Trabzon
Encyclopedia
- For the Ottoman Province of Trabzon, see Trebizond Vilayet.
Trabzon is a city on 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...
coast of north-eastern 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...
and the capital of Trabzon Province
Trabzon Province
Trabzon Province is a province of Turkey on the Black Sea coast. Located in a strategically important region, Trabzon is one of the oldest trade port cities in Anatolia. Neighbouring provinces are Giresun to the west, Gümüşhane to the southwest, Bayburt to the southeast and Rize to the east. The...
. Trabzon, located on the historical Silk Road
Silk Road
The Silk Road or Silk Route refers to a historical network of interlinking trade routes across the Afro-Eurasian landmass that connected East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean and European world, as well as parts of North and East Africa...
, became a melting pot of religions, languages and culture for centuries and a trade gateway to Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
in the southeast and the Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
to the northeast. The Venetian
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
and Genoese
Republic of Genoa
The Most Serene Republic of Genoa |Ligurian]]: Repúbrica de Zêna) was an independent state from 1005 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast, as well as Corsica from 1347 to 1768, and numerous other territories throughout the Mediterranean....
merchants paid visits to Trebizond during the medieval period and sold silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
, linen
Linen
Linen is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant, Linum usitatissimum. Linen is labor-intensive to manufacture, but when it is made into garments, it is valued for its exceptional coolness and freshness in hot weather....
and woolen
Woolen
Woolen or woollen is a type of yarn made from carded wool. Woolen yarn is soft, light, stretchy, and full of air. It is thus a good insulator, and makes a good knitting yarn...
fabric; with the Republic of Genoa
Republic of Genoa
The Most Serene Republic of Genoa |Ligurian]]: Repúbrica de Zêna) was an independent state from 1005 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast, as well as Corsica from 1347 to 1768, and numerous other territories throughout the Mediterranean....
having an important merchant colony within the city that was similar to Galata
Galata
Galata or Galatae is a neighbourhood in the Beyoğlu district on the European side of Istanbul, the largest city of Turkey. Galata is located at the northern shore of the Golden Horn, the inlet which separates it from the historic peninsula of old Constantinople. The Golden Horn is crossed by...
near Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
(across the Golden Horn
Golden Horn
The Golden Horn is a historic inlet of the Bosphorus dividing the city of Istanbul and forming the natural harbor that has sheltered Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman and other ships for thousands of...
) in present-day Istanbul
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...
. Trabzon formed the basis of several states in its long history and was the capital city of the Empire of Trebizond
Empire of Trebizond
The Empire of Trebizond, founded in April 1204, was one of three Byzantine successor states of the Byzantine Empire. However, the creation of the Empire of Trebizond was not directly related to the capture of Constantinople by the Fourth Crusade, rather it had broken away from the Byzantine Empire...
between 1204
Fourth Crusade
The Fourth Crusade was originally intended to conquer Muslim-controlled Jerusalem by means of an invasion through Egypt. Instead, in April 1204, the Crusaders of Western Europe invaded and conquered the Christian city of Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire...
and 1461
Mehmed II
Mehmed II , was Sultan of the Ottoman Empire for a short time from 1444 to September 1446, and later from...
. During the 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...
period, Trabzon, because of the importance of its port, became a focal point of trade to Iran and the Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
. The population of the city is 230,399 (2009 census).
Name
The Turkish name of the city is Trabzon. It is historically known as Trebizond, Trapezund, Tribisonde and Trapezus. In LatinLatin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
, Trabzon was called Trapezvs which is the latinization of the Ancient Greek Τραπεζοῦς (Trapezous) which is the first name of the city. Both in Pontic Greek and Modern Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
languages, it is called Τραπεζούντα Trapezounta, and still in use. in Ottoman Turkish
Ottoman Turkish language
The Ottoman Turkish language or Ottoman language is the variety of the Turkish language that was used for administrative and literary purposes in the Ottoman Empire. It borrows extensively from Arabic and Persian, and was written in a variant of the Perso-Arabic script...
and Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
it is written as طربزون, also in Laz
Laz language
The Laz language is a South Caucasian language spoken by the Laz people on the Southeast shore of the Black Sea...
Tramtra or Poli (from Greek πόλη) and Georgian
Georgian language
Georgian is the native language of the Georgians and the official language of Georgia, a country in the Caucasus.Georgian is the primary language of about 4 million people in Georgia itself, and of another 500,000 abroad...
it is ტამტრა Tamtra. Also 19. century traveller Armenian priest Byjiskian called thecitys other native names "Hurşidabat" and Ozinis
During Ottoman times, Tara Bozan was also used. Some westerner geographers used this name instead of Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
Trebizond.
Ancient and medieval
The city was founded as Τραπεζοῦς (Trapezous) by MiletanMilesians (Greek)
The Milesians of Hellenic civilization were the inhabitants of Miletus, a city in the Anatolia province of modern-day Turkey, near the coast of the Mediterranean Sea and at the mouth of the Meander River. Settlers from Crete moved to Miletus sometime in 16th century BC...
traders (traditionally in 756 BC). It was one of a number (about ten) of Milesian emporia or trading colonies
Colonies in antiquity
Colonies in antiquity were city-states founded from a mother-city—its "metropolis"—, not from a territory-at-large. Bonds between a colony and its metropolis remained often close, and took specific forms...
along the shores of the Black Sea. Others include Sinope
Sinop, Turkey
Sinop is a city with a population of 36,734 on İnce Burun , by its Cape Sinop which is situated on the most northern edge of the Turkish side of Black Sea coast, in the ancient region of Paphlagonia, in modern-day northern Turkey, historically known as Sinope...
, Abydos and Cyzicus
Cyzicus
Cyzicus was an ancient town of Mysia in Anatolia in the current Balıkesir Province of Turkey. It was located on the shoreward side of the present Kapıdağ Peninsula , a tombolo which is said to have originally been an island in the Sea of Marmara only to be connected to the mainland in historic...
(in the Dardanelles
Dardanelles
The Dardanelles , formerly known as the Hellespont, is a narrow strait in northwestern Turkey connecting the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara. It is one of the Turkish Straits, along with its counterpart the Bosphorus. It is located at approximately...
). Like most Greek colonies, the city was a small enclave of Greek life, and not an empire unto its own, in the later European sense of the word. Early banking (money-changing) activity is suggested occurring in the city according to a silver drachma coin from Trapezus in the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Trebizond's trade partners included the Mossynoeci
Mossynoeci
Mossynoeci is a name that the Greeks of the Euxine Sea applied to the peoples of Pontus, the northern Anatolian coast west of Trebizond.-Herodotus:...
. When Xenophon
Xenophon
Xenophon , son of Gryllus, of the deme Erchia of Athens, also known as Xenophon of Athens, was a Greek historian, soldier, mercenary, philosopher and a contemporary and admirer of Socrates...
and the Ten Thousand
Ten Thousand (Greek)
The Ten Thousand were a group of mercenary units, mainly Greek, drawn up by Cyrus the Younger to attempt to wrest the throne of the Persian Empire from his brother, Artaxerxes II...
mercenaries were fighting their way out of Persia, the first Greek city they reached was Trebizond (Xenophon, Anabasis, 5.5.10). The city and the local Mossynoeci had become estranged from the Mossynoecian capital, to the point of civil war. Xenophon's force resolved this in the rebels' favor, and so in Trebizond's interest.
