Country Turkey Capital Bingol University Bingol University Area 1,789.86 km2 | Mayor Yucel Barakazi (AKP) | |
Bingol (Armenian: Chapaghjur, Zazaki: , Kurmanji Kurdish: ) is a city in Eastern Turkey. It is surrounded by mountains and a large number of glacier lakes, hence the name (Turkish for a thousand lakes). Lately, the town has become a popular tourist destination. According to 2009 estimates, it has a population of 87,918 .
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Map of Bingol
Bingol is the capital of Bingol Province, one of the 81 provinces of Turkey.
On May 1, 2003 the whole area suffered from a magnitude 6.4 earthquake, leaving 177 dead and 520 injured. On 8 March 2010, the area suffered another earthquake, of magnitude 5.9, with its epicenter in Elazig Province, 45 km (28 mi) west of Bingol.
Transport
Bingol Airport opened on 12 July 2013.
History
In the Middle Ages, Bingol was known as Romanoupolis (Greek: ) after the Byzantine emperor Romanos I Lekapenos, who incorporated it permanently into the Byzantine Empire in 942. It initially formed a subdivision of the thema of Mesopotamia, but it was later (ca. 970) elevated into a separate theme.
Geography
Bingol is 144 km east of Elazig and is situated in the high region of Eastern Anatolia. Bingol is a mountainous area with heights reaching 10,000 feet.