Turkey lies between Southeast Europe and West Asia and encompasses Anatolia, Eastern Thrace and coastlines on three seas. The region was home to ancient empires and Byzantine centres; the Ottoman Empire and the republic founded in 1923 shape its modern history.
10000 BCE
Early settlements
Neolithic communities settled in Anatolia; Göbekli Tepe is an exceptionally early monumental ritual complex.
2000 BCE – 1200 BCE
Hittite Empire
An Anatolian empire centred on Hattusa developed diplomatic and political ties with neighbouring states.
1200 BCE – 546 BCE
Lydia and Greek coastal cities
Western Anatolian states, including Lydia, and Greek-speaking coastal cities maintained commercial and political relations.
546 BCE – 334 BCE
Persian and Hellenistic Anatolia
Achaemenid rule was followed by the conquests of Alexander and the Hellenistic kingdoms that succeeded him.
133 BCE – 330
Roman Asia Minor
Roman provinces and cities formed an important part of the eastern Mediterranean; Christian communities emerged and grew.
330 – 1453
Byzantine period
Constantinople became the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire and a major centre of Orthodox Christianity, trade and government.
1071
Battle of Manzikert
The Seljuks defeated Byzantine forces; Turkic-speaking rulers and communities gradually settled in Anatolia.
1299 – 1922
Ottoman dynasty
A Turkish dynasty grew into an empire spanning parts of Europe, Asia and Africa; conquest, administration and trade connected diverse peoples.
1453
Conquest of Constantinople
Ottoman forces captured Constantinople; the city later became known as Istanbul and remained an imperial centre.
1914 – 1922
World War and the end of the empire
The Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers; the war and subsequent conflicts led to its dissolution and mass displacement.
1923 – 2026
Founding of the republic
The Republic of Turkey was proclaimed after the War of Independence; secularising reforms changed law, government and education. The present state and society remain shaped by tensions between modernisation, religion and regional diversity.
Anatolia was a crossroads of agricultural communities, trading towns and empires long before a Turkish state existed. Hittite, Lydian and other political centres succeeded one another; Achaemenid, Hellenistic and later Roman rule connected the region to wider networks. Constantinople, founded as an imperial capital in 330, became the administrative and ecclesiastical centre of the Byzantine Empire. Greek, Armenian and other languages continued alongside one another.
From the eleventh century, Turkic-speaking rulers and communities gradually settled in Anatolia, following the Seljuk victory at Manzikert in 1071. The Ottoman dynasty grew from a regional principality into an empire governing territories in Europe, Asia and Africa. Provincial elites, trading towns and religious communities formed part of a changing system of rule; expansion and imperial commerce also involved warfare, taxation and forced displacement.
Defeat in the First World War, the empire’s dissolution and the war of independence led to the republic in 1923. The new state abolished the sultanate and caliphate and introduced sweeping reforms to the alphabet, education, law and administration. Population exchanges and nationalist politics changed demographics, while Kurds and other minorities faced assimilation policies and restrictions. Modern Turkey combines republican institutions with Ottoman legacies and marked regional differences.
10000 BCE – 546 BCE
Anatolia had many languages and political communities; trade, migration and conquest brought peoples together from the Aegean to Mesopotamia.
133 BCE – 1071
Multilingual populations lived under Roman and Byzantine institutions; Christian, Jewish and other traditions developed alongside one another.
1071 – 1923
The empire included diverse religious and linguistic communities; nationalism, wars and state policies also caused persecution, forced migration and the loss of population groups.
1923
The republican state promoted a Turkish national identity; regional, religious and ethnic diversity remains part of the country and its diaspora.
In antiquity, Anatolia encompassed Hittite deities, local cults and later Greek, Roman and Jewish communities. Christianity spread in the Roman period; Byzantine Orthodoxy shaped church, art and imperial legitimacy for centuries. The Seljuk and Ottoman periods brought Islamic institutions and Sufi orders into a landscape where Christian churches, Jewish communities and local practices persisted, although legal positions varied.
Twentieth-century republican reforms formally separated religious institutions from state administration and placed religion under a state directorate. Most of the population identifies with Islam, including Sunni and Alevi communities with varied practices; small Christian and Jewish communities and non-religious people also live in the country. The relationship between secularism, religious expression and state policy has changed over time and remains a subject of public debate.
