Turkish Flag ** ::The Facts: **

Official Name
The Republic of Turkey (Türkiye Cumhuriyeti)
Founder
Mustafa Kemal ATATÜRK ( 1881-1938 )
Capital
ANKARA

Population
67.8 million (as of 2000)
Language
Turkish (uses Latin Alphabet)
Currency
New Turkish Lira ( YTL ) as of 1/1/2005 1YTL=1,000,000 TL ( Turkish Lira )

Location
Eastern Mediterranean. Located on two continents Europe and Asia. The European part of Turkey is called Thrace, while the Asian part is called Anatolia or ( Asia Minor )
Area
814 578 Km2 (314 500 square miles)
% 3 % 97
on the European continenton the Asian continent
Major Cities
IstanbulAnkaraIzmirKonyaBursaAdana
10.0 million4.0 million3.3 million2.2 million2.1 million1.8 million

Religion
99 percent of the population is Muslim. Turkey is a secular state that assures complete freedom of worship to non-Muslims.
National Anthem
“ Istiklal Marsi ”Lyrics by : Mehmet Akif Ersoy Adopted as Turkey’s National Anthem on March 12,1921
Government
Turkey is democratic, secular and social state governed by the rule of law; committed to the nationalism of Atatürk and based on the principle of the separation of powers;
Legislative Power : The Turkish Grand National AssemblyExecutive Power : President and the Council of Ministers.Judicial Power : Independent courts and supreme judiciary organs.
Coastline
8333 Km. (5000 miles)Turkey is surrounded by sea on three sides, by the Black Sea in the north, the Mediterranean in the south and the Aegean Sea in the west. In the northwest there is also an important internal sea, the Sea of Marmara, between the straits of the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus
Geographical Regions
Turkey has 80 administrative provinces and seven geographical regions. The first four of the seven regions are given the names of the seas which are adjacent to them.- Black Sea Region- Marmara Region- Aegean Region- Mediterranean RegionThe other three regions are named in accordance with their location in the whole of Anatolia.- Central Anatolia Region- Eastern Anatolia Region- South-eastern Anatolia Region
Famous Landmarks
Ayasofya Museum, Topkapi Palace, Blue Mosque, Dolmabahce