Kütahya

Kütahya
Municipality

Kütahya Clock Tower

Location of Kütahya within Turkey.
Kütahya

Location of Kütahya within Turkey.

Coordinates: 39°25′N 29°59′E / 39.417°N 29.983°E / 39.417; 29.983Coordinates: 39°25′N 29°59′E / 39.417°N 29.983°E / 39.417; 29.983
Country  Turkey
Region Aegean
Province Kütahya
Area[1]
 • District 2,484.16 km2 (959.14 sq mi)
Population (2012)[2]
 • Urban 224,898
 • District 248,054
 • District density 100/km2 (260/sq mi)
Time zone EET (UTC+2)
 • Summer (DST) EEST (UTC+3)
Website www.kutahya.bel.tr

Kütahya (Turkish pronunciation: [cyˈtahja]) is a city in western Turkey with 237,804 inhabitants (2011 estimate), lying on the Porsuk river, at 969 metres above sea level. It is the capital of Kütahya Province, inhabited by some 564 294 people (2011 estimate). The region of Kütahya has large areas of gentle slopes with agricultural land culminating in high mountain ridges to the north and west. The city's Greek name was Kotyaion, Latinized in Roman times as Cotyaeum.[3]

History

Kütahya is remembered as Cotyaeum during classical times. It later became part of the Roman province of Phrygia Salutaris,[4] but in about 820 became the capital of the new province of Phrygia Salutaris III. Its bishopric thus changed from being a suffragan of Synnada to a metropolitan see, although with only three suffragan sees according to the Notitia Episcopatuum of Byzantine Emperor Leo VI the Wise (886-912), which is dated to around 901-902.[5] According to the 6th-century historian John Malalas, Cyrus of Panopolis, who had been prefect of the city of Constantinople, was sent there as bishop by Emperor Theodosius II (408-50), after four bishops of the city had been killed. Two other sources makes Cyrus bishop of Smyrna instead. The bishopric of Cotyaeum was headed in 431 by Domnius, who was at the Council of Ephesus, and in 451 by Marcianus, who was at the Council of Chalcedon. A source cited by Lequien says that a bishop of Cotyaeum named Eusebius was at the Second Council of Constantinople in 553. Cosmas was at the Third Council of Constantinople in 680–681. Ioannes, a deacon, represented an unnamed bishop of Cotyaeum at the Trullan Council in 692. Bishop Constantinus was at the Second Council of Nicaea in 692, and Bishop Anthimus at the Photian Council of Constantinople (879),[6][7][8] No longer a residential bishopric, Cotyaeum is today listed by the Catholic Church as a titular see.[9]

Under the reign of Byzantine Emperor Justinian I the town was fortified with a double-line of walls and citadel. In 1071 Cotyaeum (or Kotyaion) fell to the Seljuk Turks and later switched hands, falling successively to the Crusaders, Germiyanids, Timur-Leng (Tamerlane), until finally being incorporated into the Ottoman Empire in 1428. During this time a large number of Christian Armenians settled in Kotyaion/Kütahya, where they came to dominate the tile-making and ceramic ware production.[10] With this, Kütahya emerged as a renowned center for the Ottoman ceramic industry, producing tiles and faience for mosques, churches, and official buildings in places all over the Middle East.[11] It was initially center of Anatolia Eyalet till 1827, when Hüdavendigâr Eyalet was formed. It was later sanjak centre in Hüdavendigâr Vilayet in 1867. It was briefly occupied by troops of Ibrahim Pasha of Egypt in 1833.

At the end of the nineteenth century, Kütahya's population was counted at 120,333, of which 4,050 were Greeks, 2,533 Armenians, 754 Catholics, and the remainder Turks and other Muslims.[12] It is noteworthy that Kütahya and the district itself were spared the ravages of the Armenian Genocide of 1915, when the Turkish governor went to extreme lengths to protect the Armenian population from being uprooted and sent away on death marches.[12] Kütahya was occupied by Greek troops on 17 July 1921 after Battle of Kütahya–Eskişehir during Turkish War of Independence and captured in ruins after the Battle of Dumlupınar during the Great Offensive on 30 August 1922.

