İzmit was known asNicomedia and Ólbia in antiquity, and was the eastern and most senior capital city of theRoman Empire between 286 and 324, during theTetrarchy introduced byDiocletian. FollowingConstantine the Great's victory over co-emperorLicinius at theBattle of Chrysopolis in 324, Nicomedia served as an interim capital city for Constantine between 324 and 330. During theOttoman Empire, İzmit was the capital of theSanjak of Kocaeli. In the present day,Istanbul-İzmit area is one of the main industrial regions in Turkey.[8]
İzmit was known asNicomedia (Ancient Greek:Νικομήδεια) and Ólbia (Ancient Greek:Ὀλβία) in antiquity.İzmit derives fromNicomedia, prefixed with εἰς 'to' or 'into' (similarly toİstanbul). Names used in English prior to official TurkishLatinization includeIsmid,Iskimid, andIsnikmid.[9]
The city is mostly built on hill slopes because of the cramped area, while flat plains surround the gulf, near the sea. This topographic structure divided the city into two parts. The first was created on flat plains, where the city center is located. The railway and highway networks pass from this area which is close to the Sea of Marmara. The second part was built on hills, with many historic houses from theOttoman period in the old quarters.
In Antiquity, the city in Greek was calledAstacus or Olbia (founded 712 BC). After being destroyed, it was rebuilt and founded byNicomedes I of Bithynia in 264 BC under the name ofNicomedia. It remained one of the most important cities in northwesternAsia Minor.
Carthaginian general and statesmanHannibal came to Nicomedia in his final years and committed suicide in nearbyLibyssa (modernGebze), in a date between 183 and 181 BC.
In 286 AD, Roman emperorDiocletian made Nicomedia the eastern capital city of the Roman Empire, when he introduced theTetrarchy system. Nicomedia remained as the eastern (and most senior) capital of the Roman Empire untilLicinius was defeated byConstantine the Great in 324. Constantine mainly resided in Nicomedia as his interim capital city for the next six years; until in 330 he declared the nearbyByzantium asNova Roma, which eventually became known asConstantinople (modernIstanbul). Constantine died at an imperial villa in the vicinity of Nicomedia on 22 May 337. Owing to its position at the convergence of the Asiatic roads leading to the new capital, Nicomedia retained its importance even after the foundation of Constantinople.
Nicomedia remained underByzantine rule until the late 11th century, when it was captured bySeljuk Turks. However, the city soon returned to Byzantine sovereignty as a consequence of the successes of theFirst Crusade. After thesack of Constantinople in 1204, during theFourth Crusade, the city of Nicomedia, with most of theBithynia province, became a part of theLatin Empire. It was recaptured by theByzantines around 1235 and stayed within Byzantine borders until the first half of the 14th century. The city was conquered by theOttoman Turks in 1337.
İzmit was occupied by the United Kingdom on 6 July 1920, during theTurkish War of Independence. The British left it toGreece on 27 October 1920. İzmit was re-taken by the Turks on 28 June 1921.[11] As of 1920, the British reported that the city had a population of about 13,000.[12] In 1920–1921atrocities were committed in the city and its surroundings during theGreco-Turkish War (1919–1922) against the Greek civilian population. An Allied report (on 1 June 1921) stated that a large number of excesses were committed by both sides during the last year, while the Turkish atrocities in the Izmit peninsula "have been more considerable and ferocious than those on the part of the Greeks".[11][13][14]
The 7.6 Mwearthquake of 17 August 1999 devastated the region with a maximumMercalli intensity of IX (Violent). The shock killed more than 17,000 people and left half a million homeless. It took several years for the city to recover from this disaster, and traces of the earthquake remain visible.
İzmit has a history as aport city. As of 1913, the Turkish government had been working toprivatize the port. At that time,Vickers built a temporary dock, bringing a small export business to the area. The British described the port as having little business as of 1920.[12]
During the sanjak period of İzmit, the forested regions of the area were devastated bydeforestation. The wood in the region of İzmit was used to producecharcoal, primarily.[16] During the 1920s, the area was also known for manufacturinglinen. Factories were rare during that time, so most linen was handmade. It was described as being "coarse" and as being in high demand in Turkey as of 1920. İzmit was the home of twoTurkish Army andNavyuniform factories. One madefez hats and the other made cloth. The area madecarpet andembroidery, made by mainly Christian women.[17]
İzmit has a largeoil refinery and major paper and cement factories.Ford Motor Company has a plant here in a joint venture withOtosan, assembling theTransit/Tourneo (including the new V362 Transit/Tourneo Custom since late 2012) andTransit/Tourneo Connect vans. After Ford's Southampton Assembly Plant's closure scheduled for July 2013 was completed, and the launch of the new Otosan only V363 Transit in 2014, İzmit became the sole producer of Ford Transit vans for Europe. It is also a transportation hub, being on the main highway and railway lines between Istanbul andAnkara and having a majorport.
