Area 6,000 km² Area code 342 | Region Southeast Anatolia Vehicle registration 27 | |
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Clubs and Teams Gaziantepspor, Gaziantep Büyükşehir Belediyespor, Gazikentspor Colleges and Universities Gaziantep University, Hasan Kalyoncu University, Zirve University Points of interest Zeugma Mosaic Museum, Gaziantep Museum of Archaeology, Gaziantep Castle, Gaziantep Emine Göğüş M, Rumkale | ||
Gaziantep Province (Turkish: Gaziantep ili) is a province in south-central Turkey. Its capital is the city of Gaziantep, which had a population of 1.931.836 in 2015. Its neighbours are Adıyaman to the north, Şanlıurfa to the east, Syria and Kilis to the south, Hatay to the southwest, Osmaniye to the west and Kahramanmaraş to the northwest.
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Map of Gaziantep, Turkey
An important trading center since ancient times, the province is also one of Turkey's major manufacturing zones, and its agriculture is dominated by the growing of pistachio nuts.
In ancient times, first the Hittites and later the Assyrians controlled the region. It saw much fighting during the Crusades, and Saladin won a key battle there in 1183. After World War I and the Ottoman Empire's disintegration, it was invaded by the forces of the French Third Republic during the Turkish War of Independence. It was returned to Turkish control after the Treaty of Lausanne was signed, formally ending hostilities between Turkey and the Allies of World War I.
Originally known as Antep, the title gazi (meaning veteran in Turkish) was added to the province's and the provincial capital's name in 1921, due to its population's actions during the Turkish War of Independence.
Kilis Province was part of Gaziantep Province until it separated in 1994.Turks are majority in the province.
Geology
Two major active geological faults meet in western Gaziantep near the border with adjoining Osmaniye Province: the Dead Sea Transform and the East Anatolian Fault. These represent the tectonic boundary between the northward-moving Arabian Plate to the east, and the converging African and Eurasian Plates to the west.
Geography
Gaziantep is traversed by the northeasterly line of equal latitude and longitude.