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Bursa
Statue of Atatürk and the Governorate of Bursa
Bursa is located in Turkey
Bursa
Location of Bursa
Coordinates: 40°11′N 29°04′ECoordinates: 40°11′N 29°04′E
Country Turkey
Region Marmara
Province Bursa
Settled 202 BC
Government
Mayor Recep Altepe (AKP)
Area
City 1,036 km2 (400 sq mi)
Elevation 100 m (300 ft)
Population (2011)[1][2]
City 1,704,441
Density 1,508.52/km2 (3,907.0/sq mi)
Metro 1,948,744
Time zone EET (UTC+2)
Summer (DST) EEST (UTC+3)
Postal code 1600
Area code(s) (+90) 224
Licence plate 16
Bursa (Turkish pronunciation: [ˈbuɾsa]) is a city in northwestern Turkey. It is the fourth most populous city in Turkey and equally one of the most industrialized metropolitan centers in the country.
Bursa was the capital of the Ottoman State between 1326 and 1365. The city was referred to as "Hüdavendigar" (meaning "God's Gift") during the Ottoman period, while a more recent nickname is "Yeşil Bursa" (meaning "Green Bursa") in reference to the parks and gardens located across its urban tissue, as well as to the vast forests in rich variety that extend in the surrounding region. The city is synonymous with Mount Uludağ which towers behind its core and which is also a famous ski resort. The mausoleums of the early Ottoman sultans are located in Bursa and the numerous edifices built throughout the Ottoman period constitute the city's main landmarks. The surrounding fertile plain, its thermal baths, several interesting museums, notably a rich museum of archaeology, and a rather orderly urban growth are further principal elements that complete Bursa's overall picture.
Karagöz and Hacivat shadow play characters were historic personalities who lived and are buried in Bursa. Bursa is also home to some of the most famous Turkish dishes such as İskender kebap, specially candied marron glacés, peaches and lokum. Bursa is home to the Uludağ University, and its population attains one of the highest overall levels of education in Turkey. Within the Bursa Province, the towns of İznik (Nicaea), Mudanya and Zeytinbağı are especially notable for their long history and important monuments.
According to the Turkish Statistical Institute, as of 2011 the city of Bursa had a population of 1,704,441 and its metropolitan municipality 1,948,744
History
The earliest known settlement at this location was the Ancient Greek city of Cius, which Philip V of Macedon granted to Prusias, the King of Bithynia, in 202 BC. Prusias rebuilt the city and renamed it Prusa (Ancient Greek: Προῦσα). After 128 years of Bithynian rule, Nicomedes IV, the last King of Bithynia, bequeathed the entire kingdom to the Roman Empire in 74 BC.
Bursa became the first major capital city of the early Ottoman Empire following its capture from the Byzantines in 1326. As a result, the city witnessed a considerable amount of urban growth throughout the 14th century. After conquering Edirne (Adrianople) in 1365 the Ottomans turned it into a joint capital city for governing their European realms, but Bursa remained the most important Anatolian administrative and commercial center even after it lost its status as the sole Ottoman capital. The Ottoman sultan Bayezid I built the Bayezid Külliyesi (Bayezid I theological complex) in Bursa between 1390 and 1395[5] and the Ulu Cami (Great Mosque) between 1396 and 1400.[6] Bursa remained to be the most important administrative and commercial center in the empire until Mehmed II conquered Istanbul in 1453. The population of Bursa was 45,000 in 1487.[7]
During the Ottoman period, Bursa continued to be the source of most royal silk products. Aside from the local silk production, the city imported raw silk from Iran, and occasionally from China, and was the main production center for the kaftans, pillows, embroidery and other silk products for the Ottoman palaces until the 17th century.
Following the foundation of the Republic of Turkey, Bursa became one of the industrial centers of the country. The economic development of the city was followed by population growth and Bursa became the 4th most populous city in Turkey.
The city has traditionally been a pole of attraction, and was a major center for refugees from various ethnic backgrounds who immigrated to Anatolia from the Balkans during the loss of the Ottoman territories in Europe between the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The most recent arrival of Balkan Turks took place in the 1940s until the 1990s, when the communist regime in Bulgaria expelled approximately 150,000 Bulgarian Turks to Turkey.[8] About one-third of these 150,000 Bulgarian Turkish refugees eventually settled in Bursa.
Geography
Bursa is settled on the northwestern slopes of Mount Uludağ in the southern Marmara Region. It is the capital city of Bursa Province bordered by the Sea of Marmara and Yalova to the north; Kocaeli and Sakarya to the northeast; Bilecik to the east; and Kütahya and Balıkesir to the south.
Climate
Bursa has a borderline Mediterranean/humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification: Csa/Cfa). Bursa has hot, humid summers that last from June until September. Winters are cold and damp, also containing the most rainfall. There can be snow on the ground which will last for a week or two. In the mountains; especially Uludağ, it is freezing and snows all winter. Summer in the mountains is pleasantly warm.
