About Turkey

     Turkey (Turkish: Türkiye), known officially as the Republic of Turkey (Türkiye Cumhuriyeti (help·info)), is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in southwest Asia and the Balkan region of southeastern Europe. Turkey borders eight countries: Bulgaria to the northwest, Greece to the west, Georgia to the northeast, Armenia, Azerbaijan (the Nakhichevan exclave), and Iran to the east, Iraq and Syria to the southeast. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean Sea to the west, and the Black Sea to the north. Turkey also contains the Sea of Marmara, which is used by geographers to mark the border between Europe and Asia, thus making Turkey transcontinental.

     Because of its strategic location astride two continents, Turkey's culture has a unique blend of Eastern and Western tradition. A powerful regional presence in the Eurasian landmass with strong cultural and economic influence in the area between the European Union in the west and Central Asia in the east, Russia in the north and the Middle East in the south, Turkey has come to acquire increasing strategic significance.

     Turkey, a developed country, is a democratic, secular, unitary, constitutional republic whose political system was established in 1923 under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, following the fall of the Ottoman Empire in the aftermath of World War I. Since then, Turkey has become increasingly integrated with the West while continuing to foster relations with the Eastern world.

About Ankara

     Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after İstanbul. The city has a population (as of 2005) of 4,319,167 (Province 5,153,000), and a mean elevation of 850 m (2800 ft). It was formerly known as Angora. The Hittites gave it the name Ankuwash before 1200 BC, the Galatians and Romans called it Ancyra, and in the classical, Hellenistic, and Byzantine periods it was known as Ἄγκυρα Ánkyra. Ankara also serves as the capital of the Province of Ankara.

     Centrally located in Anatolia, Ankara is an important commercial and industrial city. It is the center of the Turkish Government, and houses all foreign embassies. It is an important crossroads of trade, strategically located at the center of Turkey's highway and railway networks, and serves as the marketing center for the surrounding agricultural area. The city was famous for its long-haired Angora goat and its prized wool (mohair), a unique breed of cat (Angora cat), white rabbits and their prized wool (Angora wool), pears, honey, and the region's muscat grapes.

     Ankara is situated upon a steep and rocky hill, which rises 150 m above the plain on the left bank of the Enguri Su, a tributary of the Sakarya (Sangarius) river. The city is located at 39°52'30" North, 32°52' East (

     39.875° N 32.8333° E). Ankara is one of the driest places in Turkey and is surrounded by a barren steppe vegetation, with various Hittite, Phrygian, Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman archaeological sites. It has a harsh, dry continental climate with cold, snowy winters and hot, dry summers. Rainfall occurs mostly during the spring and autumn.

     The hill which overlooks the city is crowned by the ruins of the old castle, which adds to the picturesqueness of the view, but only a few historic structures surrounding the old citadel have survived to our date. There are, however, many finely preserved remains of Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine architecture, the most remarkable being the Temple of Augustus and Rome (20 BC) which is also known as the Monumentum Ancyranum.

     Like all the other cities of Turkey football is the most popular sport in the capital of Turkey. The city has four football clubs currently competing in the Turkcell Super League: Gençlerbirliği ( finished 5th in the league on the 2006-07 season ), Büyükşehir Belediye Ankaraspor ( finished 7th in the league on the 2006-07 season ), and Ankaragücü ( finished 13th in the league on the 2006/2007 season ). The fourth club, Gençlerbirliği OFTAŞ has moved to participate in the Turkcell Super League during the 2007-08 season which started on the August 10th 2007. Ankara 19 Mayıs Stadium is the venue for football games which is capable of nearly 20.000 audience.

     In the Turkish Basketball League, Ankara is represented by Türk Telekom and CASA TED Ankara Kolejliler.

     Ankara Buz Pateni Sarayı is where the ice skating and ice hockey competitions take place in the city

 

Univercities : 

• Ankara University
• Atılım University
• Başkent University
• Beykent University
• Bilkent University
• Çankaya University
• Gazi University
• Gülhane Military Academy of Medicine
• Hacettepe University
• Middle East Technical University
• TOBB University of Economics and Technology
• Turkish Military Academy
• Ufuk University