TheGulf of Alexandretta orİskenderun (Turkish:İskenderun Körfezi) is agulf of theeastern Mediterranean orLevantine Sea. It lies beside the southernTurkishprovinces ofAdana andHatay.
The gulf is named for the nearbyTurkish city ofİskenderun, theclassicalAlexandretta. It was also formerly known as theSea or theGulf of Issus (Latin:Mare Issicum orIssicus Sinus)[1] (Ancient Greek:Ἰσσικὸς κόλπος).[2][3]Herodotus andStephanus of Byzantium[4] also records it as theMarandynian Bay (Ancient Greek:Μυριανδικὸς κόλπος), after the nearby town ofMyriandus.[5] Between the 9th and 12th centuries, the gulf was known as theArmenian Gulf[6] or theArmenian Bay (Armenian:Հայկական ծոց).[7]
The Gulf of Alexandretta forms the easternmostbay orinlet of theMediterranean Sea. It lies beside the southern coast of Turkey, near its border withSyria. In antiquity, the adjacentNur Mountains were usually thought to separate the regions ofCilicia andSyria, althoughHerodotus at one point places the division further south atRas al-Bassit (the classical Posidium).
There is a lot ofheavy industry around Iskenderun Bay, including five cement factories, ten steel factories, and threecoal-fired power stations:İsken Sugözü,Atlas andEmba Hunutlu. The mountains around the bay trap air pollution,[8] but because smokestack details are sent to the government unpublished, it is difficult to apportion responsibility for deaths and illnesses caused by air pollution in the area.[9] The water too is polluted by land-based, shipping and fish farming activities.[10]
| Black Sea |
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| Marmara | |
| Aegean | |
| Mediterranean | |
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36°45′N36°00′E / 36.750°N 36.000°E /36.750; 36.000
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