Pontus
Pontus or Pontos is a historical Greek designation for a region on the southern coast of the Black Sea, located in modern-day northeastern Turkey. The name was applied to the coastal region in antiquity by the Greeks who colonized the area, and derived from the Greek name of the Black Sea: Πόντος...
by Mithridates VI Eupator and it became home port for the Pontic fleet.
Galatia
Ancient Galatia was an area in the highlands of central Anatolia in modern Turkey. Galatia was named for the immigrant Gauls from Thrace , who settled here and became its ruling caste in the 3rd century BC, following the Gallic invasion of the Balkans in 279 BC. It has been called the "Gallia" of...
in 64–65, the fleet passed to new commanders, becoming the Classis Pontica. Trebizond gained importance under Roman
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
rule in the 1st century for its access to roads leading over the Zigana Pass
Zigana Pass
The Zigana Pass is a mountain pass situated on the Pontic Mountains in Gümüşhane Province close to its border with Trabzon Province in northeastern Turkey. The pass, at above sea level, is on the route at a distance of from Gümüşhane and from Trabzon at the Black Sea coast...
to the Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
n frontier or the upper Euphrates
Euphrates
The Euphrates is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia...
valley. New roads were constructed from Persia and Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
under the rule of Vespasian
Vespasian
Vespasian , was Roman Emperor from 69 AD to 79 AD. Vespasian was the founder of the Flavian dynasty, which ruled the Empire for a quarter century. Vespasian was descended from a family of equestrians, who rose into the senatorial rank under the Emperors of the Julio-Claudian dynasty...
, and Hadrian
Hadrian
Hadrian , was Roman Emperor from 117 to 138. He is best known for building Hadrian's Wall, which marked the northern limit of Roman Britain. In Rome, he re-built the Pantheon and constructed the Temple of Venus and Roma. In addition to being emperor, Hadrian was a humanist and was philhellene in...
commissioned improvements to give the city a more structured harbor. A mithraeum
Mithraeum
A Mithraeum is a place of worship for the followers of the mystery religion of Mithraism.The Mithraeum was either an adapted natural cave or cavern or an artificial building imitating a cavern. Mithraea were dark and windowless, even if they were not actually in a subterranean space or in a natural...
now serves as a crypt for the church of Panaghia Theoskepastos in nearby Kizlara, east of the citadel and south of the modern harbor. The city was pillaged by the Goths
Goths
The Goths were an East Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin whose two branches, the Visigoths and the Ostrogoths, played an important role in the fall of the Roman Empire and the emergence of Medieval Europe....
in 258, and, although it was afterwards re-built, Trebizond did not recover until the trade route regained importance in the 8th to 10th centuries; 10th century Muslim authors note that Trebizond was frequented by Muslim merchants, as the main source transshipping Byzantine silk
Byzantine silk
Byzantine silk is silk woven in the Byzantine Empire from about the 4th century until the Fall of Constantinople in 1453.The Byzantine capital of Constantinople was the first significant silk-weaving center in Europe. Silk was one of the most important commodities in the Byzantine economy, used by...
s into eastern Muslim countries. In Byzantine
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 city was the capital of the theme of Chaldia
Chaldia
Chaldia was a historical region located in the Black Sea coast of Asia Minor . Its name was derived from a people called the Chaldoi that inhabited the region in Antiquity. Chaldia was used throughout the Byzantine period and was established as a formal theme, known as the Theme of Chaldia , in...
. It was also ruled by Danishmendids between 1080 and 1098.
After the Fourth Crusade
Fourth Crusade
The Fourth Crusade was originally intended to conquer Muslim-controlled Jerusalem by means of an invasion through Egypt. Instead, in April 1204, the Crusaders of Western Europe invaded and conquered the Christian city of Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire...
in 1204, a Byzantine
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...
successor state was founded there with support of Queen Tamar of Georgia
Tamar of Georgia
Tamar , of the Bagrationi dynasty, was Queen Regnant of Georgia from 1184 to 1213. Tamar presided over the "Golden age" of the medieval Georgian monarchy...
, the Empire of Trebizond
Empire of Trebizond
The Empire of Trebizond, founded in April 1204, was one of three Byzantine successor states of the Byzantine Empire. However, the creation of the Empire of Trebizond was not directly related to the capture of Constantinople by the Fourth Crusade, rather it had broken away from the Byzantine Empire...
, which ruled part of the Black Sea coast from Trebizond until 1461, when its ruler, David
David of Trebizond
David Megas Komnenos was the last Emperor of Trebizond from 1459 to 1461. He was the third son of Emperor Alexios IV of Trebizond and Theodora Kantakouzene....
, surrendered to Mehmed II
Mehmed II
Mehmed II , was Sultan of the Ottoman Empire for a short time from 1444 to September 1446, and later from...
, ruler of the Ottoman Empire. Following this takeover, Mehmed sent many Turkish settlers into the area, but the old ethnic Laz
Laz people
The Laz are an ethnic group native to the Black Sea coastal regions of Turkey and Georgia...
, Armenian
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
, and Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
communities remained. During the late Ottoman period, the city had a great Christian influence in terms of culture, and a wealthy merchant class who created several Western consulates.
Ottoman era
The city became part of the Ottoman EmpireOttoman 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...
after 1461. During Bayezid II
Bayezid II
Bayezid II or Sultân Bayezid-î Velî was the oldest son and successor of Mehmed II, ruling as Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1481 to 1512...
's reign, his son, Prince Selim
Selim I
Selim I, Yavuz Sultân Selim Khan, Hâdim-ül Haramain-ish Sharifain , nicknamed Yavuz "the Stern" or "the Steadfast", but often rendered in English as "the Grim" , was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1512 to...
was the sancakbeyi of Trabzon, and his son Suleiman I of the Ottoman Empire was born in Trabzon in 1495. Trabzon became the capital of the Vilayet of Trebizond, that was a vilayet of the north-eastern part of the Ottoman Empire.
The population of the city was in 1523 according to the Ottoman defter a total of 1,473 adult males. 85% of the total population was Christian, 1,252 adult males, 13% of the total population was Armenian, 197 adult males and 15% of the total population was Muslim, 221 adult males.
During Ottoman era, Local Chepni and Laz
Laz people
The Laz are an ethnic group native to the Black Sea coastal regions of Turkey and Georgia...
bey
Bey
Bey is a title for chieftain, traditionally applied to the leaders of small tribal groups. Accoding to some sources, the word "Bey" is of Turkish language In historical accounts, many Turkish, other Turkic and Persian leaders are titled Bey, Beg, Bek, Bay, Baig or Beigh. They are all the same word...
s were appointed as beylerbey
Beylerbey
Beylerbey is the Ottoman and Safavid title used for the highest rank in the hierarchy of provincial administrators It is in western terms a Governor-general, with authority...
