Bitlis Province
{{Short description|Province of Turkey}}
{{distinguish|Bitlis Vilayet}}
{{Infobox Turkey place
| type = province
| name =
| other_name = Bitlis ili
| image_skyline = Ancient tombstones in the historical cemetery of Selcuk Turks from 12th century, in the town of Ahlat, Turkey.jpg
| image_caption = View of the Tombstones of Ahlat
| image_shield =
| image_map = Bitlis in Turkey.svg
| map_caption = Location of the province within Turkey
| seat = Bitlis
| leader_name = Erol Karaömeroğlu
| area_footnotes =
| area_total_km2 = 8294
|leader_title=Governor| elevation_m =
| population_total = 353988
| population_as_of = 2022
| website = {{URL|http://www.bitlis.gov.tr/}}
| area_code = 0434
}}
Bitlis Province ({{langx|tr|{{italics correction|Bitlis ili}}}}; {{Langx|hy|Բաղեշի մարզ|translit=Bagheshi marz}};{{cite book|last=Hakobyan|first=Tadevos|url=http://armenianhouse.org/hakobyan-t/armenian-cities.html|publisher="Hayastan" Publishing|year=1987|location=Yerevan|page=98|language=hy|script-title=hy:Պատմական Հայաստանի քաղաքները|trans-title=Cities of historic Armenia|author-link=Tadevos Hakobyan}} {{langx|ku-Latn|Parêzgeha Bidlîsê}}){{Cite news|url=https://www.rudaw.net/kurmanci/kurdistan/190320191|title=Li Bidlîsê qedexeya derketina derve|date=19 March 2019|work=Rûadw|access-date=27 April 2020|language=ku}} is a province of eastern Turkey, located to the west of Lake Van. It takes its name from the central city, Bitlis. Its area is 8,294 km2,{{cite web|url=https://www.harita.gov.tr/uploads/files-folder/il_ilce_alanlari.xlsx|title=İl ve İlçe Yüz ölçümleri|publisher=General Directorate of Mapping|access-date=19 September 2023}} and its population is 353,988 (2022).{{Cite web |title=Address-based population registration system (ADNKS) results dated 31 December 2022, Favorite Reports|url=https://biruni.tuik.gov.tr/medas/?kn=95&locale=en |access-date=19 September 2023|publisher=TÜİK|language=en|format=XLS}} The province is considered part of Western Armenia by Armenians.Myhill, John (2006). Language, Religion and National Identity in Europe and the Middle East: A historical study. Amsterdam: J. Benjamins. p. 32. {{ISBN|978-90-272-9351-0}}. The province is considered part of Turkish Kurdistan and has a Kurdish majority.{{cite book|last=Watts|first=Nicole F.|title=Activists in Office: Kurdish Politics and Protest in Turkey (Studies in Modernity and National Identity)|date=2010|publisher=University of Washington Press|location=Seattle|isbn=978-0-295-99050-7|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=yXWl40KJfKEC&pg=PA167 167]}}{{Cite journal|date=2002|title=Kurds, Kurdistān|url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-2/kurds-kurdistan-COM_0544?s.num=167&s.start=100|journal=Encyclopaedia of Islam|edition=2|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-16121-4}} The current Governor of the province is Erol Karaömeroğlu.{{Cite web|url=http://www.bitlis.gov.tr/yoneticilerimiz|title=Yöneticilerimiz|publisher=Bitlis Valiliği|access-date=24 October 2023}}
Demographics
{{Historical populations
|align=left
|footnote=Source:Turkstat[https://biruni.tuik.gov.tr/nufusmenuapp/menu.zul Genel Nüfus Sayımları][https://kutuphane.tuik.gov.tr/yordambt/yordam.php Turkstat]{{cite web| url=https://data.tuik.gov.tr/Bulten/Index?p=Adrese-Dayali-Nufus-Kayit-Sistemi-Sonuclari-2020-37210 |title=The Results of Address Based Population Registration System, 2020 |publisher=Turkish Statistical Institute |access-date=7 December 2021 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211028044112/https://data.tuik.gov.tr/Bulten/Index?p=Adrese-Dayali-Nufus-Kayit-Sistemi-Sonuclari-2020-37210 |archive-date=2021-10-28}}
|1927|90,631
|1940|68,825
|1950|88,634
|1960|128,966
|1970|185,473
|1980|257,908
|1990|330,115
|2000|388,678
|2010|328,767
|2020|350,994