🎨 Byzantine mosaic and ecclesiastical art4th–15th centuries
Churches in Constantinople and Anatolia were decorated with mosaics, frescoes, icons and domed architecture. Their imagery reflected liturgy and imperial patronage; later buildings, including Hagia Sophia, acquired new functions and additions under Ottoman rule.
🎨 Ottoman court architecture and calligraphy15th–19th centuries
Mosques, palaces, baths and bridges combined domes, courtyards, tiles and refined calligraphy. Architects such as Mimar Sinan worked within imperial patronage, but building traditions varied regionally and were also shaped by local craftspeople and communities.
🎨 Ottoman court music and folk genres15th–20th centuries
Ottoman classical music developed makam systems and instrumental ensembles in urban and court settings. Regional folk music, including aşık poetry accompanied by string instruments, had its own languages and styles; in the republic, these traditions were collected, performed and reinterpreted.
Ramadan and EidFestivalLunar calendar
Many Muslims fast during Ramadan and celebrate Eid al-Fitr; regional and personal customs vary.
NevruzFestival21 March
A spring festival celebrated by diverse communities in Anatolia and across Western and Central Asia.
Turkish coffeeCustom
Finely ground coffee is brewed unfiltered in a small pot and often offered as a gesture of hospitality.
Mevlevi semaRitual
Mevlevi dervishes perform a ritual whirling ceremony; it is a Sufi devotional practice, not a general folk dance.
Ebru (paper marbling)Craft
A paper-marbling technique in which pigments are floated on water and transferred to paper.
Karagöz and HacivatStorytelling
Traditional shadow theatre with humorous dialogue and stylised characters.
Oil wrestling (yağlı güreş)Sports & gamesEspecially summer
A traditional wrestling contest with oiled competitors; the Kırkpınar tournament in Edirne is a well-known annual event.
Turkish cuisine reflects Anatolian agriculture and urban food culture, with influences from Central Asia, the Caucasus, the Balkans and the Middle East. Local ingredients and cooking styles vary greatly between the coast, inland areas and major cities.
Anatolian food history rests on grain cultivation, pulses, fruit, sheep husbandry and varied coastal fisheries. Roman and Byzantine cities connected local agriculture to Mediterranean markets; Turkic-speaking migrations brought pastoral traditions and new dough-based foods. In the Ottoman Empire, court kitchens, regional markets and trade routes intersected. Rice, spices, coffee and crops from the Americas were adopted at different times, without producing a single uniform cuisine.
Cooking and eating had social and religious functions: bakeries, neighbourhood kitchens and charitable meals were part of urban life, while fasting months altered eating patterns. Olive oil, vegetables and fish are important in coastal areas; inland regions have traditions centred on grain, meat and dairy. Modern migration from the Balkans and Caucasus brought additional dishes. Contemporary food ranges from home-cooked stews to urban restaurants and street food.
İskender kebabMain course
Döner lamb on bread with tomato sauce, yoghurt and melted butter.
Origin: Bursa, late nineteenth century; later spread as a restaurant dish.
Mercimek çorbasıSoup
Lentil and vegetable soup, often seasoned with lemon and herbs.
Origin: Anatolian legume tradition.
MantıMain course
Small dough parcels filled with meat, served with yoghurt and spiced butter.
Origin: Related to Central Asian dumplings; regional Turkish versions vary.
İmam bayıldıSide dish
Aubergine stuffed with onion, tomato and herbs, then braised in olive oil.
Origin: Ottoman and Anatolian cuisine; tomatoes reached the region after the Columbian Exchange.
LahmacunStreet food
Thin flatbread topped with spiced minced meat, tomato and herbs.
Origin: A shared Anatolian and Levantine flatbread tradition.
BaklavaDessert
Thin layers of pastry with nuts and syrup or honey.
Origin: Ottoman court and regional traditions; its precise origins are shared and historically disputed.
AyranDrink
A refreshing drink made from yoghurt, water and salt.
Origin: Turkish and broader West and Central Asian dairy tradition.
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Sources: Republic of Türkiye – Directorate of Communications · Encyclopaedia Britannica: Turkey