. It is recorded that even some Bosniak beys appointed by Sublime Porte ruled Trabzon as beylerbey
Beylerbey
Beylerbey is the Ottoman and Safavid title used for the highest rank in the hierarchy of provincial administrators It is in western terms a Governor-general, with authority...
. During Ottoman campaign in Europe (XVI-XVII c.), "beylerbeylik" of Trabzon had always sent troops.
Modern era
Clarke Chapman
Clarke Chapman is a British engineering firm based in Gateshead, which was formerly listed on the London Stock Exchange.-History:The company was founded in 1864 in Gateshead by William Clarke...
of Bath in England. The city was the site of one of the key battles between the Ottoman and Russian
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
armies during the Caucasus Campaign
Caucasus Campaign
The Caucasus Campaign comprised armed conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empire, later including Azerbaijan, Armenia, Central Caspian Dictatorship and the UK as part of the Middle Eastern theatre or alternatively named as part of the Caucasus Campaign during World War I...
of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
which resulted in the capture of Trabzon by the Russian Caucasus Army under command of Grand Duke Nicholas and Nikolai Yudenich
Nikolai Nikolaevich Yudenich
Nikolai Nikolaevich Yudenich , was a commander of the Russian Imperial Army during World War I. He was a leader of the anti-communist White movement in Northwestern Russia during the Civil War.-Early life:...
in April 1916. Russian general Shvartz's army caused a massive destruction in Trabzon. Russians banned Muslim mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
s, and forced Turks, who were the main ethnic group of the city, to leave Trabzon. At last, the Russian Army retreated from the city and the rest of eastern and northeastern Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
with the Russian Revolution of 1917
Russian Revolution of 1917
The Russian Revolution is the collective term for a series of revolutions in Russia in 1917, which destroyed the Tsarist autocracy and led to the creation of the Soviet Union. The Tsar was deposed and replaced by a provisional government in the first revolution of February 1917...
.
Trabzon was a major Armenian extermination centre during the Armenian Genocide
Armenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
, as well as a location of subsequent trials (see Trabzon during the Armenian Genocide
Trabzon during the Armenian Genocide
Trabzon was a major Armenian extermination center during the Armenian Genocide, as well as a location of subsequent trials.-Background:The city was the site of one of the key battles between the Ottoman and Russian armies during the Caucasus Campaign of World War I which resulted in the capture of...
). Many of the victims were taken out to sea in boats that were then capsized. The Trabzon trials reported Armenians having been drowned in the Black Sea.
Following 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...
and the annulment of the Treaty of Sèvres
Treaty of Sèvres
The Treaty of Sèvres was the peace treaty between the Ottoman Empire and Allies at the end of World War I. The Treaty of Versailles was signed with Germany before this treaty to annul the German concessions including the economic rights and enterprises. Also, France, Great Britain and Italy...
(1920) which was replaced by the Treaty of Lausanne
Treaty of Lausanne
The Treaty of Lausanne was a peace treaty signed in Lausanne, Switzerland on 24 July 1923, that settled the Anatolian and East Thracian parts of the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire. The treaty of Lausanne was ratified by the Greek government on 11 February 1924, by the Turkish government on 31...
(1923), Trabzon again became a part of Turkey. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
shipping activity was limited because the Black Sea had again become a war zone. Hence the most important export products, tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
and hazelnut
Hazelnut
A hazelnut is the nut of the hazel and is also known as a cob nut or filbert nut according to species. A cob is roughly spherical to oval, about 15–25 mm long and 10–15 mm in diameter, with an outer fibrous husk surrounding a smooth shell. A filbert is more elongated, being about twice...
, could not be sold and living standards degraded.
As a result of the general development of the country, Trabzon has developed its economic and commercial life. The coastal highway and a new harbour have increased commercial relations with Central Anatolia, which has led to some growth. However, progress has been slow in comparison with the western and the southwestern parts of Turkey.
Trabzon is famous throughout Turkey for its anchovies called hamsi, which are the main meal in many restaurants in the city. Major exports from Trabzon are hazelnuts and tea
Tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...
.
The city may still have a small community of Greek-speaking Muslims, most of whom are originally from the vicinities of Tonya
Tonya
Tonya is a town and district of Trabzon Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey. The mayor is Ahmet Kurt .-External links:* *...
and Of. However, the Pontic Greek language (known as Romeiaka or Ποντιακά, Pontiaka) is spoken mostly by the older generations.
Geography and climate
Trabzon ProvinceTrabzon Province
Trabzon Province is a province of Turkey on the Black Sea coast. Located in a strategically important region, Trabzon is one of the oldest trade port cities in Anatolia. Neighbouring provinces are Giresun to the west, Gümüşhane to the southwest, Bayburt to the southeast and Rize to the east. The...
has a total area of 4685 km² and is bordered by the provinces of Rize
Rize Province
Rize Province is a province of north-east Turkey, on the eastern Black Sea coast between Trabzon and Artvin. Its capital is the city of Rize.-Geography:...
, Giresun
Giresun Province
Giresun Province is a province of Turkey on the Black Sea coast. Its adjacent provinces are Trabzon to the east, Gümüşhane to the south-west, Erzincan to the south, Sivas to the south-east, and Ordu to the west. The provincial capital is Giresun....
and Gümüşhane
Gümüshane Province
Gümüşhane Province is a province in northern Turkey, bordering Bayburt to the east, Trabzon to the north, Giresun and Erzincan to the west. It covers an area of 6,575 km² and has a population of 129,618 in 2010. The population was 186,953 in 2000. The name Gümüşhane means silver house...
. The total area is 22.4% plateau and 77.6% hills. The Pontic Mountains
Pontic Mountains
The Pontic Mountains form a mountain range in Northern Turkey, also known as the Parhar mountains in the local Turkish and Pontic Greek languages. The term "Parhar" originates from the Hittite word meaning "high" or "summit"....
pass through the Trabzon Province.
Trabzon used to be an important reference point
Pilotage
Pilotage is the use of fixed visual references on the ground or sea by means of sight or radar to guide oneself to a destination, sometimes with the help of a map or nautical chart. People use pilotage for activities such as guiding vessels and aircraft, hiking and Scuba diving...
for navigators
Navigation
Navigation is the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another. It is also the term of art used for the specialized knowledge used by navigators to perform navigation tasks...
in the Black Sea during harsh weather conditions. The popular expression "perdere la Trebisonda" (losing Trebizond) is still commonly used in the Italian language
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
to describe situations in which the sense of direction is lost. The Italian maritime republics such as Venice
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
and in particular Genoa
Republic of Genoa
The Most Serene Republic of Genoa |Ligurian]]: Repúbrica de Zêna) was an independent state from 1005 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast, as well as Corsica from 1347 to 1768, and numerous other territories throughout the Mediterranean....
were active in the Black Sea trade for centuries, using Trabzon as an important seaport for trading goods between Europe and the Middle East.
