OFFICIAL NAME:
The Republic of Turkey (Türkiye Cumhuriyeti)
FOUNDER:
Mustafa Kemal ATATÜRK ( 1881-1938 )
LOCATION:
Eastern Mediterranean. Located on two continents: Europe and Asia. The European part of Turkey is called Thrace, while the Asian part is called Anatolia (or Asia Minor).
AREA:
814,578 square kilometers (314,500 square miles) 3% on the European continent
97% on the Asian continent
CAPITAL:
Ankara
POPULATION:
67.8 million (as of 2002)
MAJOR CITIES (as of 2002):
Istanbul 10 million, Ankara 4 million, Izmir 3.4 million, Bursa 2.1 million, Konya 2.2 million, Adana 1.8 million
LANGUAGE:
Turkish (uses Latin alphabet)
CURRENCY:
Turkish Lira
RELIGION:
99% of the population is Muslim. Turkey is the only country among Islamic countries, which has included secularism in her Constitution and guarantees complete freedom of worship to non-Muslims.
GOVERNMENT:
Turkey is democratic, secular and social state governed by the rule of law; committed to the nationalism of Atatürk and based on the principle of the separation of powers. Legislative power: The Turkish Grand National Assembly. Executive power: President and the Council of Ministers. Judicial power: Independent courts and supreme judiciary organs.
EDUCATION SYSTEM:
Primary Education: eight years; includes the education of children in the 6-14 age-group. Compulsory for all male and female citizens. Secondary Education: Consists of general and vocational-technical high schools that offer at least three years of education. Higher Education: Includes all educational institutions where an educational program of at least two years over and above secondary education is implemented. These educate students at associate's, bachelor's, master's or doctorate degree levels. Primary and secondary education is free of charge in public schools. Higher education institutions, however, charge a certain minimal tuition fee.
GEOGRAPHICAL REGIONS:
Turkey has 80 administrative provinces and 7 geographical regions. The first four of the seven regions are given the names the seas, which are adjacent to them: Black Sea Region, Marmara Region, Aegean Region, Mediterranean Region. The other three regions are named in accordance with their location in the whole of Anatolia: Central Anatolia Region, Eastern Anatolia Region, Southeastern Anatolia Region.
