Tunceli Province
 Tunceli Province |
|
|---|---|
| Location of Tunceli Province in Turkey | |
 |
|
| Overview | |
| Region: | Eastern Anatolia Region, Turkey |
| Area: | 7,774 km2 (3,002 sq mi) |
| Total Population | 76,401 TurkStat 2007 (est) |
| Population density | 9.8 /km2 (25 /sq mi) |
| Licence plate code: | 62 |
| Area code: | 0392 |
| Governor Website | http://www.tunceli.gov.tr |
Tunceli is a province in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey. The province was named Dersim until 1936 (Dersim meaning 'silver door' in Zazaki and Kurdish), and some still call the region by this name. The name of the provincial capital, Kalan, was then officially changed to match with the province's name.
Its adjacent provinces are Erzincan to the north and west, Elazığ to the south, and Bingöl to the east. The province covers an area of 7,774 km2 (3,002 sq mi) and has a population of 76,401. It has the lowest population density of any province in Turkey, just 9.8 inhabitants/km². Tunceli is the only Turkish province with an Alevi majority. The major languages of Tunceli are Zazaki and Kurdish.
Tunceli is known for its old buildings (though mainly destroyed by Hamidiye Alays in the late 19th century and the Turkish army in 1936-37 military operations against the last remaining Armenian insurgents and Alevi derebeys), and impressive scenery, especially along the Munzur River.
Contents |
[edit] Geography
Tunceli is traversed by the northeasterly line of equal latitude and longitude.
[edit] Districts
Tunceli province is divided into eight districts (capital district in bold):
Although a distinct province, Tunceli was administered from Elazığ until 1947.
[edit] History
The history of the province stretches back to antiquity. It has been mentioned as 'Daranalis' by Ptolemy, and seemingly, it was referred to as 'Daranis' before him. One theory as to the origin of the name associates with the Persian Emperor Darius.
The area that would become Tunceli province formed part of Urartu, Media, the Achaemenid Empire, and the Greater Armenian region of Sophene. Sophene was later contested by the Roman and Parthian Empires and by their respective successors, the Byzantine and Sassanid Empires. Arabs invaded in the 7th century, and Seljuq Turks in the 11th.[1]
As of the end of the 19th century, the region (called "Tunceli") was included in the Ottoman sancak (subprovince) of Hozat, depending the city and the province of Mamuret-ül Aziz (Elazığ today), with the exception of the actual district of Pülümür, which depended on the neighboring sancak of Erzincan, then a part of the Erzurum Province. This status continued through the first years of the Republic of Turkey, until 1936 when the name of the province ("Tunceli") was changed to Tunceli, literally 'the land of bronze' in Turkish (tunç meaning 'bronze' and el (in this context) meaning 'land') after the Dersim Rebellion. The center of the province has been fixed in the town of Kalan and the district of Pülümür has been added within the boundaries of the new province.
[edit] Education
Ninety-eight percent of Tunceli's population has at least a primary school education, leading to one of the highest rates of literacy for a district within Turkey. In 1979/1980 Tunceli had the highest number of students attending universities as well as the top entry points until the only higher education school shut down and converted to a military base.
Tunceli University was established on May 22, 2008.[2] It has departments in international relations, economics, environmental protection engineering, industrial engineering, electronic engineering, computer engineering and mechanical engineering.
[edit] References
- ^ Seyfi Cengiz Tarih (2005). History.
- ^ Tunceli University Signs Protocol with 4 American Universities
[edit] External links
- Official Homepage of the Province Governor
- Official Homepage of the Culture and Tourism head office
- Official Homepage of the police head office
- Official Homepage of the Education head office
- Official Homepage of the health head office
- Education
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||
Coordinates: 39°12′53″N 39°28′17″E / 39.21472°N 39.47139°E
