Turkey (Empire Ottoman)

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Turkey (Empire Ottoman)

Continent : Europe
Group of countries : Méditerrannée orientale

Capital : Ankara
Population : 68.893.918 inhab.
Area : .770.760 Km²
Currency : Livre turque (T?rk Liras)

Background

Present-day Turkey was created in 1923 from the Turkish remnants of the Ottoman Empire. Soon thereafter, the country instituted secular laws to replace traditional religious fiats. In 1945 Turkey joined the UN, and in 1952 it became a member of NATO. Turkey intervened militarily on Cyprus in 1974 to protect Turkish Cypriots and prevent a Greek takeover of the island; the northern 37 percent of the island remains under Turkish Cypriot control. Relations between the Turkey and Greece have improved greatly over the past few years. In 1984, the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a Marxist-Leninist, separatist group, initiated an insurgency in southeast Turkey, often using terrorist tactics to try to attain its goal of an independent Kurdistan. The group - whose leader, Abdullah OCALAN, was captured in Kenya in February 1999 - has largely ceased violent attacks since it declared a unilateral cease-fire in September 1999. Nonetheless, occasional clashes have occurred between Turkish security forces and armed PKK militants, many of whom remain in northern Iraq. In April 2002, the PKK changed its name to the Kurdistan Freedom and Democracy Congress (KADEK). In November 2003, the group changed names again, becoming the Kurdistan People's Congress (KHK).

Geography

Strategic location controlling the Turkish Straits (Bosporus, Sea of Marmara, Dardanelles) that link Black and Aegean Seas; Mount Ararat, the legendary landing place of Noah's Ark, is in the far eastern portion of the country.
Location : southeastern Europe and southwestern Asia (that portion of Turkey west of the Bosporus is geographically part of Europe), bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Georgia, and bordering the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, between Greece and Syria.
Geographic coordinates : 39 00 N, 35 00 E. Map references : Middle East. Area : total : 780,580 sq km - land : 770,760 sq km - water : 9,820 sq km.
Land boundaries : total : 2,648 km. Border countries : Armenia 268 km, Azerbaijan 9 km, Bulgaria 240 km, Georgia 252 km, Greece 206 km, Iran 499 km, Iraq 352 km, Syria 822 km.
Coastline : 7,200 km.
Maritime claims : territorial sea : 6 nm in the Aegean Sea; 12 nm in Black Sea and in Mediterranean Sea.
Exclusive economic zone : in Black Sea only : to the maritime boundary agreed upon with the former USSR.
Climate : temperate; hot, dry summers with mild, wet winters; harsher in interior.
Terrain : high central plateau (Anatolia); narrow coastal plain; several mountain ranges
Elevation extremes : lowest point : Mediterranean Sea 0 m - Highest point : Mount Ararat 5,166 m
Natural resources : coal, iron ore, copper, chromium, antimony, mercury, gold, barite, borate, celestite (strontium), emery, feldspar, limestone, magnesite, marble, perlite, pumice, pyrites (sulfur), clay, arable land, hydropower.
Land use : arable land : 30.93% - permanent crops : 3.31% - other : 65.76% (2001)
Irrigated land : 42,000 sq km (1998 est.).
Natural hazards : very severe earthquakes, especially in northern Turkey, along an arc extending from the Sea of Marmara to Lake Van.
Environment - current issues : water pollution from dumping of chemicals and detergents; air pollution, particularly in urban areas; deforestation; concern for oil spills from increasing Bosporus ship traffic.

People

Population : 68,893,918 (July 2004 est.).
Age structure : 0-14 years : 26.6% (male 9,328,108; female 8,990,742).
15-64 years : 66.8% (male 23,394,465; female 22,650,532).
65 years and over : 6.6% (male 2,078,881; female 2,451,190) (2004 est.).
Median age : total : 27.3 years - male : 27.1 years - female : 27.5 years (2004 est.).
Population growth rate : 1.13% (2004 est.).
Birth rate : 17.22 births/1,000 population (2004 est.).
Death rate : 5.95 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.).
Sex ratio : at birth : 1.05 male(s)/female.
under 15 years : 1.04 male(s)/female.
15-64 years : 1.03 male(s)/female.
65 years and over : 0.85 male(s)/female.
total population : 1.02 male(s)/female (2004 est.).
Infant mortality rate : total : 42.62 deaths/1,000 live births - male : 46.3 deaths/1,000 live births - female : 38.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.).
Life expectancy at birth : total population : 72.08 years - male : 69.68 years - female : 74.61 years (2004 est.).
Total fertility rate : 1.98 children born/woman (2004 est.).
Ethnic groups : Turkish 80%, Kurdish 20% (estimated).
Religions : Muslim 99.8% (mostly Sunni), other 0.2% (mostly Christians and Jews).
Languages : Turkish (official), Kurdish, Arabic, Armenian, Greek.