Economy

The industries of Kütahya have long traditions, going back to ancient times. Kütahya is famous for its kiln products, such as tiles and pottery, which are glazed and multicoloured.[13] Modern industries are sugar refining, tanning, nitrate processing and different products of meerschaum, which is extracted nearby. The local agricultural industry produces cereals, fruits and sugar beet. In addition stock raising is of much importance. Not far from Kütahya there are important mines extracting lignite.

Kütahya is linked by rail and road with Balıkesir 250 km (155 mi) to the west, Konya 450 km (280 mi) to the southeast, Eskişehir 70 km (43 mi) northeast and Ankara 300 km (186 mi) east.

Traditional ceramics

A small ewer, now in the British Museum, gave its name to a category of similar blue and white fritware pottery known as 'Abraham of Kütahya ware'. It has an inscription in Armenian script under the glaze on its base stating that it commemorated Abraham of Kütahya with a date of 1510.[14] In 1957 Arthur Lane published an influential article in which he reviewed the history of pottery production in the region and proposed that 'Abraham of Kütahya' ware was produced from 1490 until around 1525, 'Damascus' and 'Golden Horn' ware were produced from 1525 until 1555 and 'Rhodian' ware from around 1555 until the demise of the İznik pottery industry at the beginning of the 18th century. This chronology has been generally accepted.[15]

Climate

Kütahya has a warm summer continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dsb), with cold and snowy winters and warm and dry summers. Rainfall occurs mostly during the spring and autumn, but can be observed throughout the year.

Climate data for Kütahya
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 17.1
(62.8)		 20.6
(69.1)		 27.0
(80.6)		 30.2
(86.4)		 32.5
(90.5)		 36.2
(97.2)		 39.5
(103.1)		 38.8
(101.8)		 36.1
(97)		 31.2
(88.2)		 25.4
(77.7)		 21.7
(71.1)		 39.5
(103.1)
Average high °C (°F) 4.7
(40.5)		 6.5
(43.7)		 11.0
(51.8)		 16.2
(61.2)		 21.3
(70.3)		 25.2
(77.4)		 28.2
(82.8)		 28.5
(83.3)		 24.8
(76.6)		 19.0
(66.2)		 12.7
(54.9)		 6.6
(43.9)		 17.06
(62.72)
Daily mean °C (°F) 0.4
(32.7)		 1.7
(35.1)		 5.2
(41.4)		 10.0
(50)		 14.6
(58.3)		 18.4
(65.1)		 20.9
(69.6)		 20.6
(69.1)		 16.6
(61.9)		 11.8
(53.2)		 6.7
(44.1)		 2.6
(36.7)		 10.79
(51.43)
Average low °C (°F) −3.3
(26.1)		 −2.5
(27.5)		 0.0
(32)		 4.2
(39.6)		 7.9
(46.2)		 11.1
(52)		 13.4
(56.1)		 13.2
(55.8)		 9.4
(48.9)		 5.8
(42.4)		 1.8
(35.2)		 −0.8
(30.6)		 5.02
(41.03)
Record low °C (°F) −20.1
(−4.2)		 −22.9
(−9.2)		 −15.7
(3.7)		 −7.8
(18)		 −2.8
(27)		 1.9
(35.4)		 4.0
(39.2)		 3.3
(37.9)		 0.0
(32)		 −6.5
(20.3)		 −11.0
(12.2)		 −17.8
(0)		 −22.9
(−9.2)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 69.7
(2.744)		 59.1
(2.327)		 60.0
(2.362)		 55.3
(2.177)		 52.1
(2.051)		 34.3
(1.35)		 18.6
(0.732)		 14.4
(0.567)		 21.4
(0.843)		 42.1
(1.657)		 51.8
(2.039)		 85.4
(3.362)		 564.2
(22.211)
Average rainy days 14.3 12.8 12.9 13.0 11.8 7.1 4.4 3.9 4.8 8.8 10.7 14.2 118.7
Mean monthly sunshine hours 62 86.8 142.6 174 229.4 279 310 291.4 225 151.9 102 58.9 2,113
Source: Devlet Meteoroloji İşleri Genel Müdürlüğü [16]

