Geography

Fertek at about 37°58′N 34°37′E is almost merged with Niğde

Nigde

Niğde is a small city and the capital of Niğde Province in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey. The population is 109,724 per the 2010 statistics...

, the distance between Fertek and Niğde city center is being about 7 kilometres (4.3 mi). The town is situated at the eastern slopes of the mountains with an altitude of about 1270 metres (4,166.7 ft) The population of the town is 1900 as of 2010

History

The history of the town can be traced back to ancient ages when the town was an underground city like some of the Capadocian towns to the north. During Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire

The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...

 times the name of the town was Fertakaina, Fertaki, or Fertakion. Although the town was captured by Turks

Turkish people

Turkish 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...

 in the late 11th century the original Greek character was more or less preserved throughout the centuries. According to Ottoman

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...

 statistics of 1895, the Greek population of the town was 1200 and the Turkish population was 1300. The result of the coexistence was the spread of 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,...

 among the Greek community; Greeks used Turkish even in their Orthodox

Greek Orthodox Church

The Greek Orthodox Church is the body of several churches within the larger communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity sharing a common cultural tradition whose liturgy is also traditionally conducted in Koine Greek, the original language of the New Testament...

 worship (It is also possible that these people may be of Turkish origin, see Karamanlides

Karamanlides

The Karamanlides , or simply Karamanlis, are a Greek Orthodox, Turkish-speaking people native to the Karaman and Cappadocia regions of Anatolia...

). But during the compulsory population exchange following the Turco Greek war of 1919-1922

Population exchange between Greece and Turkey

The 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey was based upon religious identity, and involved the Greek Orthodox citizens of Turkey and the Muslim citizens of Greece...

 the Greeks left the town.

Economy

Fertek was used to be a typical agricultural town. Grapes are the most important products and once the rakı

Raki

-Alcoholic beverages:*Rakı, an anise-flavored spirit popular in Turkey*Any anise-flavored drink.-Fictional characters:*Raki, a character in the manga/anime series Claymore*Raki, a character in the game Ar tonelico II: Melody of Metafalica...

 (spirits) distilled in Fertek was very popular in İstanbul

Istanbul

Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

. But being close to Niğde, city services also play a part of the town economy. At the moment there is no notable touristic revenue. But the touristic potential with the underground city (which needs restoration) and various buildings including churches is high.