Rivers
Değirmendere (ancient Piksidis), Yanbolu, Fol, Karadere, Koha, Sürmene (ancient Manahos), Solaklı, Baltacı and İyidere (ancient Kalopotamos).Lakes
Uzungöl, Çakırgöl, Sera Gölü.Climate
Trabzon has a typical Black Sea climate with high and evenly distributed rainfall the year round. Summers are warm and humid, and the average maximum temperature is around 27 °C (81 °F) in August. Winters are cool and damp, and the lowest average minimum temperature is around 5 °C (41 °F) in January.Precipitation is heaviest in autumn and spring. Snow
Snow
Snow is a form of precipitation within the Earth's atmosphere in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. Since snow is composed of small ice particles, it is a granular material. It has an open and therefore soft structure, unless packed by...
fall is quite common between the months of December and March, snowing for a week or two, and it can be heavy once it snows.
The water temperature, like in the rest of the Black Sea coast of Turkey, is always cool and fluctuates between 8 °C (46 °F) and 20 °C (68 °F) throughout the year.
People
Pontic Greek has also been spoken in the region since early antiquity. The local dialect developed along its own lines and is today partly intelligible to speakers of Standard Greek. It was spoken mainly by a Greek Orthodox multi-ethnic population up to the population exchange
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...
; nearly all speakers are now Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
. Laz people, who are the aboriginals of this area, also live in Trabzon. There was an Armenian community in Trebizond as early as the 7th century. During the 13th and 14th centuries, numerous Armenian families migrated here from Ani
Ani
Ani is a ruined and uninhabited medieval Armenian city-site situated in the Turkish province of Kars, near the border with Armenia. It was once the capital of a medieval Armenian kingdom that covered much of present day Armenia and eastern Turkey...
. According to Ronald C. Jennings, in the early 16th century, Armenians made up approximately 13 percent of the city's population. Now, Trabzon does not have an Armenian-speaking community.
The Chepni people, a tribe of Oghuz Turks
Oghuz Turks
The Turkomen also known as Oghuz Turks were a historical Turkic tribal confederation in Central Asia during the early medieval Turkic expansion....
who played an important role in the history of the eastern Black Sea area in the 13th and 14th centuries, live in the Şalpazarı
Salpazari
Şalpazarı is a town and district of Trabzon Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey. The population is around 12,000 including the surrounding villages. The mayor is Fehmi Cengiz . Şalpazarı is a home to sizeable Chepni Turkmen population....
(Ağasar valley) region of the Trabzon Province. Very little has been written on the Turkification
Turkification
Turkification is a term used to describe a process of cultural or political change in which something or someone who is not a Turk becomes one, voluntarily or involuntarily...
of the area. There are no historical records of any considerable Turkish-speaking groups in the Trabzon area until the late 15th century, with the exception of the Chepnis. The original Greek (and in some regions Armenian
Armenian language
The Armenian language is an Indo-European language spoken by the Armenian people. It is the official language of the Republic of Armenia as well as in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The language is also widely spoken by Armenian communities in the Armenian diaspora...
) speakers imposed features from their mother language into the Turkish spoken in the region. Heath W. Lowry
Heath W. Lowry
Heath Ward Lowry is the Ataturk Professor of Ottoman and Modern Turkish Studies at Princeton University. He has written several books on the history of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey.-Background:...
's work about Ottoman tax books (Tahrir Defteri)
It is possible that the majority of the population of Trabzon and Rize
Rize
Rize is the capital of Rize Province, in northeast Turkey, on the Black Sea coast.-Etymology:The name comes from Greek or Ριζαίον , meaning "mountain slopes". In modern times, its name in Greek was usually Ριζούντα . Its Latin forms are Rhizus and Rhizaeum...
(and other ancient Greek colonies in the Pontus region) — except up to the time of the Chepni Turk immigration waves — consisted of indigenous Caucasian tribes (the Colchis and the Laz) who had been partly Hellenized
Hellenization
Hellenization is a term used to describe the spread of ancient Greek culture, and, to a lesser extent, language. It is mainly used to describe the spread of Hellenistic civilization during the Hellenistic period following the campaigns of Alexander the Great of Macedon...
religiously and linguistically. Michael Meeker stresses the cultural resemblances (e.g. in village structure, house types, and pastoral techniques) between the Eastern Black Sea coast and the areas in the Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
proper.
At present Trabzon has a sizeable Russian minority, who began emigrating to the region after the dissolution of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.Russian language shops and facilities can be found in the town.
Main sights
Empire
The term empire derives from the Latin imperium . Politically, an empire is a geographically extensive group of states and peoples united and ruled either by a monarch or an oligarchy....
s that once existed in the region. In the city itself, one can find a hub of shops, stalls and restaurants surrounding the "Meydan", a square in the center of the city, which includes a tea garden.
- The Hagia SophiaHagia Sophia, TrabzonThe church of Hagia Sophia , now the Hagia Sophia Museum, is a former Chalcedonian church located in the city of Trabzon in the north-eastern part of Turkey. It dates back to the 13th century when Trabzon was the capital of the Empire of Trebizond. It is located near the seashore and 2 miles west...
, a stunning Byzantine church, is probably the town's most important tourist attraction. - Trabzon CastleTrabzon CastleTrabzon Castle, the greater of the city walls are still standing, are among the city's oldest buildings. In fact their oldest part can be dated back to 1st century AD during the age of the Roman Empire. Historical sources provide information about older stages of their construction...
ruins are visible in the town but cannot be visited as they fall in a military zone. The outside wall of the castle now serves as the back wall of a military building. - The "Atatürk Köşkü" is villa built in 1890 for a local Greek merchant. In 1924 Mustafa Kemal Atatürk stayed in the villa during his visit to Trabzon. He stayed there again in 1937. It houses period rooms and acts as a shrine to the memory of the founder and first President of the Republic of Turkey.
- Boztepe ParkBoztepe hill, TrabzonBoztepe or Mount Minthrion is a hill near Trabzon in Turkey.It is located 3 kilometers southeast of the city center of Trabzon. The Değirmendere Valley lies to the west of Boztepe...
is a small park and tea garden on the hills above Trabzon that has a panoramic view of nearly the entire city. The terrain in Trabzon is such that although the view is far above that of the buildings below, it is still close enough to be able to observe the flow of traffic and the people moving about in the city. - Uzun Sokak is one of the most crowded streets of Trabzon.
- Trabzon MuseumTrabzon MuseumThe Trabzon Museum , aka Kostaki Mansion , is a historic house museum with archeological and ethnographic exhibitions located in Trabzon, Turkey.- History :...
is located in the town centre and offers interesting exhibits on the history of the region, including an impressive collection of Byzantine-era artifacts. - Trabzon's Bazaar District offers interesting shopping opportunities on ancient narrow streets, continuing from Kunduracılar Street from the Meydan (town square).
- Kostaki Mansion is located to the north of Zeytinlik near Uzun Sokak.
