Rize (Turkish pronunciation:[ɾi'ze];Greek:Ριζούντα,romanized: Rizoúnta;Laz:რიზინი,romanized: Rizini;Georgian:რიზე) is a coastal city in the eastern part of theBlack Sea Region of Turkey. It is the seat ofRize Province andRize District.[2] Its population is 346,977 (2024).[1] Rize is a typical Turkish provincial capital with little in the way of nightlife or entertainment.[citation needed] Since the border with Georgia was opened in the early 1990s, the Black Sea coast road has been widened and the town is much wealthier than it used to be. Current Turkish PresidentRecep Tayyip Erdoğan's family has its roots in Rize and thelocal university is named after him. The city is linked by road withTrabzon (41 miles [66 km] west),Hopa (55 miles [88 km] east on theGeorgian border, andErzurum (south). TheRize–Artvin Airport started operating in 2022.
The name comes fromGreekρίζα (riza) or Ριζαίον (Rizaion)[citation needed], meaning "mountain slopes" (ρίζα in Greek means root).[3] In modern times, its Greek name was usually Ριζούντα (Rizunda). Its Latin forms are Rhizus and Rhizaeum, the latter of which is used in theCatholic Church's list oftitular sees as the name ofbishopric of the town, which was once part of the lateRoman province ofPontus Polemoniacus[4]).
Other names (17th – 19th c.): Rizeh, Riseh, Rhizium, Irizeh, Irissa; used in trade or by merchants.[5][6][7][8][9]
Arrian was the first writer to mention Rize. In hisPeriplus of the Euxine Sea,[10] he described it as a city founded at the mouth of the river of the same name, theancient andByzantine ῾Ρίζιος ποταμός.[11] Dated to 130–131AD and written as a letter to Roman EmperorHadrian, the work records how its author, the governor ofCappadocia, made a tour of the EasternBlack Sea territories that formed part of his jurisdiction, first visiting the Roman Empire's EasternAnatolian frontier garrisons before pushing on to the Black Sea coast in theTrabzon (Trebizond) region.[12]The city of Rize formed part of the historic Georgian province of Chaneti (Georgian:ჭანეთი).
The city is built around a small bay on theBlack Sea coast, on a narrow strip of flat land between the sea and the mountains behind. The coastal strip is being expanded with landfill and the city is expanding up the steep hillsides away from the coast.
Rize is probably best known for itsblack tea which was introduced to the region in the 1940s and 1950s, changing the destiny of a region which was until then desperately poor.[13] The local tea research institute was founded in 1958 and other tea gardens can be seen all around the town.Tea is even planted in local gardens. Rize is a centre for processing and shipping locally grownRize Tea. More recentlykiwifruit plants have also been grown in Rize. Fishing remains another important local source of income.
Tourism to destinations in and around Rize is growing in importance.
Rize has ahumid subtropical climate (Köppen:Cfa, Trewartha:Cf). However, as any mountainous region of Turkey, it is rich in climatic variety. The climate turnsoceanic (Cfb) on the hillsides,continental (Dfb/Dc) andsubarctic (Dfc/Eo) on the mountain slopes and in theyaylas, the highlands and highland plateaus.[14] When theKöppen climate classification was being created, the city centre had a borderline oceanic-humid subtropical climate, falling just under the 22 °C (72 °F) threshold for the hottest month of the year, yetclimate change andglobal warming have contributed to the city being classified as humid subtropical in recent decades.[15]
The city's climate is defined by mild temperate conditions, with warm summers, cool winters and heavy rainfall year-round with a maximum in late autumn (October to December). The city has relatively few sunshine hours, lower than many stereotypically cloudy locations in Western Europe. Snowfall is somewhat common between the months of December and March, snowing for a week or two, and it can be heavy once it snows (this is due to the "lake-effect snow"). The heaviest recorded snowfall in the city center was 187 cm (73.6 inches), recorded on 6 January 1942.[16] The water temperature, typical for the Black Sea coast, is never too warm or cold, fluctuating between 8 and 20 °C (46 and 68 °F) throughout the year.
Climate data for Rize (1991–2020, extremes 1928–2023)
Historically, Rize greworanges. However, weather destroyed the crops in the early 20th century, and the industry declined.[19] The area also produced small amounts ofmanganese.[20]
Rize's economic structure is primarily based on its geographic location since it is in a very mountainous location, making industrial development impractical. Given the lack of rail transit, most goods have to travel by truck or ship, which makes exporting and importing difficult. Rize's primary trading partner isTrabzon, the most developed city of the northeast Black Sea region. Rize's main exports are agriculturally based;tea and kiwifruit are among its most popular commodities.[21] In particular the state-owned tea companyÇaykur is based in Rize.
^"Irizeh".Complément du dictionnaire de l'Académie française [Supplement to the dictionary of the French Academy] (in French). Paris: Firmin Didot Frères. 1842. p. 631.
^The Periplus of the Euxine Sea. Oxford: sold by J. Cooke; and by Messrs. Cadell and Davies Strand, London. 1805. Note: Arrian only mentions the River Rhizius, not any settlement by that name. It is quoted as being to the east of the river Ophis after the rivers Psychrus and Calus.
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