|percentages=pagr
}}
{{clear}}
History
The province was part of MoxoeneDiscoveries Among the Ruins of Nineveh and Babylon - Page 358 by Sir Austen Henry Layard, Austin Henry Layard of the Kingdom of Armenia. Before the Armenian genocide, the area was part of the Six Armenian Vilayets.İsmail Soysal, Türkiye'nin Siyasal Andlaşmaları, I. Cilt (1920-1945), Türk Tarih Kurumu, 1983, p. 14.Verheij, Jelle (2012). Jongerden, Joost; Verheij, Jelle (eds.). Social Relations in Ottoman Diyarbekir, 1870–1915. Brill. p. 88. {{ISBN|978-90-04-22518-3}}
The administrative center was the town of Bitlis which was called Bagesh, in old Armenian sources.Britannica: [https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/67211/Bitlis Bitlis]
In 1927 the office of the Inspector General was created, which governed with martial law.{{Cite book|last=Jongerden|first=Joost|title=The Settlement Issue in Turkey and the Kurds: An Analysis of Spatical Policies, Modernity and War|url=https://archive.org/details/settlementissuet00jong_169|url-access=limited|date=2007-01-01|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-15557-2|pages=[https://archive.org/details/settlementissuet00jong_169/page/n82 53]|language=en}} The Bitlis province was included in the first Inspectorate General (Umumi Müfettişlik, UM) over which the Inspector General ruled. The UM span over the provinces of Hakkâri, Siirt, Van, Mardin, Bitlis, Sanlıurfa, Elaziğ and Diyarbakır.{{Cite book|last=Bayir|first=Derya|title=Minorities and Nationalism in Turkish Law|date=2016-04-22|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-317-09579-8|pages=139|language=en}} The Inspectorate General was dissolved in 1952 during the Government of the Democrat Party.{{Cite book|last1=Fleet|first1=Kate|title=The Cambridge History of Turkey|last2=Kunt|first2=I. Metin|last3=Kasaba|first3=Reşat|last4=Faroqhi|first4=Suraiya|date=2008-04-17|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-62096-3|pages=343|language=en}}
Tourism
The main places with tourism potential in Bitlis are Lake Nemrut, Ahlat Seljuk Cemetery, Ahlat Museum, Mount Süphan, Güroymak Hot Springs and Lake Nazik.
Districts
Geology and geomorphology
The main lakes in Bitlis province are Lake Sodalı, Lake Nemrut, Lake Aygır, Lake Batmış and Lake Nazik.{{cite web |title=Bitlis'te yıldızların göllerle bütünleşmesi doğaseverleri mest ediyor|url=https://www.trthaber.com/foto-galeri/bitliste-yildizlarin-gollerle-butunlesmesi-dogaseverleri-mest-ediyor/60598/sayfa-1.html|website=trthaber.com|date=3 November 2023 |publisher=TRT Haber|page=1}}
Economy
As of 1920, the province was producing small amounts of iron, copper, lead, and sulphur. Even smaller amounts of gold and silver were found in the areas of Sairt and Khairwan. Salt made up the largest mineral industry in the province, so much that it was exported to surrounding provinces. The salt was produced in pans, using evaporation, and taking 8 to 10 days to mature. The technique and trade was mainly run by local Kurds.{{cite book|last=Prothero|first=W.G.|title=Armenia and Kurdistan|year=1920|publisher=H.M. Stationery Office|location=London|page=71|url=http://www.wdl.org/en/item/11768/view/1/71/}}
Attractions
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category|Bitlis Province}}
- [http://www.pbase.com/dosseman/bitlis_siirt Pictures of the city of Bitlis, the capital of Bitlis province - and of nearby Siirt]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20081207190007/http://www.turkeyforecast.com/weather/bitlis/ Bitlis Weather Forecast Information]
- [http://www.armeniapedia.org/index.php?title=Bitlis The Armenian History and Presence in Bitlis]
{{Districts of Turkey|provname=Bitlis}}
{{Provinces of Turkey}}
{{Authority control}}
{{coord|38|23|13|N|42|07|00|E|region:TR-13_type:adm1st|display=title}}