Ağrı Province (Turkish:Ağrı ili,Armenian:Արարատ մարզ,Kurdish:Parêzgeha Agirîyê) is located in easternTurkey, borderingIran to the east and theprovinces ofKars to the north,Erzurum to the northwest,Muş andBitlis to the southwest,Van to the south, andIğdır to the northeast. Its area is 11,099 km2,[2] and its population is 511,238 (2023).[1] The provincial capital isAğrı, situated on a 1,650 metres (5,410 ft) high plateau.Doğubayazıt was the capital of the province until 1946.[3] The currentgovernor is Mustafa Koç.[4]
46% of the province is mountainous, 29% is plain, 18% is plateau, and 7% high meadow. As well as Ararat there are many other peaks over 3,000m, includingMount Kösedağ, Aladağlar andTendürek. The plains are fertile, being covered in volcanic deposits, and are used for growing grains and grazing. Various tributaries of theMurat River (which later feeds theEuphrates) flow through the area and water these plains. The high meadows are used for grazing.
The weather here is very cold (average temperatures are around −10 °C (14 °F) in winter) and the mountainsides are mainly bare. There are a number of important passes and routes through the mountains.
The first Muslims in the area were theAbbasids in 872. The Turkish tribes began to pass through in huge numbers following the defeat of theByzantine armies atMalazgirt in 1071, sometimes pursued byMongols. The land was brought into theOttoman Empire by SultanSelim I following theBattle of Chaldiran. The region was part of theErzurum Vilayet during the Ottoman Empire.During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the province was the scene of theArmenian–Kurdish Conflicts in Ağrı, which reflected the tensions between Kurdish tribal groups, Armenian nationalists, and the weakening Ottoman authority.
This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(December 2021)
On August 19, 2006, theTabriz–Ankara gas pipeline exploded in the province. Turkish authorities suspected that KurdishPKK rebels were behind the incident.[21]
The economy is mainly agricultural. People also live by breeding animals. Ağrı attracts tourists to the mountains, for climbing and trekking in summers, and skiing in winters. Places of interest include:
^Law, Gwillim (2015-05-20).Administrative Subdivisions of Countries: A Comprehensive World Reference, 1900 through 1998. McFarland. p. 372.ISBN978-1-4766-0447-3.
^Myhill, John (2006).Language, Religion and National Identity in Europe and the Middle East: A historical study. Amsterdam: J. Benjamins. p. 32.ISBN978-90-272-9351-0.
^İsmail Soysal,Türkiye'nin Siyasal Andlaşmaları, I. Cilt (1920-1945), Türk Tarih Kurumu, 1983, p. 14.
^Verheij, Jelle (2012). Jongerden, Joost; Verheij, Jelle (eds.).Social Relations in Ottoman Diyarbekir, 1870–1915. Brill. p. 88.ISBN978-90-04-22518-3.
^Watts, Nicole F. (2010).Activists in Office: Kurdish Politics and Protest in Turkey (Studies in Modernity and National Identity). Seattle: University of Washington Press. p. 167.ISBN978-0-295-99050-7.
^Strohmeier, Martin (2003).Crucial Images in the Presentation of a Kurdish National Identity: Heroes and Patriots, Traitors and Foes. Brill. pp. 95–99.ISBN978-90-04-12584-1.
^Cagaptay, Soner (2006-05-02).Islam, Secularism and Nationalism in Modern Turkey: Who is a Turk?. Routledge. p. 24.ISBN978-1-134-17448-5.
^Bayir, Derya (2016-04-22).Minorities and Nationalism in Turkish Law. Routledge. pp. 139–141.ISBN978-1-317-09579-8.
^Fleet, Kate; Kunt, I. Metin; Kasaba, Reşat; Faroqhi, Suraiya (2008-04-17).The Cambridge History of Turkey. Cambridge University Press. p. 343.ISBN978-0-521-62096-3.