Culture

Kütahya ceramics, Pitcher, second half of the 18th century

Kütahya's old neighbourhoods are dominated by traditional Ottoman houses made of wood and stucco, some of the best examples being found along Germiyan Caddesi. It has many historical mosques such as Ulu Camii, Cinili Camii, Balikli Camii and Donenler Camii. The Şengül Hamamı is a famous Turkish bath located in the city

The town preserves some ancient ruins, a Byzantine castle and church. During late centuries Kütahya has been renowned for its Turkish earthenware, of which fine specimens may be seen at the national capital. The Kütahya Museum has a fine collection of arts and cultural artifacts from the area.

The house where Hungarian statesman Lajos Kossuth lived in exile between 1850-1851 is preserved as a museum.

Education

The Main Campus and the Germiyan Campus of the Kütahya Dumlupınar University are located in the city.

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Kütahya is twinned with:

Notable people

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Area of regions (including lakes), km²". Regional Statistics Database. Turkish Statistical Institute. 2002. Retrieved 2013-03-05.
  2. ↑ "Population of province/district centers and towns/villages by districts - 2012". Address Based Population Registration System (ABPRS) Database. Turkish Statistical Institute. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  3. ↑ http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04422a.htm Catholic Encyclopaedia: Cotiaeum.
  4. ↑ Heinrich Gelzer, Ungedruckte und ungenügend veröffentlichte Texte der Notitiae episcopatuum, in: Abhandlungen der philosophisch-historische classe der bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1901, p. 540, nº 338.
  5. ↑ Gelzer, op. cit., p. 559, nnº 650-653.
  6. ↑ Michel Lequien, Oriens christianus in quatuor Patriarchatus digestus, Paris 1740, Vol. I, coll. 851-852
  7. ↑ Raymond Janin, v. Cotyaeum, in Dictionnaire d'Histoire et de Géographie ecclésiastiques, vol. XIII, Paris 1956, coll. 938-940
  8. ↑ Pius Bonifacius Gams, Series episcoporum Ecclesiae Catholicae, Leipzig 1931, p. 447
  9. ↑ Annuario Pontificio 2013 (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2013 ISBN 978-88-209-9070-1), p. 875
  10. ↑ Hovannisian, Richard G. and Armen Manuk-Khaloyan, "The Armenian Communities of Asia Minor," in Armenian Communities of Asia Minor, ed. Richard G. Hovannisian. UCLA Armenian History and Culture Series: Historic Armenian Cities and Provinces, 13. Costa Mesa, CA: Mazda Publishers, 2014, pp. 32-34.
  11. ↑ See Dickran Kouymjian, "The Role of Armenian Potters of Kutahia in the Ottoman Ceramic Industry," in Armenian Communities of Asia Minor, pp. 107-30.
  12. 1 2 Hovannisian and Manuk-Khaloyan, "The Armenian Communities of Asia Minor," p. 34.
  13. ↑ Henry Glassie, Turkish Traditional Art Today Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1993, pp. 435 ff.
  14. ↑ 'Abraham of Kütahya' ewer, British Museum Accession Code: G.1
  15. ↑ Nurhan Atasoy and Julian Raby (authors), Yanni Petsopoulos (editor) (1989). Iznik: The Pottery of Ottoman Turkey. London: Alexandria Press. ISBN 978-1-85669-054-6.
  16. ↑ http://www.dmi.gov.tr/veridegerlendirme/il-ve-ilceler-istatistik.aspx?m=KUTAHYA

Source and external links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kütahya.
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 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "article name needed". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton. 

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