Within Trabzon Province
Trabzon Province
Trabzon Province is a province of Turkey on the Black Sea coast. Located in a strategically important region, Trabzon is one of the oldest trade port cities in Anatolia. Neighbouring provinces are Giresun to the west, Gümüşhane to the southwest, Bayburt to the southeast and Rize to the east. The...
, the main attractions are the Sümela Monastery
Sumela Monastery
The Sümela Monastery , , i.e. monastery of the Panaghia at Melá mountain) is a Greek Orthodox monastery, standing at the foot of a steep cliff facing the Altındere valley, in the region of Maçka in Trabzon Province, modern Turkey...
and Uzungöl
Uzungöl
Uzungöl is a lake situated to the south of the city of Trabzon in Turkey. Over the years it has become a major tourist attraction. It is also the name of a nearby village. The lake is at a distance of 99 km from Trabzon and 19 km from Çaykara district...
. The monastery is built on the side of a very steep mountain overlooking the green forests below and is about 50 km south of the city. Uzungöl is famous for the natural beauty of the area and the amazing scenery.
Other important sites of interest include: Kaymaklı Monastery
Kaymakli Monastery
Kaymaklı Monastery is a ruined Armenian Apostolic monastery near Trabzon, Turkey.The monastery originally included a church, a bell tower at the northwest corner, and a small chapel near the southeast corner.- Location, founding and name :...
, Kızlar (Panagia Theoskepastos) Monastery, Kuştul
Kustul Monastery
Kuştul Monastery is located near Şimşirli village, Maçka district, Trabzon Province, Turkey. Founded in 752 CE at 30 km southeast of Trabzon, it was finally closed on January 17, 1923, when the monks along with other Greeks were expelled to Greece. After 1906 fire, it was restored...
(Gregorios Peristera) Monastery, Kızlar Monastery
Kızlar Monastery
Kızlar Monastery or Panagia Monastery at the foot of Boztepe moutain over looking the Trabzon city. The monastery complex built on two terraces, is surrounded by a protective high wall. The monastery was founded in the reign of Alexios III . Having undergone major repairs several times it assumed...
(Panagia Kerameste), Vazelon Monastery
Vazelon Monastery
Vazelon Monastery is located in Maçka district, Trabzon Province, Turkey. It was built in 270 AD and is located 40 kilometers south of Trabzon. After Emperor Justinian ordered it to be repaired in 565 AD, it has since been renovated many times up to the present day.Vazelon Monastery was of vital...
, Hagios Savvas (Maşatlık) Cave Churches, Hagia Anna (Little Ayvasıl), Sotha (St. John), Hagios Theodoros, Hagios Konstantinos, Hagios Khristophoras, Hagios Kiryaki, Santa Maria, Hagios Mikhail and Panagia Tzita churches, Fatih Mosque (originally the Panagia Khrysokephalos Church), Yeni Cuma Mosque
Yeni Cuma Mosque
The Yeni Cuma Mosque is a mosque in Trabzon, Turkey. It was built during Byzantine times as the Hagios Eugenios Church, dedicated to Saint Eugenius, the patron saint of the city. It is not known exactly when the church was built, however researchers consider that it was basilica. An inscription...
(originally the Hagios Eugenios Church), Nakip Mosque
Nakip Mosque
The Molla Nakip Mosque is a mosque in Pazarkapi district of Trabzon, Turkey. It was built in the 10th or 11th century, during Byzantine times as a church, and received its present name and function after the Ottoman conquest of the city in 1461. The north entrance was built by Turks. In 1975 a...
(originally the Hagios Andreas Church), Hüsnü Köktuğ Mosque (originally the Hagios Eleutherios Church), İskender Pasha Mosque
İskender Pasha Mosque
İskender Pasha Mosque is an Ottoman mosque in Trabzon built in 16th Century. The madrasa ones in its countyard no longer exist and the old graveyard in the west has been done away with, leaving only the grave of İskender Pasha...
, Semerciler Mosque, Çarşı Mosque, and the Gülbahar Hatun Mosque and Türbe (commissioned by Sultan Selim I
Selim I
Selim I, Yavuz Sultân Selim Khan, Hâdim-ül Haramain-ish Sharifain , nicknamed Yavuz "the Stern" or "the Steadfast", but often rendered in English as "the Grim" , was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1512 to...
.) Kalepark
Kalepark
Kalepark, is called as Leonkastron or Güzelhisar in the foreign monuments that was built by Genova and Venice pirates in the east side of the Trabzon.In 1740s, in the same place a palace was built for Governor Ahmet Paşa which destroyed in a fire in 1790...
(originally Leonkastron)
Culture
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s and Christians have lived together in the past as well as today, making the city a proud heir to a rich cultural heritage.
Folk dancing is still very much in evidence in the Black Sea region
Black Sea Region
The Black Sea Region is one of Turkey's seven census-defined geographical regions . It is bordered by the Marmara Region to the west, the Central Anatolia Region to the south, the Eastern Anatolia Region to the southeast, the Republic of Georgia to the northeast, and the Black Sea to the north.-...
. The "Horon" is a famous dance which is indigenous to the city and its surrounding area. It is performed by men, women, the young and elderly alike; in festivities, local weddings and harvest
Harvest
Harvest is the process of gathering mature crops from the fields. Reaping is the cutting of grain or pulse for harvest, typically using a scythe, sickle, or reaper...
times. While similar to Russian Cossack dances in terms of vividness, the Trabzon folk dance is probably indigenous to the eastern Black Sea region, which has an impressive variety of folk music .
The people of Trabzon have a reputation for being religiously conservative and nationalist. Many Trabzonites generally show a strong sense of loyalty to their family, friends, religion and country. Atatürk selected his presidential guards from Trabzon and the neighbouring city of Giresun
Giresun
Giresun is the provincial capital of Giresun Province in the Black Sea Region of northeastern Turkey, about west of the city of Trabzon.-Etymology:...
because of their fierce fighting ability and their loyalty.
Outside of the relatively urban space of Trabzon proper, and within parts of it as well, rural traditions from the Black Sea village life are still thriving. These include traditional gender roles, social conservatism, hospitality and a willingness to help strangers; and all aspects, both positive and negative, of an agrarian lifestyle, such as hard work, poverty, strong family ties, and a closeness to nature.
The people of the eastern Black Sea region are also known for their wit and sense of humour; in fact many jokes in Turkey are told about the natives of the Black Sea region Karadeniz fıkraları (Black Sea jokes). The character Temel, a universal buffon figure found in many cultures, forms an important part of the Turkish oral tradition.
The city's profile was raised somewhat in the English-speaking world by Dame Rose Macaulay
Rose Macaulay
Dame Emilie Rose Macaulay, DBE was an English writer. She published thirty-five books, mostly novels but also biographies and travel writing....
's last novel, The Towers of Trebizond
The Towers of Trebizond
The Towers of Trebizond is a novel by Rose Macaulay . Published in 1956, it was the last of her novels, and the most successful. It was awarded the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction in the year of its publication.-Plot:...
(1956), which is still in print.
