A country at the cross-roads of the world, Turkey straddles two continents and is “one of the few places in the world that has been continuously inhabited since the dawn of mankind.” (ECSS) For most of the second millennium A.D., the land known as Turkey was the center of the massive Ottoman Empire. The empire was named for the House of Osman which ruled it. After a brief occupation following World War I, the Turkish War of Independence ended the Sultanate and established the Republic of Turkey, named for the Turk people and led by the Turks’ national hero Mustafa Kemal.
National Holidays:
New Year’s Day / Yılbaşı (January 1)
Children’s Day (April 23)
Labour Day (May 1)
Ataturk Day and Youth & Sports Day / (May 19)
Victory Day / Zafer Bayrami (August 30)
Republic Day / Cumhuriyet Bayrami (October 29)
Eid al-Fitr (Ramazan or Seker Bayrami)/ Ramadan Feast
Eid al-Adha (Kurban Bayrami) / Feast of the Sacrifice
Other Religious Holidays:
Laylatul-Qadr / Night of Destiny (27th of Ramadan)
Laylatul-Mi’raj / Night of the Ascension (27th of Rajab)
Other Holidays:
Victory at Canakkale (March 18)
Noruz (March 20-21)
Day of Hıdırellez (May 6)
Anniversaries:
Day of Conquest (May 29)
Turkey Facts:
Housed two of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
Housed all seven of the ancient temples mentioned in Revelation
Site of the “first city” – Catalhoyuk
Mount Arafat – Believed to be the home of “Noah’s Ark”
First coined money discovered there
