Niğde

Niğde
Municipality

Niğde
Niğde
Coordinates: TR 37°58′00″N 34°40′45″E / 37.96667°N 34.67917°E / 37.96667; 34.67917Coordinates: TR 37°58′00″N 34°40′45″E / 37.96667°N 34.67917°E / 37.96667; 34.67917
Country Turkey
Province Niğde
Government
 • Mayor Faruk Akdoğan (AKP)
Area[1]
 • District 2,302.99 km2 (889.19 sq mi)
Elevation 1,229 m (4,032 ft)
Population (2012)[2]
 • Urban 118,186
 • District 200,044
 • District density 87/km2 (220/sq mi)
Website www.nigde.bel.tr

Niğde is a town and the capital of Niğde Province in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey at an elevation of 1,300 m. In 2010 the population was 109,724.[3]

The town is located between the volcanic Melandiz Mountains, which include the Mount Hasan stratovolcano near the city of Aksaray to the north, and the Niğde Massif to the south-southeast. The massif is a metamorphic dome that contains abandoned antimony and iron mines. Several marble quarries are currently active in the pure white crystalline marble of the massif.

One of the most historically important places in Turkey is near Nigde, the Gumusler cave church, in a small village close to central Nigde.

History

See Niğde Province for a summary of the history of the region, which goes back a long way. This is rich farmland near a number of ancient trade routes, particularly the road from Kayseri (ancient Caesarea) to the Cilician Gates. Settlers throughout history include Hittites, Assyrians, Greeks, Armenians, Romans, Byzantines and finally Turks from 1166 onwards. In the early Middle Ages, it was known as Magida, and was settled by the remaining inhabitants of nearby Tyana after the latter fell to the Arabs in 708/709. By the early 13th century Niğde was one of the largest cities in Anatolia. After the fall of the Sultanate of Rûm (of which it had been one of the principal cities), Niğde was captured by Anatolian beyliks such as Karaman Beylik and Eretna Beylik. According to Ibn Battuta, ruinous, and did not pass into Ottoman hands till the time of Mehmet II.

More recent immigrants include Turkish people from Bulgaria and other Balkan countries, who were settled here by the Turkish authorities in the 1950s and '60s.

Climate

Niğde lies on the borderline between a cold semi-arid climate and a dry-summer continental climate. Niğde has hot and dry summers and cold and snowy winters. Most of the precipitation is during late spring.

Climate data for Niğde (1960-2012)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 18.6
(65.5)		 19.6
(67.3)		 26.3
(79.3)		 30.8
(87.4)		 32.0
(89.6)		 34.8
(94.6)		 38.5
(101.3)		 37.8
(100)		 34.6
(94.3)		 30.6
(87.1)		 24.6
(76.3)		 20.9
(69.6)		 38.5
(101.3)
Average high °C (°F) 4.6
(40.3)		 6.1
(43)		 11.1
(52)		 16.6
(61.9)		 21.3
(70.3)		 25.7
(78.3)		 29.3
(84.7)		 29.3
(84.7)		 25.6
(78.1)		 19.7
(67.5)		 12.9
(55.2)		 7.1
(44.8)		 17.44
(63.4)
Daily mean °C (°F) −0.4
(31.3)		 0.8
(33.4)		 5.2
(41.4)		 10.5
(50.9)		 15.1
(59.2)		 19.3
(66.7)		 22.6
(72.7)		 22.2
(72)		 17.7
(63.9)		 12.1
(53.8)		 6.1
(43)		 1.8
(35.2)		 11.08
(51.96)
Average low °C (°F) −4.6
(23.7)		 −3.6
(25.5)		 0.0
(32)		 4.5
(40.1)		 8.3
(46.9)		 11.8
(53.2)		 14.8
(58.6)		 14.3
(57.7)		 10.2
(50.4)		 6.0
(42.8)		 1.2
(34.2)		 −2.4
(27.7)		 5.04
(41.07)
Record low °C (°F) −21.7
(−7.1)		 −24.2
(−11.6)		 −23.9
(−11)		 −6.9
(19.6)		 −2.6
(27.3)		 3.5
(38.3)		 7.1
(44.8)		 6.7
(44.1)		 1.0
(33.8)		 −5.2
(22.6)		 −14.7
(5.5)		 −20.6
(−5.1)		 −24.2
(−11.6)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 31.4
(1.236)		 32.2
(1.268)		 35.0
(1.378)		 45.2
(1.78)		 48.3
(1.902)		 25.0
(0.984)		 4.9
(0.193)		 3.9
(0.154)		 7.9
(0.311)		 26.9
(1.059)		 32.2
(1.268)		 40.7
(1.602)		 333.6
(13.135)
Average rainy days 10.4 10.6 11.2 11.8 12.2 6.8 2.0 1.5 2.9 6.7 7.7 11.0 94.8
Mean monthly sunshine hours 120.9 134.4 186 213.9 275.9 333 375.1 356.5 300 229.4 159 117.8 2,801.9
Source #1: Devlet Meteoroloji İşleri Genel Müdürlüğü[4]
Source #2: Hong Kong Observatory[5]

Niğde today

Niğde city center

Nigde University opened in 1992 and is starting to bring more cultural and social amenities to what is essentially a large town with a very rural feel to it, providing schools, basic shopping, and other necessities to the surrounding villages. The city is small and there is still plenty of green space and gardens around the houses. The people generally tend to be religious and conservative.

Sightseeing

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. ↑ Statistical Institute Archived August 24, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.
  4. ↑
  5. ↑ http://www.hko.gov.hk/wxinfo/climat/world/eng/europe/gr_tu/nigde_e.htm
  6. ↑
  7. ↑ https://www.google.no/webhp?hl=no#hl=no&q=ni%C4%9Fde+alaaddin+camii+kap%C4%B1s%C4%B1 Niğde Alaaddin Mosque where a chiaroscuro drawing of a woman's face with crown and long hair appears at a specific time of the year.
  8. ↑ Werkgroep Coupure, Werkgroep Coupure (2009). De Coupure in Gent. Scheiding en verbinding. Academia Press. p. 304. ISBN 9789038213231. Leonidas-Kestekidès (°1882 Nikede, met Griekse nationaliteit…(Translated: Leonidas Kestekides (° 1882 Nigde of Greek nationality
  9. ↑ Rōmanou, Kaitē (2009). Serbian and Greek Art Music: A Patch to Western Music History. Intellect Books. p. 152. ISBN 9781841502786. Petros Petrides was born in Nigde, Kappadokia, in 1892 and died in Kifissia (Attica) in 1977. A man of vast knowledge on various fields of science and art, who is rightfully placed among the most cultivated and educated Greek composers of the first half of the 20th century;
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