Education
Black Sea Region
The Black Sea Region is one of Turkey's seven census-defined geographical regions . It is bordered by the Marmara Region to the west, the Central Anatolia Region to the south, the Eastern Anatolia Region to the southeast, the Republic of Georgia to the northeast, and the Black Sea to the north.-...
and East Anatolian regions, as well as students from the Turkic states in Central Asia
Central Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...
.
Historically the city was a center of Greek culture and education and from 1683 to 1921, a teachers' college operated known as Phrontisterion of Trapezous
Phrontisterion of Trapezous
The Phrontisterion of Trapezous was a Greek educational institution that operated from 1682/3 to 1921 in Trabzon , in the Ottoman Empire, now Turkey. It provided a major impetus for the rapid expansion of Greek education throughout the Pontus region, on the south coast of the Black Sea...
, which provided a major impetus for the rapid expansion of Greek education throughout the region. The building of this institution still remains the most impressive Pontic Greek
Pontic Greeks
The Pontians are an ethnic group traditionally living in the Pontus region, the shores of Turkey's Black Sea...
monument in the city and today hosts the Turkish school Anadolu Lisesi.
Cuisine
Trabzon's regional cuisine is traditionally reliant on fish, especially hamsi (fresh European AnchovyEuropean anchovy
The European anchovy is a forage fish somewhat related to the herring. Anchovies are placed in the family Engraulidae....
similar to the British Sprat or American Smelt). Trabzon meets 20% of the total fish production in Turkey. Regional dishes include the Akçaabat
Akçaabat
Akçaabat is a town and district of Trabzon Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey. It is located on the east of the city of Trabzon. It covers an area of 385 km² and the elevation is 10 m. The town has an estimated population of 48,315...
köfte (spicy lamb meatball from the Akçaabat district), Karadeniz pidesi (canoe shaped pita
Pita
Pita or pitta is a round pocket bread widely consumed in many Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, and Balkan cuisines. It is prevalent in Greece, the Balkans the Levant, the Arabian Peninsula and Turkey. The "pocket" in pita bread is created by steam, which puffs up the dough...
bread, often filled with ground beef, cheese and eggs), sucuk (Turkish sausage), pastırma
Pastirma
Pastirma or bastirma is a highly seasoned, air-dried cured beef in the cuisines of the former Ottoman countries.-Etymology:The name bastirma is from . bastırma is the gerund of the verb bastırmak , which means "to depress, restrain"...
(pastrami), kuymak (a Turkish fondue made with cornmeal, fresh butter and cheese), Vakfıkebir ekmeği (large country-style bread), Vakfıkebir tereyağı (Vakfıkebir butter), tava mısır ekmeği (deep-dish corn bread) and kara lahana çorbası (bean and cabbage soup). Taflan kavurması is a cherry laurel dish served with onions and olive oil
Olive oil
Olive oil is an oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and as a fuel for traditional oil lamps...
. Trabzon is also famous for its hazelnut
Hazelnut
A hazelnut is the nut of the hazel and is also known as a cob nut or filbert nut according to species. A cob is roughly spherical to oval, about 15–25 mm long and 10–15 mm in diameter, with an outer fibrous husk surrounding a smooth shell. A filbert is more elongated, being about twice...
s. The Black Sea region
Black Sea Region
The Black Sea Region is one of Turkey's seven census-defined geographical regions . It is bordered by the Marmara Region to the west, the Central Anatolia Region to the south, the Eastern Anatolia Region to the southeast, the Republic of Georgia to the northeast, and the Black Sea to the north.-...
of Turkey is the world's largest producer of cherry
Cherry
The cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus Prunus, and is a fleshy stone fruit. The cherry fruits of commerce are usually obtained from a limited number of species, including especially cultivars of the wild cherry, Prunus avium....
and hazelnut
Hazelnut
A hazelnut is the nut of the hazel and is also known as a cob nut or filbert nut according to species. A cob is roughly spherical to oval, about 15–25 mm long and 10–15 mm in diameter, with an outer fibrous husk surrounding a smooth shell. A filbert is more elongated, being about twice...
; and a large production area of tea
Tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...
; all of which play an important role in the local cuisine.
Sports
FootballFootball (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
is by far the most popular sport in Trabzon, as Trabzonspor
Trabzonspor
Trabzonspor is a professional Turkish football club located in the city of Trabzon, Turkey. Formed in 1967 through a merger of several local clubs, Trabzonspor won six championships in Turkish Super League. The Club won their first Championship title in 1975 which is also the Club's initiation year...
was until 2010 the only Turkish club in Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
to win the Turkish Super League (6 times), as the "Big Three" of Istanbul
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...
(Fenerbahçe
Fenerbahçe SK
Fenerbahçe Spor Kulübü is a professional sports club based in Kadıköy, Istanbul, Turkey. The club derives its name from the Fenerbahçe neighbourhood of Istanbul. Fenerbahçe is one of the biggest and the best supported clubs in Turkey. They are nicknamed Sarı Kanaryalar )...
, Galatasaray
Galatasaray S.K. (football team)
Galatasaray Anonim Şirketi is a Turkish football club, part of the Galatasaray S.K. multi-sport club of Istanbul. Galatasaray is a major sports club in Turkey, holding 17 Turkish Super League titles and the highest number of Turkish Cups....
and Beşiktaş) had previously dominated and continue to do so. Due to Trabzonspor's success, the decades-old term "Big Three" which defined the largest clubs of Turkey had to be modified into the "Big Four".
Trabzonspor is also one of the most successful Turkish clubs in the European Cups
UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....
, managing to beat numerous prominent teams such as Barcelona
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona , also known as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is a professional football club, based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain....
, Inter
F.C. Internazionale Milano
Football Club Internazionale Milano, often referred to as Internazionale or simply Inter, is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Italy. Outside Italy, the club is often called Inter Milan. They are the reigning FIFA Club World champions and Coppa Italia holders.Inter have always...
, Liverpool
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
, Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
and Olympique Lyonnais
Olympique Lyonnais
Olympique Lyonnais is a French association football club based in Lyon. They play in France's highest football division, Ligue 1. The club was formed as Lyon Olympique Universitaire in 1899, according to many supporters and sport historians, but was nationally established as a club in 1950. The...
. Renowned former players of Trabzonspor include Şenol Güneş
Senol Günes
Şenol Güneş is a former Turkish footballer, manager and philosopher. His biggest accomplishment to date is coaching the Turkey that won the bronze medal in the 2002 World Cup. Güneş is married and has two children.-Career:...
, Lars Olsen
Lars Olsen
Lars Christian Olsen is a Danish former professional association football player and manager, who currently coaches Faroe Islands national team. He started his coaching career with Randers FC in 2003, guiding them to promotion for the Danish Superliga. He led the team to the 2006 Danish Cup...
and Shota Arveladze
Shota Arveladze
Shota Arveladze is a former Georgian professional football player and currently the manager of Kayserispor. He is Georgia’s all-time top scorer with 291 goals in his 410 league games for his clubs and 26 goals during his 61 games on the national team...
.
