Aydın 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 (2000). Other towns in the province include the summer seaside resorts of Didim and Kuşadası.

History
Aydın was founded by the ancient Thracians and was once known as Tralles. The area is an earthquake zone and the city was built and rebuilt by a succession of Spartans, Phrygians, Ionians, Lydians, Persians and Ancient Romans. In 1186 the Seljuk Turks took control of the area, followed by the Anatolian beylik of the Aydinids. During this period the town was named Aydın Güzelhisar, and was brought into the Ottoman Empire in 1426.

Geography
Neighboring provinces are Manisa to the north east, İzmir to the north, Denizli to the east, Muğla to the south.

The central and western parts of the province are fertile plains watered by the largest river in the Aegean region the Büyük Menderes River, with the Aydın Mountains to the north and the Menteşe Mountains to the south. The western end of the province is the Aegean coast with Lake Bafa a major feature of the Menderes delta area. The climate is typical of the Aegean region, very hot in summer. The Germencik region contains a number of hot springs.

Districts
Aydın province is divided into 17 districts: • Bozdoğan

• Buharkent

• Çine

• Didim

• Efeler

• Germencik

• Incirliova

• Karacasu

• Karpuzlu

• Koçarlı

• Köşk

• Kuşadası

• Kuyucak

• Nazilli

• Söke

• Sultanhisar

• Yenipazar

Flora
Much of the countryside is a mix of fig, olive and citrus trees, especially figs.

Economy
The major sources of income are agriculture and tourism.

Tourism
The coastal towns of Didim and Kuşadası in particular are tourist resorts. Kuşadası is near to the Dilek Peninsula - Büyük Menderes Delta National Park, while Didim has a temple of Apollo, beaches, and the ancient ruins of Miletos nearby. The province contains archeological sites, including the ancient Carian cities of Alinda and Alabanda.

Agriculture
Aydın is Turkey's leading producer of figs and exports dried figs worldwide. The very name by which the fruit was called in the world markets was "Smyrna figs" until recently, due to the preponderance of figs exported from İzmir over other species of the genus. But İzmir got the name by being the center for the wholesale trade and exports, while in fact the fruit was traditionally cultivated in Aydın. The term used within Turkey is "Aydın figs" (Aydın inciri). Turkey's yearly production of roughly 50,000 tons of dried figs, is almost all from Aydın, Within Aydın province, the best figs are reputed to be grown in Germencik. Aydın produces olives from the varieties of Memecik, Manzanilla, and Gemlik, as well as chestnuts, cotton, citrus fruits, water melons and other fruits.

Industry
Aydın has some light industry

Adnan Menderes University was built in the city of Aydın in 1990s and has branches throughout the province.

Places of interest
The city of Aydın has a number of antique ruins and Ottoman period mosques. The province has attractive countryside including a stretch of the Aegean coast and important sites including:
 * Didim coastal resort wıth large temple of Apollo and nearby..
 * Miletus ruins of an Ancient Greek city
 * Ilyas Bey Complex, a cultural heritage of Turkey built in 1403
 * Kuşadası coastal resort, near to the Dilek Peninsula - Büyük Menderes Delta National Park
 * Kirazli scenic traditional Turkish village with beautiful old stone houses
 * Alinda ancient ruins
 * Alabanda ancient ruins
 * Magnesia ad Maeandrum ancient ruins, on the Ortaklar - Söke road in Germencik
 * Nysa - another ruined Carian city, in Sultanhisar
 * Aphrodisias - more ancient ruins, including tombs, friezes and sculpture, in Karacasu
 * Priene - another ruin, near Söke
 * Mycale Mountains

Culture
Aydın is the home of the Zeybek folk art. This involves a special type of war dance which is performed in a ring to resemble birds. The Zeybek is performed to sounds of the Kiteli and other Turkish folk instruments.

The folk songs of Aydın are famously short, indeed a popular saying in the Aegean region to get someone to stop talking, is Keep it short, make it an Aydın tune

The cuisine features the typical Turkish pastries, köfte and kebab.

Roads
Izmir to Aydın motorway was built in the 1990s and is the city's main thoroughfare.

Notable people

 * Anthemius of Tralles - architect of Haghia Sophia in Istanbul
 * Atçalı Kel Mehmet Efe, folk hero, leader of a public revolt during the decline of the Ottoman Empire
 * Demirci Mehmet Efe, hero of the Turkish War of Independence
 * Yörük Ali Efe, hero of the Turkish War of Independence
 * Mahmut Esat Bozkurt, architect of the legal system of the Turkish Republic, close friend of Atatürk, born in Kuşadası
 * Adnan Menderes, Turkish Prime Minister (1950-1960)
 * Necati Çelim, MP for Aydın, doctor, founding Chairman of Aydın Tekstil Fabrikası, born in Köşk
 * İlhan Selçuk, editor of the Cumhuriyet newspaper
 * İsmet Sezgin, former minister
 * Atilla Koç, MP for Aydın, former minister of culture and tourism, born in Köşk
 * Şükran Güngör, Theatre and film actor, born in Çine
 * Güven Önüt, former Beşiktaş footballer
 * Rıdvan Dilmen, retired footballer, team manager and sports commentator