Motto:
Peace in the country. Peace in the world
Language:
Tukish
Population:
75.8 Million (UN 2010)
Brief history:
Known as the Republic of Turkey, the modern Turkish state was formed September 18, 1922 ending 623 years of Ottoman Rule. The Ottoman empire during its peak 16th and 17th century ruled the seas and was often at war with the Holy Roman Empire over maritime control and religious differences.
Turkey is located in between Europe and Asia and is circled by three seas - the Aegean Sea(west), the Black Sea (north) and the Mediterranean Sea (south).
Capital of Turkey is Ankara. Other major cities are Istanbul, Izmir, and Antalya. Istanbul, Turkey's largest city was 2010 the European Capital of Culture.
In 1923, the first Turkish President Mustafa Kemal aka "Ataturk" (Father of Turks) established new rules to secularize the Turkish state. Turkey has no official state religion and the constitution provides freedom of religion and conscience. Islam is the dominant religion in Turkey - 97% Muslim.
Turkey's secularization and geographic location has made it a rich culturally diverse country. Turkish music, food, and literature has in Arabic, Islam, Greek-Roman, and European influences.
Books:
1. The Bastard of Istanbul by Elif Shafak
2. The Forty Rules of Love by Elif Shafak
3. Istanbul: Memories of a City by Orhan Pamuk (2006 Nobel Prize Winner)
4. Snow by Orhan Pamuk
Food:
Traditional turkish cuisine uses lot of eggplant, tomatoes, peppers, yogurt sauces, and grilled kebabs such as lamb and chicken.
Influential People:
1. Mowlana Jalal-adDin Rumi
Rumi is a renowned mystic and poet born in 13th century Persia. He lived most of his life in Konya, Turkey. Rumi is considered the 'Shakespeare' of the Persian world. He is one of Turkey's national poets. Today Rumi poems are widely read in the West and in recent years the most popular poet sold in America.
"The world of Rumi is neither exclusively the world of a Sufi, nor the world of a Hindu, nor a Jew, nor a Christian; it is a state of an evolved human. A human who is not bound by cultural limitations; a one who touches every one of us. Today Rumi's poems can be heard in churches, synagogues, Zen monasteries, as well as in the downtown New York art/performance/music scene." (from www.rumi.net)
2. Mimar Sinan
Sinan was the chief Ottoman architect and civil engineer for sultans Suleiman I, Selim II and Murad III. Sinan's masterpiece is the Selimiye Mosque in Edirne, although his most famous work is the Suleiman Mosque in Istanbul.
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