Trabzon hosted the First Edition
2007 Black Sea Games
The 1. Black Sea Games Tabzon 2007, commonly known as the 2007 Black Sea Games were the 1st Black Sea Games. The Games were held in Trabzon, Turkey over seven days, from July 2 to July 8, 2007, where 1,277 athletes from 11 countries participated...
of the Black Sea Games
Black Sea Games
The Black Sea Games are a multi-sport games held every four years, mainly for nations bordering the Black Sea.- Sports :* Archery * Athletics * Basketball * Cycling * Football * Gymnastics * Paralympic archery* Paralympic swimming...
in July, 2007 and will host the 2011 European Youth Summer Olympic Festival
2011 European Youth Summer Olympic Festival
The 2011 European Youth Summer Olympic Festival was held in Trabzon, Turkey.-Sports:There were nine sports at the 2011 Festival, two branches, table tennis and water polo, less than compared with the 2007 Youth Olympic Festival's programme...
.
European Olympic Committees President Patrick Hickey told Olympic News source Around the Rings that the European Youth Olympic Festival in Trabzon would be the perfect platform for a 2020 Olympic Bid from Istanbul. "If Istanbul is going to make a bid, certainly the Trabzon Games will be a great platform, if they show they can run a very good event at that level. It is then a great indicator of bigger things to come," he said.
Notable natives
- Athanasios of Athos (10th century AD), Orthodox saint
- Suleiman the MagnificentSuleiman the MagnificentSuleiman I was the tenth and longest-reigning Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, from 1520 to his death in 1566. He is known in the West as Suleiman the Magnificent and in the East, as "The Lawgiver" , for his complete reconstruction of the Ottoman legal system...
, Ottoman Emperor - Eugenius of Trebizond, Christian saint and martyr
- Basilios Bessarion, bishop, scholar and writer who influenced the Renaissance
- George of TrebizondGeorge of TrebizondGeorge of Trebizond was a Greek philosopher and scholar, one of the pioneers of the Renaissance.-Life:He was born on the island of Crete, and derived his surname Trapezuntius from the fact that his ancestors were from Trebizond.At what period he came to Italy is not certain; according to some...
, philosopher, scholar and writer who influenced the Renaissance - Michael PanaretosMichael PanaretosMichael Panaretos wrote a chronicle of the Trapezuntine empire of Alexios I Komnenos and his successors from 1204 to 1426. Panaretos was a protosebastos and protonotarios in the service of Alexios III Komnenos...
, Greek historian and statesman - Gregory ChoniadesGregory ChoniadesGregory Choniades was a Byzantine Greek astronomer. He travelled to Persia where he learnt Persian mathematical and astronomical science which he introduced into Byzantium upon return from Persia and founded an astronomical academy at Trebizond...
, Greek astronomer - John VIIIPatriarch John VIII of ConstantinopleJohn VIII Xiphilinus , a native of Trebizond, was patriarch of Constantinople from 1064-1075. He was the uncle of John Xiphilinus the Epimator. John VIII also wrote a hagiography of Saint Eugenios of Trebizond....
, Greek Orthodox Patriarch
- Cevdet SunayCevdet SunayCevdet Sunay was a Turkish army officer, political leader and the fifth President of Turkey.He was born in 1899 in Çaykara, Trabzon Province, in the Ottoman Empire. After attending elementary school and middle school in Erzurum and Edirne, he graduated from Kuleli Military High School in Istanbul...
, General and 5th President of Turkey - Hasan SakaHasan SakaHasan Saka was a Turkish politician, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Prime Minister of Turkey.-Political career:...
, politician, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Prime Minister - Osman ŞirinOsman SirinOsman Şirin , is a high ranked Turkish judge and currently the Deputy First President of the Court of Cassation.-External links:...
, President of the High Court of Appeals of Turkey - Ioannis Passalidis, Greek politician
- Bahriye ÜçokBahriye ÜçokBahriye Üçok was a female Turkish academic of theology, left-wing politician, writer, columnist and women's rights activist, whose assassination in 1990, remains unresolved.-Biography:...
, theologist, politician, writer, columnist and women's rights activist - Adnan KahveciAdnan KahveciAdnan Kahveci was a noted Turkish politician, one of the founders in 1983 of the Motherland Party led by Turgut Özal and who served as minister in successive governments throughout the 1980s...
, politician - Altan ÖymenAltan ÖymenAltan Öymen is a Turkish journalist, author and former politician.-Biography:He graduated from the School of Political Science of Ankara University. He began his journalist career already in 1950 at age of 18, and worked as reporter, columnist and editor-in-chief long time for the major newspapers...
, journalist, writer and politician - Ertem EğilmezErtem EgilmezErtem Eğilmez was a Turkish film director, producer and screenwriter. He is known as the name behind some of the most popular films in Turkish film history...
, Film Director - Adem AyralAdem AyralAdem Ayral is a Turkish actor.- Filmography :# Bucur cadi # Bir nefes sevgi # Senlik var # Dügüm # Ilk ask # Kavusma # Suikast # Süpheci # Su tasi # Üçüzler...
, actor - Erol GünaydınErol GünaydinErol Günaydın is a veteran Turkish theater and film actor, as well as a renowned showman famous particularly for his portrayal of Nasreddin Hoca and his performances in the traditional Turkish meddah...
, actor - Hayati HamzaoğluHayati HamzaoğluHayati Hamzaoğlu was a Turkish actor.-Biography:After leaving school, Hamzaoğlu began working in a number of different jobs such as a shoemaker and a goldsmith. He started his acting career in 1953 in a small part in Köy Çocuğu...
, actor - Mualla EyüboğluMualla EyüboğluMualla Eyüboğlu Anhegger was one of the first female architects of Turkey. She is known for her restoration work on the Topkapı Palace harem room and the Rumelihisarı in Istanbul.Eyüboğlu was born in 1919 in Aziziye, Erzurum...
, One of Turkey's first female architects - Bedri Rahmi EyüboğluBedri Rahmi EyübogluBedri Rahmi Eyüboğlu was a Turkish painter and poet.Bedri Rahmi was born 1911 in Görele on the Black Sea. He was the second child of a family with five. His elder brother, Sabahattin Eyuboglu, is a well-known writer and his younger sister, Mualla Eyüboğlu, was one of the first architects working...
, Painter and Poet - Engin ArdıçEngin ArdiçEngin Ardıç is a well known Turkish writer and journalist who, with the commencement of private television broadcasting in Turkey, also worked as a television commentator in the 1990s.-Biography:...
, writer and TV commentator - Volkan KonakVolkan KonakVolkan Konak, is a Turkish folk singer. His song Cerrahpaşa has a been a great success and his album, [Mora], released in 2006, was awarded a gold plaque by the Turkish recording producers association, MÜ-YAP...
musician - Şenol GüneşSenol GünesŞenol Güneş is a former Turkish footballer, manager and philosopher. His biggest accomplishment to date is coaching the Turkey that won the bronze medal in the 2002 World Cup. Güneş is married and has two children.-Career:...
