Söke
Encyclopedia
Söke is a town and a large district of Aydın Province
in the Aegean region of western Turkey
, 54 km (34 mi) south-west of the city of Aydın
, near the Aegean coast. It had 68,020 population in 2010.
coast and the edge of the fertile alluvial plain
of the Büyük Menderes River. Lake Bafa
is to the south of the district. The plain contains much rich agricultural land, one of Turkey's largest cotton growing areas and also important for wheat and flour. Other income comes from handicrafts, forestry and fishing. Söke is Turkey's only exporter of culinary snails.
The Aegean region is rich in history and natural beauty, complemented with Mediterranean climate. Söke is a large town right in the centre of the region, the market town at the heart of a wealthy agricultural district, with a dramatic backdrop of mountains.
Furthermore, although eclipsed by the nearby centres of tourism on the coast, Kuşadası
, Didim
and Bodrum
, Söke does catch passing trade from the many visitors to the area, including visitors to the nearby historical site of Priene
. There are a number of amenities on the highway for tourists passing through from Izmir
airport to the coast, these include restaurants, service stations, and outlet stores selling cut-price clothing. The local cuisine includes çöp şiş (a shish kebab of small pieces of lamb) and pide
(a flat bread pizza).
Söke is a town of 62,000 people, and with its shops and high schools, it is the hub of the rural area.
of Menteşe.
During the Turkish War of Independence
(1919-1922) resistance in the area was led by one Cafer Efe, whose statue is in the town. See Efe
for the background to this era.
Söke was settled with Turkish immigrants from Crete
during the Population exchange between Greece and Turkey
in the 1920s.
2010 68020 115,133
2000 62,384 137,739
1997 62,361 125,282
1990 50,866 119,750
Aydin Province
Aydın Province is a province of southwestern Turkey, located in the Aegean Region. The provincial capital is the city of Aydın which has a population of approx. 150,000 . Other towns in the province include the summer seaside resorts of Didim and Kuşadası.-History:Aydın was founded by the ancient...
in the Aegean region of western Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, 54 km (34 mi) south-west of the city of Aydın
Aydin
Aydın is a city in and the seat of Aydın Province in Turkey's Aegean Region. The city is located at the heart of the lower valley of Büyük Menderes River at a commanding position for the region extending from the uplands of the valley down to the seacoast...
, near the Aegean coast. It had 68,020 population in 2010.
Geography
The district lies between the AegeanAegean Sea
The Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...
coast and the edge of the fertile alluvial plain
Alluvial plain
An alluvial plain is a relatively flat landform created by the deposition of sediment over a long period of time by one or more rivers coming from highland regions, from which alluvial soil forms...
of the Büyük Menderes River. Lake Bafa
Lake Bafa
Lake Bafa or Lake Bafa Nature Park is a lake and a nature reserve situated in southwestern Turkey, part of it within the boundaries of Milas district of Muğla Province and the northern part within Aydın Province's Söke district...
is to the south of the district. The plain contains much rich agricultural land, one of Turkey's largest cotton growing areas and also important for wheat and flour. Other income comes from handicrafts, forestry and fishing. Söke is Turkey's only exporter of culinary snails.
The Aegean region is rich in history and natural beauty, complemented with Mediterranean climate. Söke is a large town right in the centre of the region, the market town at the heart of a wealthy agricultural district, with a dramatic backdrop of mountains.
Furthermore, although eclipsed by the nearby centres of tourism on the coast, Kuşadası
Kusadasi
Kuşadası is a resort town on Turkey's Aegean coast and the center of the seaside district of the same name in Aydın Province. Kuşadası lies at a distance of to the south from the region's largest metropolitan center of İzmir, and from the provincial seat of Aydın situated inland. Its primary...
, Didim
Didim
Didim, home of the antique city of Didyma with its ruined Temple of Apollo, is a small town, popular seaside holiday resort and district of Aydın Province on the Aegean coast of western Turkey, from the city of Aydın.-Geography:...
and Bodrum
Bodrum
Bodrum is a port city in Muğla Province, in the southwestern Aegean Region of Turkey. It is located on the southern coast of Bodrum Peninsula, at a point that checks the entry into the Gulf of Gökova. The site was called Halicarnassus of Caria in ancient times and was famous for housing the...
, Söke does catch passing trade from the many visitors to the area, including visitors to the nearby historical site of Priene
Priene
Priene was an ancient Greek city of Ionia at the base of an escarpment of Mycale, about north of the then course of the Maeander River, from today's Aydin, from today's Söke and from ancient Miletus...
. There are a number of amenities on the highway for tourists passing through from Izmir
Izmir
Izmir is a large metropolis in the western extremity of Anatolia. The metropolitan area in the entire Izmir Province had a population of 3.35 million as of 2010, making the city third most populous in Turkey...
airport to the coast, these include restaurants, service stations, and outlet stores selling cut-price clothing. The local cuisine includes çöp şiş (a shish kebab of small pieces of lamb) and pide
Pide
Pide may refer to:*Pita, a type of flatbread typical of Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisines*PIDE , the political secret police during the authoritarian Portuguese regime of the Estado Novo*Pakistan Institute...
(a flat bread pizza).
Söke is a town of 62,000 people, and with its shops and high schools, it is the hub of the rural area.
History
Settled since the centuries BC, The region of Söke was inhabited by Greeks until 1426 when it was taken over by the Ottoman Turks as remaining capital of the SanjakSanjak
Sanjaks were administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire. Sanjak, and the variant spellings sandjak, sanjaq, and sinjaq, are English transliterations of the Turkish word sancak, meaning district, banner, or flag...
of Menteşe.
During the Turkish War of Independence
Turkish War of Independence
The Turkish War of Independence was a war of independence waged by Turkish nationalists against the Allies, after the country was partitioned by the Allies following the Ottoman Empire's defeat in World War I...
(1919-1922) resistance in the area was led by one Cafer Efe, whose statue is in the town. See Efe
Efe
The Efe were the leaders of Turkish irregular soldiers and guerillas from the Aegean Region of Anatolia, called the Zeibeks and Kızan. There are many theories about the origins of the word Efe....
for the background to this era.
Söke was settled with Turkish immigrants from Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
during the Population exchange between Greece and Turkey
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...
in the 1920s.
Population
year - town - district as a whole2010 68020 115,133
2000 62,384 137,739
1997 62,361 125,282
1990 50,866 119,750