| Mount Nif | |
|---|---|
| (one among several Mt.Olympus in antiquity) | |
 Luvian warrior prince monument carved in rock dated to late-13th century BC at Karabel Pass on Mount Nif | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 1,510 m (4,950 ft)seesection |
| Coordinates | 38°17′58″N27°1′8″E / 38.29944°N 27.01889°E /38.29944; 27.01889 |
| Geography | |
  Mount Nif Location in Turkey | |
| Location | Kemalpaşa,İzmir,Turkey |
Mount Nif,Turkish:Nif Dağı, (elevation: 1,510 m or 4,954 ft) is a mountain in the district ofKemalpaşa, towering over the district center (formerly also called Nif), located immediately to the east of the city ofİzmir, in westernTurkey. It was one of the nineteen mountains which carried the nameOlympus in ancient times.
Mount Nif's mass is a protrusion in western direction ofBozdağlarmountain chain, which separates the valleys of the riversGediz andKüçük Menderes, two principal flows of the region, and of which the Mount Bozdağ (Mount Tmolus in antiquity), with its elevation exceeding 2,000 m (6,562 ft), constitutes the highest peak, as well as being the highest point for the same region of the provinces of İzmir-Aydın-Manisa-Uşak as a whole.
Mount Nif is distinguished from the rest of the mountain chain massif by a narrow but key pass at a locality calledKarabel which leads south towards the town ofTorbalı.
Karabel Pass is famous for itsLuvian warrior prince monument carved in rock and dated to late-13th century BC, inscribed in the name ofTarkasnawa, a younger contemporary and an addressee of theHittite KingTudhaliya IV.[1] A new reading of its relief inscription, which had been known since the 19th century, was made in 1996 and published in 1998. The monument is called "Eti Baba" (the Hittite father) locally.
A second pass to the north of Mount Nif separates it, or connects it, since it is still at some altitude, fromMount Sipylus, at the locality calledBelkahve. Belkahve is the principal point of access from the east to İzmir metropolitan area and commands an impressive view of a large part of the city.Ankara-İzmir highway, notably, is checked by its sinuous slopes.
Mount Nif is sometimes cited as "Kemalpaşa Mountain" in reference to the district center, especially in Turkish sources. But the name "Mount Nif", deriving from "Nymphaion", the name of the region during theByzantine period when it was an important and imperial center especially at the time of theNicaean Empire, is the more common appellation in Turkey as well. This is also the case for the principal stream that crosses the district area, the "River Nif" (Nif Çayı). The district center and the depending administrative area almost invariably go by the name of "Kemalpaşa", with the former name used very rarely nowadays and only colloquially.