, football player and manager - Tugay KerimoğluTugay KerimogluTugay Kerimoğlu is a Turkish former footballer who played the majority of his career for Galatasaray and Blackburn Rovers. Primarily a deep-lying playmaker in midfield, he was also competent as an attacking midfielder or playing in the holding role.Continually recognised for his ability he was...
, football player - Hami MandıralıHami MandiraliHami Mandıralı was a Turkish footballer. He played for Trabzonspor nearly all of his career, and is one of the most famous and talented Turkish footballers of all time.-Career:...
, football player - Fatih TekkeFatih TekkeFatih Tekke is a Turkish international footballer who currently plays as a striker for Orduspor in the Süper Lig.-Club career:...
, football player - Sunay AkınSunay AkinSunay Akın is a Turkish poet, writer, TV host, and journalist. He is also a philanthropist and is the founder of Istanbul Toy Museum, a showcase of thousands of antique toys from around the world....
, poet and writer - Periklis HristoforidisPeriklis HristoforidisPeriklis Hristoforidis was a Turkish-born Greek film actor. He appeared in 122 films between 1929 and 1979.He was born in Trabzon, Turkey, and died in Thessaloniki, Greece.-Selected filmography:* Madame X...
, Greek actor - Dimitris PsathasDimitris PsathasDimitris Psathas was a famous modern Greek satirist and playwright. He was born in Trabzon of Pontos in 1907 and died in Athens in 1979.He went to Athens in 1923 and finished his studies whereby he devoted himself to both journalism and the theatre. In 1937, he published his first book Justice is...
(1907–1979) Greek playwright - Leon Zaven Surmelian (1907–1995) Armenian-American writer
Twin towns — Sister cities
Trabzon is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with:
| Sochi Sochi Sochi is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated just north of Russia's border with the de facto independent republic of Abkhazia, on the Black Sea coast. Greater Sochi sprawls for along the shores of the Black Sea near the Caucasus Mountains... , 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... , since 1993 Rizhao Rizhao Rizhao is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Shandong province, People's Republic of China. It is situated on the coastline along the Yellow Sea, borders Qingdao to the northeast, Weifang to the north, Linyi to the west and southwest, and faces Korea and Japan across the Yellow Sea to the east... , China China Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture... , since 1997 Szigetvár Szigetvár -History:The town's fortress was the setting of the Battle of Szigetvár in 1566. It was a sanjak centre at first in Budin Province , later in Kanije Province .There was already a bum in the marshland back in the Celtic and Roman times... , Hungary Hungary Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The... , since 1998 Batumi Batumi Batumi is a seaside city on the Black Sea coast and capital of Adjara, an autonomous republic in southwest Georgia. Sometimes considered Georgia's second capital, with a population of 121,806 , Batumi serves as an important port and a commercial center. It is situated in a subtropical zone, rich in... , Georgia Georgia (country) Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of... , since 2000 |
Rasht Rasht Rasht is a city in and the capital of Gilan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 551,161, in 159,983 families.Rasht is the largest city on Iran's Caspian Sea coast. It is a major trade center between Caucasia, Russia and Iran using the port of Bandar-e Anzali... , Iran Iran Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia... , since 2000 Zanjan Zanjan (city) Zanjan is the capital of Zanjan Province in northwestern Iran. It is an Azeri inhabited city. It lies 298 km north-west of Tehran on the main highway to Tabriz and Turkey and approximately 125 km from the Caspian Sea... , Iran Iran Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia... , since 2001 Kuopio Kuopio Kuopio is a city and a municipality located in the region of Northern Savonia, Finland. A population of makes it the ninth biggest city in the country. The city has a total area of , of which is water and half forest... , Finland Finland Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside... , since 1977 Kaunas Kaunas Kaunas is the second-largest city in Lithuania and has historically been a leading centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the biggest city and the center of a powiat in Trakai Voivodeship of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since 1413. During Russian Empire occupation... , Lithuania Lithuania Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark... , since 1987 Purwakarta Purwakarta Purwakarta is a City in the West Java province of Indonesia the capital of Purwakarta Regency.Purwakarta existence is inseparable from the history of the struggle against the forces VOC. Around the beginning of the 17th century Sultan Mataram sent an army led by the Regent of Surabaya and West... , Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an... ,(Start since 30 September 2011) |
See also
- Trebizond Vilayet
- Empire of TrebizondEmpire of TrebizondThe Empire of Trebizond, founded in April 1204, was one of three Byzantine successor states of the Byzantine Empire. However, the creation of the Empire of Trebizond was not directly related to the capture of Constantinople by the Fourth Crusade, rather it had broken away from the Byzantine Empire...
- The Towers of TrebizondThe Towers of TrebizondThe Towers of Trebizond is a novel by Rose Macaulay . Published in 1956, it was the last of her novels, and the most successful. It was awarded the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction in the year of its publication.-Plot:...
- Black SeaBlack SeaThe 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...
- Black Sea region
- Black Sea Technical University [KTU]
- KemençeKemenceKemence is a village in Pest county, Hungary....
- Chepni people
- Laz peopleLaz peopleThe Laz are an ethnic group native to the Black Sea coastal regions of Turkey and Georgia...
- ColchisColchisIn ancient geography, Colchis or Kolkhis was an ancient Georgian state kingdom and region in Western Georgia, which played an important role in the ethnic and cultural formation of the Georgian nation.The Kingdom of Colchis contributed significantly to the development of medieval Georgian...
- Sümela MonasterySumela MonasteryThe Sümela Monastery , , i.e. monastery of the Panaghia at Melá mountain) is a Greek Orthodox monastery, standing at the foot of a steep cliff facing the Altındere valley, in the region of Maçka in Trabzon Province, modern Turkey...
- TrabzonsporTrabzonsporTrabzonspor is a professional Turkish football club located in the city of Trabzon, Turkey. Formed in 1967 through a merger of several local clubs, Trabzonspor won six championships in Turkish Super League. The Club won their first Championship title in 1975 which is also the Club's initiation year...
- Anatolian TigersAnatolian TigersAnatolian Tigers is a term internationally used in the context of the Turkish economy to refer to and to explain the phenomenon of a number of cities in Turkey which have displayed impressive growth records since the 1980s, as well as to a defined new breed of entrepreneurs rising in prominence...
- KolbastıKolbastıKolbastı is a popular Turkish dance. It was originally created in the 1930s in the seaport of Trabzon on the Black Sea coast of north-eastern Turkey...
- UzungölUzungölUzungöl is a lake situated to the south of the city of Trabzon in Turkey. Over the years it has become a major tourist attraction. It is also the name of a nearby village. The lake is at a distance of 99 km from Trabzon and 19 km from Çaykara district...
- Horon
- Phrontisterion of TrapezousPhrontisterion of TrapezousThe Phrontisterion of Trapezous was a Greek educational institution that operated from 1682/3 to 1921 in Trabzon , in the Ottoman Empire, now Turkey. It provided a major impetus for the rapid expansion of Greek education throughout the Pontus region, on the south coast of the Black Sea...
- Pontic GreeksPontic GreeksThe Pontians are an ethnic group traditionally living in the Pontus region, the shores of Turkey's Black Sea...