Babadag
Encyclopedia
Babadag is a town in Tulcea county
, Romania
, located on a small lake formed by the Taiţa river
, in the densely wooded highlands of northern Dobruja
. Its name means "the mountain of the father" in Turkish
. One of the several tombs of Sari Saltik
is found in town.
The Babadag Lake is divided only by a strip of marshland from Razim Lake, a broad landlocked sheet of water spilling into the Black Sea
. Babadag used to be a market for wool
and mutton
.
Population distribution:
85.5% spoke Romanian
, 12.5% Turkish
and 1.3% Romani
as their first language. 84.8% were Christian Orthodox and 14.2% Muslim
.
Baba Sari Saltik
, who is said to have led a number of Turcomans to Dobruja and to have settled them in this area. The town was first mentioned by Ibn Battuta
under the name Baba Saltuk, as the furthermost outpost of the Turks
.
The town was conquered by Bayezid I
, a Sultan
of the Ottoman Empire
, in his Danubian campaign of 1393. The construction of a fortress was begun here during the reign of Murad IV
, but by 1650 only the fortress' foundation walls and towers were standing. In the 17th century, it occasionally served as the winter headquarters for the Grand Vizier
of the Turks during their wars with Russia
. The town's location near to the Black Sea
made it a target for the Russian navy, the town was bombed by the Russians in 1854 during the Crimean War
. Following the war between the Ottoman and Russian empires (1877–1878) Babadag became part of an independent Romania.
operates a military training facility. With a total surface area of 270 km², this is one of the largest and most modern training firing ranges in Europe
.
US forces have started to train at Babadag as part of Romania's integration into NATO.
Tulcea County
Tulcea is a county of Romania, in the historical region Dobruja, with the capital city at Tulcea.-Demographics:In 2002, Tulcea County had a population of 256,492...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
, located on a small lake formed by the Taiţa river
Taita River
The Taiţa River is a tributary of Lake Babadag in Romania.-References:* Administraţia Naţională Apelor Române - Cadastrul Apelor - Bucureşti* Institutul de Meteorologie şi Hidrologie - Rîurile României - Bucureşti 1971* Trasee turistice - judeţul Tulcea...
, in the densely wooded highlands of northern Dobruja
Dobruja
Dobruja is a historical region shared by Bulgaria and Romania, located between the lower Danube river and the Black Sea, including the Danube Delta, Romanian coast and the northernmost part of the Bulgarian coast...
. Its name means "the mountain of the father" in Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
. One of the several tombs of Sari Saltik
Sari Saltik
Sari Saltik was a 13th-century semi-legendary Turkish dervish, venerated as a saint by the Bektashis in the Balkans and parts of Middle East.-Historical figure:...
is found in town.
The Babadag Lake is divided only by a strip of marshland from Razim Lake, a broad landlocked sheet of water spilling into the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
. Babadag used to be a market for wool
Wool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
and mutton
Lamb (food)
Lamb, mutton, and hogget are the meat of domestic sheep. The meat of a sheep in its first year is lamb; that of a juvenile sheep older than 1 year is hogget; and the meat of an adult sheep is mutton....
.
Demographics
In 1900 Babadag population was 3,500, by 2002 the population had risen to 10,038, according to the 2002 census.Population distribution:
- 8,466 RomaniansRomaniansThe Romanians are an ethnic group native to Romania, who speak Romanian; they are the majority inhabitants of Romania....
(84.3%) - 1,289 TurksTurkish peopleTurkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
(12.8%) - 168 GypsyGypsy-Ethnic groups:* Romani people, a group widely dispersed throughout Europe* Dom people, an Indo-Aryan group** Lyuli, a Dom subgroup from Central Asia* Lom people, a group from East Anatolia and Armenia* Banjara, a group from India* Irish Travellers...
(1.7%) - 37 LipovansLipovansLipovans or Lippovans are the Old Believers, mostly of Russian ethnic origin, who settled in the Moldavian Principality, in Dobruja and Eastern Muntenia...
(0.4%) - 77 Others
85.5% spoke Romanian
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
, 12.5% Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
and 1.3% Romani
Romani language
Romani or Romany, Gypsy or Gipsy is any of several languages of the Romani people. They are Indic, sometimes classified in the "Central" or "Northwestern" zone, and sometimes treated as a branch of their own....
as their first language. 84.8% were Christian Orthodox and 14.2% Muslim
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
.
History
The name of Babadag is connected with 13th century dervishDervish
A Dervish or Darvesh is someone treading a Sufi Muslim ascetic path or "Tariqah", known for their extreme poverty and austerity, similar to mendicant friars in Christianity or Hindu/Buddhist/Jain sadhus.-Etymology:The Persian word darvīsh is of ancient origin and descends from a Proto-Iranian...
Baba Sari Saltik
Sari Saltik
Sari Saltik was a 13th-century semi-legendary Turkish dervish, venerated as a saint by the Bektashis in the Balkans and parts of Middle East.-Historical figure:...
, who is said to have led a number of Turcomans to Dobruja and to have settled them in this area. The town was first mentioned by Ibn Battuta
Ibn Battuta
Abu Abdullah Muhammad Ibn Battuta , or simply Ibn Battuta, also known as Shams ad–Din , was a Muslim Moroccan Berber explorer, known for his extensive travels published in the Rihla...
under the name Baba Saltuk, as the furthermost outpost of the Turks
Golden Horde
The Golden Horde was a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate that formed the north-western sector of the Mongol Empire...
.
The town was conquered by Bayezid I
Bayezid I
Bayezid I was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, from 1389 to 1402. He was the son of Murad I and Valide Sultan Gülçiçek Hatun.-Biography:Bayezid was born in Edirne and spent his youth in Bursa, where he received a high-level education...
, a Sultan
Sultan
Sultan is a title with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic language abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", and "dictatorship", derived from the masdar سلطة , meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who...
of the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, in his Danubian campaign of 1393. The construction of a fortress was begun here during the reign of Murad IV
Murad IV
Murad IV Ghazi was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1623 to 1640, known both for restoring the authority of the state and for the brutality of his methods...
, but by 1650 only the fortress' foundation walls and towers were standing. In the 17th century, it occasionally served as the winter headquarters for the Grand Vizier
Grand Vizier
Grand Vizier, in Turkish Vezir-i Azam or Sadr-ı Azam , deriving from the Arabic word vizier , was the greatest minister of the Sultan, with absolute power of attorney and, in principle, dismissable only by the Sultan himself...
of the Turks during their wars with Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. The town's location near to the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
made it a target for the Russian navy, the town was bombed by the Russians in 1854 during the Crimean War
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
. Following the war between the Ottoman and Russian empires (1877–1878) Babadag became part of an independent Romania.
Military training facility
At Babadag, the Romanian ArmyRomanian Land Forces
The Romanian Land Forces is the army of Romania, and the main component of the Romanian Armed Forces. In recent years, full professionalisation and a major equipment overhaul have transformed the nature of the force.The Romanian Land Forces were founded on...
operates a military training facility. With a total surface area of 270 km², this is one of the largest and most modern training firing ranges in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
US forces have started to train at Babadag as part of Romania's integration into NATO.