Location and Geography

Turkey is situated at the point where three continents –Europe, Asia and Africa are closest to each other, covering an area of 814,578 sq.km., with a population of 67 million. The European and Asian sides are divided by the Istanbul Bogazi (Bosphorus), the Sea of Marmara, and the Canakkale Bogazi (Dardanelles). Anatolia is a high plateau region rising progressively towards the east, broken by the valleys of about 15 rivers, including the Dicle (Tigris) and the Firat (Euphrates). There are numerous lakes and some, such as Lake Van, are as large as inland seas. In the north, the Eastern Black Sea Mountain chain runs parallel to the Black Sea; in the south, the Taurus Mountains sweep down almost to the narrow, fertile coastal plain along the coast. Turkey enjoys a variety of climates, changing from the temperate climate of the Back Sea region, to the continental climate of the interior, then, to the Mediterranean climate of the Aegean and Mediterranean coastal regions. The coastline of Turkey's four seas is more then 8,333 km long.

Turkey is located between Europe and Asia and is roughly a rectangular shape. The largest section is the Anatolian Peninsula at 790,200 km2, known as Asia Minor. Thrace (Trakya) is the smaller area, at 24,378 km2, and is located at the east of Balkan Peninsula, bringing the total area of the country to 814,578 km2. With a coastline measuring 8272km, Turkey is a naval country in a central position to the world’s prominent continents.
Because of its location, Turkey was a region through which ancient Asian Turkish culture moved into Europe, and also a window of Western culture opening to meet the east.

Turkey is surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea and Aegean Sea, which connects the country to the whole world. Because of these long coastal borders and the bridge between Asia and Europe, Turkey has been the center of major commercial and migration routes

• Description of major cities, map
To get detailed information about the major cities of Turkey, visit this page:
http://www.turizm.gov.tr/EN/BelgeGoster.aspx?17A16AE30572D313AAF6AA849816B2EF0D2CC151BEEE94E3