Source: Turkish State Meteorological Service[9]
Economy
The glass pyramid entrance of Zafer Plaza AVM shopping center.
Kent Meydanı AVM shopping center.
Bursa is the center of the Turkish automotive industry.[10][11] Factories of motor vehicle producers like Fiat, Renault and Karsan, as well as automotive parts producers like Bosch, Mako, Valeo and Delphi have been active in the city for decades. The textile and food industries are equally strong, with Coca Cola, Pepsi Cola and other beverage brands, as well as fresh and canned food industries being present in the city's organized industrial zones. The top 10 industry corporations in the Bursa province are as follows.[12]
Oyak Renault
Tofaş Fiat
Bosch
Borçelik
Türk Prysmian Kablo
Sütaş Dairy Products
Bis Enerji
Zorlu Enerji
Borusan Mannesmann Boru
Componenta Döktaş
Apart from its large automotive industry, Bursa also produces a substantial amount of dairy products (Sütaş),[13] processed food (Tat),[14] and beverages (Uludağ).[15]
Traditionally, Bursa was famous for being the largest center of silk trade in the Byzantine and later the Ottoman empires, during the period of the lucrative Silk Road. The city is still a major center for textiles in Turkey and is home to the Bursa International Textiles and Trade Center (Bursa Uluslararası Tekstil ve Ticaret Merkezi, or BUTTIM.) Bursa was also known for its fertile soil and agricultural activities, which have decreased in the recent decades due to the heavy industrialization of the city.
Bursa is a major center for tourism. One of the most popular skiing resorts of Turkey is located at Uludağ just next to the city proper. Bursa's thermal baths have been used for therapeutical purposes since Roman times. Apart from the baths that are operated by hotels, Uludağ University has a physical therapy center which also makes use of thermal water.
Education
Bursa has two public universities and one private university. Uludağ University, founded in 1975, is the oldest institution of higher education in Bursa. Founded first as the Bursa University then renamed to Uludağ University in 1982, the university has a student body of 47,000, one of the largest in Turkey. Bursa Technical University[16] is the second public university of Bursa and it established in 2010, started education in 20112012 academic year. The first private university of Bursa is Bursa Orhangazi University,[17] which is going to start its first education in 20122013 academic year.
Ulu Cami (The Great Mosque)
Interior of Ulu Cami, showing the fountain (şadırvan) for ritual ablutions.
Ulu Cami is the largest mosque in Bursa and a landmark of early Ottoman architecture, which carried many elements from the Seljuk architecture. Ordered by Sultan Bayezid I, the mosque was designed and built by architect Ali Neccar in 13961400. It is a large and rectangular building, with a total of twenty domes that are arranged in four rows of five, and are supported by 12 columns. Supposedly the twenty domes were built instead of the twenty separate mosques which Sultan Bayezid I had promised for winning the Battle of Nicopolis in 1396. The mosque has two minarets.
Inside the mosque there are 192 monumental wall inscriptions written by the famous calligraphers of that period. There is also a fountain (şadırvan) where worshipers can perform ritual ablutions before prayer; the dome over the şadırvan is capped by a skylight which creates a soft, serene light below; thus playing an important role in the illumination of the large building.
The horizontally spacious and dimly lit interior is designed to feel peaceful and contemplative. The subdivisions of space formed by multiple domes and pillars create a sense of privacy and even intimacy. This atmosphere contrasts with the later Ottoman mosques (see for example the works of Suleiman the Magnificent's chief architect Mimar Sinan.) The mosques that were built after the conquest of Constantinople (Istanbul) by the Ottoman Turks in 1453, and influenced by the design of the 6th century Byzantine basilica of Hagia Sophia, had increasingly elevated and large central domes, which create a vertical emphasis that is intended to be more overwhelming; in order to convey the divine power of Allah, the majesty of the Ottoman Sultan, and the governmental authority of the Ottoman State.
Sports
The city has one professional football club, Bursaspor competing in the top-tier of Turkish football. Bursaspor have won the league title in 2009-010 for the first time, becoming the 2nd anatolian club to ever wint the league title after Trabzonspor. Bursaspor now is one of the 5 biggest clubs in Turkey along with Fenerbahçe S.K., Galatasaray SK, Beşiktaş J.K. and Trabzonspor. The city had one basketball team in Turkish Basketball League, Tofaş S.K. which was very successful until the club ended because of financial problems.
Transportation
Bursa has own international airport. Bursa Yenişehir Airport is 20 mile away from city center. Bursa citizens prefer Istanbul airports like Istanbul-Ataturk and Istanbul-Sabiha Gökçen. Because Istanbul and Bursa are closer cities. People can use bus or ferry boat to go Istanbul. Bursa has large rail system and bus system. There are local taxis in Bursa.
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