Kars Province (Turkish:Kars ili;Azerbaijani: Qars Rayonu;Kurdish:Parêzgeha Qersê;[2]Armenian:Կարսի նահանգ[3]) is aprovince ofTurkey, located in the northeastern part of the country. It shares part of its closed border withArmenia. Its area is 10,193 km2,[4] and its population is 274,829 (2022).[1] The provincial capital is the city ofKars. The provinces ofArdahan andIğdır were part of Kars Province until 1992.[5][6]
History
In ancient times, Kars (Armenian:Կարս) was part of the province of Ararat in theKingdom of Armenia. The first known people were the followers of Vanand (Վանանդ), for whom Kars was their main settlement and fortress. In 928, Kars became the capital ofBagratid Armenia. In 968, the capital of Armenia was moved toAni, but Kars remained the capital of the feudal principality ofVanand.
TheSeljuks quickly relinquished direct control over Kars and it became a small emirate whose territory corresponded closely to that of Vanand, and which bordered the similarly created but largerShaddadid emirate centered at Ani. The Kars emirate was a vassal of theSaltukids in Erzurum, whose forces were effective in opposingGeorgian attempts at seizing Kars. Later on, in 1207, Georgian and Armenian forces commanded byDavid Soslan and brothersIvane andZakare Zakarian-Mkhargrzeli captured Kars after a long siege. It was a part of Zakarid Armenia, principality under rule of Zakarians–Mkhargrdzeli, vassals of Bagrationi dynasty of Georgia.George IV son ofTamar, was appointed as aviceroy of Kars[citation needed]. It was conquered in 1242 by theMongols; was regained by Georgian Kingdom during the reign ofGeorge V the Brilliant (1314–1346) and remained as part of the Kingdom before its disintegration, which then passed into the hands ofGeorgian Atabegs belonging to theHouse of Jaqeli[citation needed]. During the rule of the Persian Empire and theOttoman Empire, the fortress of Kars, located in what was then the eastern part of the city, fell into disrepair. However, as Kars was within a border region its defensive structures were often renewed, and they continued to advance to such a degree, that in the 19th century Kars was well known around the world as a castle.
As a result of theRusso-Turkish War of 1877 to 1878, the province of Kars was incorporated into theRussian Empire as part of the militarily administeredKars Oblast and remained so until 1918. It was seen as a border province of a Russian Empire which was seeking to expand yet further by the conquest of more territory belonging to the Ottoman Empire.[7] The period from 1878 to 1918 was marked in the province of Kars by the settlement by the Russian authorities of a very heterogeneous mix of Christian populations, includingArmenians,Caucasus Greeks,Russians,Georgians[citation needed], and even smaller numbers from other Christian communities hitherto with little or no historical links to the region, such asethnic Germans,Poles,Estonians,Lithuanians, and Russian sectarian communities such asMolokans andDoukhobors. Many from the non-Russian Christian Orthodox communities (Georgians, Caucasus Greeks, and the minority of Armenians who were Lessor Orthodox) had themselves fought in or collaborated with the Russian Imperial army to capture Kars province from the Muslim Ottomans. They saw this as a means of fulfilling their own ambitions to recapture Christian territory on the back of the Russian imperial enterprise.[7][verification needed]
As a part of Turkey
In September 1935 the thirdInspectorate General (Umumi Müfettişlik, UM) was created.[8] The Inspectorates Generals regions ruled with wide-ranging authority over the population in order toTurkify its population.[9] The third UM span over the provinces ofErzurum,Artvin,Rize,Trabzon, KarsGümüşhane,Erzincan andAğrı. It was governed by an Inspector General seated in the city ofErzurum.[8][10] The Inspectorate General was dissolved in 1952 during the Government of theDemocrat Party.[11]
Kars has a wealth of wildlife that is being documented by the Kars-Iğdır Biodiversity Project run by theKuzeyDoğa Society.[17] The project has recorded 356 of Turkey's 486 bird species in the region, including Ardahan and Iğdır provinces that were formerly part of Kars. At least 233 of these occur atLake Kuyucuk,[18] that is the most important wetland in the region. Sarıkamış Forests in the south harborIndian wolves,Syrian brown bear,Caucasian lynx and other animals, and Aras (Araxes) River wetlands comprise a key stop-over site for many migrating birds. Aras River Bird Research and Education Center at Yukarı Cıyrıklı village has recorded 303 bird species at this single location alone.
Economy
The economy of Kars Province is dominated by agriculture, livestock breeding and forestry. 85% of the active population in Kars Province are farmers or herders. 60% of thegross domestic income is received from those sectors. Industry, tourism and commerce is developing.[19]
The climate limits the cultivation of plants in the region. InKağızman andTuzluca, cotton, sugar beet, beans and vetches are grown. Vegetable gardening and orchards are not very developed. Wheat, barley, cotton and in small quantity tobacco are grown in the province.[19]
Livestock breeding in the region is more important than agriculture. Grassland, meadows and the rich vegetation led to the development of livestock breeding. The grassland and meadows, which make out 70% of the area of Kars Province, are capable of providing at least ten times of the current livestock potential's breeding. Kars is the biggest cattle breeding province in Turkey, and is the center of livestock trade.[19] Efforts are being made to increase goose breeding, which is very special to Kars region. Aside its meat taking a special place in the Kars cuisine,goose liver anddown feather started already to be exported toEurope.[20][21]
Kars Province is not abundant with woods although the region is favorable for forests. Only 4% of the province area is covered with woods.Scots Pine,spruce andalder are the tree species most found in the woods of Kars. Around 15,000 m3 (530,000 cu ft) timber is produced by logging in forestry.[19]
Kars contains numerous monuments, the most notable being the ruinedArmenian city ofAni and the 9th century Church of the Apostles.
In popular culture
Kars was the setting for the popular novelSnow byOrhan Pamuk.
The Siege of Kars, 1855 is a book published by The Stationery Office, 2000, and is an account of its defence and capitulation as reported by one General Williams, one of many British officers lent to the Turkish army to lead garrisons and train regiments in the war against Russia.
In the book,Life and Times of Alexis Zorbas byNikos Kazantzakis, Zorbas talks about his visit to the Kars province in order to find work and where he also attended an extravagant wedding in Kars.
^Bayir, Derya (22 April 2016).Minorities and Nationalism in Turkish Law. Routledge. pp. 139–141.ISBN978-1-317-09579-8.
^Fleet, Kate; Kunt, I. Metin; Kasaba, Reşat; Faroqhi, Suraiya (17 April 2008).The Cambridge History of Turkey. Cambridge University Press. p. 343.ISBN978-0-521-62096-3.
^Fuat Dündar (2000).Türkiye Nüfus Sayımlarında Azınlıklar (in Turkish). Civiyazilari.ISBN97 5-80 86-77-4.
^Georg Kobro (1991).Das Gebiet von Kars und Ardahan (in German). Munich.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^Кавказский календарь на 1917 год [Caucasian calendar for 1917] (in Russian) (72nd ed.). Tiflis: Tipografiya kantselyarii Ye.I.V. na Kavkaze, kazenny dom. 1917. pp. 198–201. Archived fromthe original on 4 November 2021.
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