mahçiçek Stadium. Some famous Turkish players like Mehmet Özdilek and Kemalettin Şentürk played in Kahramanmaraşspor before transferring to bigger clubs.

Notable natives

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Area of regions (including lakes), km²". Regional Statistics Database. Turkish Statistical Institute. 2002. Retrieved 2013-03-05.
  2. ↑ "Population of province/district centers and towns/villages by districts - 2012". Address Based Population Registration System (ABPRS) Database. Turkish Statistical Institute. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  3. ↑ Trevor Bryce: The World of the Neo-Hittite Kingdoms: A Political and Military History. Oxford, New York 2012, p. 125-128.
  4. ↑ Annick Payne: Iron Age Hieroglyphic Luwian Inscriptions. Atlanta 2012, p. 7.
  5. ↑ Trevor Bryce: The World of the Neo-Hittite Kingdoms: A Political and Military History. Oxford, New York 2012, p. 128.
  6. ↑ Cumhuriyet , 20 December 2010 p. 20
  7. ↑ http://www.k-maras.com/a_dos/t_gelisimi.htm
  8. ↑ The Supreme Muslim Council: Islam Under the British Mandate for Palestine, Uri M. Kupferschmidt, page 508
  9. ↑ The Supreme Muslim Council: Islam Under the British Mandate for Palestine, Uri M. Kupferschmidt, page 508-509
  10. ↑ "The Massacre Of Armenians." The Times. 28 February 1920.
  11. ↑ "Eyewitness Tells How Armenians were Massacred." The New York Times. 29 February 1920.
  12. ↑ Hovannisian. "Postwar Contest for Cilicia", p. 509.
  13. ↑ (French) Muré, Materne (1921). Un épisode de la tragédie arménienne: le massacre de Marache (février 1920). Brussels: Société Belge de Libraire.
  14. ↑ Kerr. The Lions of Marash, pp. 95–142.
  15. ↑ Sahakyan. Turkish-French Relations, pp. 150–52.
  16. ↑ Hovannisian. Republic of Armenia, p. 41.
  17. ↑ Documents on British Foreign Policy, vol. vii, p. 303.
  18. ↑ Kerr. The Lions of Marash, p. 196.
  19. ↑ "Kahramanmaras". Dokuz Eylül University. Retrieved 6 March 2014.
  20. ↑ Zurcher, Eric. "Turkey: A Modern History". I.B. Tauris: London, 1993: 276-277
  21. ↑ The Supreme Muslim Council: Islam Under the British Mandate for Palestine, Uri M. Kupferschmidt, page 508 - 509
  22. ↑ "İl ve İlçelerimize Ait İstatistiki Veriler- Meteoroloji Genel Müdürlüğü". Meteor.gov.tr. Retrieved 2013-01-01.
 
Largest cities or towns in Turkey
TÜİK's address-based calculation from December, 2013.[1]
Rank Name Province Pop. Rank Name Province Pop.

Istanbul

Ankara		 1 Istanbul Istanbul 13,820,334 11 Kayseri Kayseri 880,255
İzmir

Bursa
2 Ankara Ankara 4,474,305 12 Eskişehir Eskişehir 670,544
3 İzmir İzmir 2,828,927 13 Gebze Kocaeli 582,352
4 Bursa Bursa 1,769,752 14 Şanlıurfa Şanlıurfa 551,511
5 Adana Adana 1,645,965 15 Denizli Denizli 540,000
6 Gaziantep Gaziantep 1,465,019 16 Samsun Samsun 523,192
7 Konya Konya 1,138,609 17 Kahramanmaraş Kahramanmaraş 458,628
8 Antalya Antalya 1,027,551 18 Adapazarı Sakarya 449,290
9 Diyarbakır Diyarbakır 906,013 19 Malatya Malatya 425,000
10 Mersin Mersin 898,813 20 Erzurum Erzurum 381,104
  1. ↑ "December 2013 address-based calculation of the Turkish Statistical Institute as presented by citypopulation.de".
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