Turkey

Partly European and partly Asian country, the Republic of Turkey is a link between these two continents through the Dardanelles and the Bosporus, the sea route between the Mediterranean and Black Sea. The European part -Thrace - occupies only 5% of Turkish territory. European Turkey is a fertile, arable oriented country with a Mediterranean climate. On the other hand, the Asian part - also known as Anatolia - is surrounded by the Pontic Mountains in the north and the Taurus Mountains in the south. The climate here varies from Mediterranean, to hot summers and harsh winters in the central highlands. Almost half of the workforce is employed in agriculture. The main crops are wheat, rice, tobacco and cotton. The industry is engaged in the processing of steel, iron and textiles. Turkey produces motor vehicles and its famous carpets. The Euphrates and Tiger supply the country with electricity. Tourism is constantly increasing.

AREA: 780,580 km²

POPULATION: Over 69 million

IMPORTANT NATURAL CHARACTERISTICS:

THE HIGHEST PEAK: Apapat

THE LARGEST LAKE: Van

THE LONGEST RIVER: Kizil Irmak; Tiger and Euphrates originate in Turkey

THE LARGEST CITIES: Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Bursa, Adana

OFFICIAL LANGUAGE: Turkish

STATE SYSTEM: multiparty republic with a unicameral parliament

THE ETHNIC COMPOSITION: Turks (80%), Kurds (20%)

CURRENCY: Turkish lira = 100 kurus

IMPORTANT SOURCES OF INCOME: iron, aluminum, copper, coal, wheat, barley, rice, tobacco , sugar beets, tea, olives, grapes, figs, hazelnuts, cotton, hydropower and tourism