In the past few years the province has developed into a growth point for the Turkishautomotive industry, receiving investments fromFord,Hyundai,Honda andIsuzu. Tyre and rubber products are produced to world-class standard (Goodyear,Pirelli,Lassa andBridgestone). As of today, Kocaeli province has attracted more than 1200 industrial investments, 108 of which have been established with international capital. Turkey's largest enterprise, the Tüpraş Petroleum Refinery Plant, is in Kocaeli, containing altogether 27% of the national chemical products industry, including petrochemical products. Eighteen of the 100 largest enterprises of Turkey are in Kocaeli and contribute to around 17%-18% of the national tax revenues.
Atatürk and Redif Museum
Financial Times affiliatedForeign Direct Investment magazine nominatedKocaeli (the province of which İzmit is the capital) among the 25European Regions of the Future for 2006–2007.[18] The city was chosen along withAdana for Turkey, which scored the highest points for cost effectiveness against Kocaeli's wider infrastructure, while Adana and Kocaeli tied on points for human resources and quality of life.
Located along the commercially-activeBlack Sea andMarmara Sea shorelines, Kocaeli boasts 5 ports and 35 industrial docks, making it an important communications center, as well asAnatolia's farthest inland contact point and a gateway to global markets. The main transportation routes, theD100 highway and theTrans European Motorway which connects Europe with Asia, along with railway lines, form an intercontinental passage network.İzmit Central railway station is one of the busiest in Turkey, built in 1977 to replace the original station.
Kocaeli neighbours one of the world's largest metropolitan centers,Istanbul. Its vicinity to Istanbul's two international airports (Sabiha Gökçen International Airport andAtatürk International Airport) which are 45 and 80 km (28 and 50 mi) away, respectively, from İzmit's city center, provides national and international connections.
On 1 March 1958,SS Üsküdar, a small passenger ferry sailing between İzmit andDeğirmendere sank due tolodos weather. 272 people died including 38 students and seven crew. 37 passengers and two crew survived the disaster.[20][21][22][23]
Operated by Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality,Akçaray is operational since 2017. The second line was opened in 2019 and the whole system of 16 stations has over 8 million annual ridership.[25]
Kocaeli University (KOU) was established in the city in 1992. The university has more than 50,000 students. It has established a department of international relations that monitorsBologna developments closely and oversees KOU's participation in the Erasmus and Leonardo da Vinci student mobility schemes. With membership in the European University Association, KOU is aiming for greater international recognition of its academic work.
The university, while focusing on technical and engineering subjects, offers an extensive selection of courses in social sciences and arts as well. Some steps toward certification by ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology) are being taken by the Faculty of Engineering, such as adaptation of course content in engineering majors.
İzmit has ahumid subtropical climate (Köppen:Cfa,Trewartha:Cf), which is warmer than its surroundings – largely due to its sheltered location – and noticeably wetter during summers than other locations on the northern Sea of Marmara coast further to the west. Summers are hot and often muggy, the average maximum temperature is around 30 °C (86 °F) in July and August, while winters are cool and wet, the average minimum temperature is between 0–4 °C (32–39 °F) in January. Precipitation is high and fairly evenly distributed the year round; it is heaviest in late fall and winter. İzmit has a record high temperature of 44.1 °C (111 °F) in July 2000, which is exceptionally high for the region, and a record low of −18.0 °C (0 °F) in February 1929. Snowfall is fairly common, and İzmit's snow depth record is 90 cm (35 in) in February 1929.
Climate data forAkçakoca [tr], İzmit (1991–2020, extremes 1929–2023)
Mihran Azaryan, Ottoman Armenian and Turkish architect who is best known for having designed and constructed the Büyükada Pier and possibly the Izmit Clock Tower.
^"Yetki Alanı".İstanbul Büyükşehir Belediyesi. n.d. Retrieved16 May 2025....geçici 2. Madde ile İstanbul ve İzmit illeri için istisnai bir uygulama yapılarak büyükşehir belediye sınırları, Kanunun yürürlüğe girdiği tarihi itibariyle il mülkî sınırı olarak genişletildi.
^abKellogg, Day Otis; Baynes, Thomas Spencer (13 December 1903)."The Encyclopædia Britannica: A-ZYM". Werner.Archived from the original on 21 July 2021. Retrieved4 January 2021 – via Google Books.
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