Tokat

File:Tokat Kale.jpg seen from below.]]

The city was established in the Hittite era. During the time of King Mithradates VI of Pontus, it was one of his many strongholds in Asia Minor.

Known as Evdokia or Eudoxia,{{efn|The town was called "Tokation", then it was renamed to Evdokia (Evdoksia), after Byzantine Emperor Heraclius' daughter, Eudoxia Epiphania.{{cite web |url=https://pontosworld.com/index.php/pontus/places/212-tokat-tokat |title=Tokat - Τοκάτη |website=pontosworld.com |date=5 February 2017 }}}} ecclesiastically it was later incorporated into the western part of the Byzantine Greek Empire of Trebizond.

File:Tokat Müzesi binasının dış görünümü.jpg.]]

Some authors like Guillaume de Jerphanion{{cite journal |last1=Grégoire |first1=Henri |title=Dazmana est bien Dazimon |journal=Byzantion |date=1935 |volume=10 |issue=2 |pages=760–3 |jstor=44169796 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/44169796 |access-date=4 February 2022}} and William Mitchell Ramsay{{cite book |last1=Ramsay |first1=William Mitchell |title=The Historical Geography of Asia Minor |date=1890 |location=London |pages=329–30 |url=https://archive.org/details/historicalgeogra01rams/page/n367 |access-date=4 February 2022}} identified Tokat with the ancient and medieval Dazimon, with Ramsay saying, "Dazimon, which seems to have been a fortress, must have been the modern Tokat, with its strong castle.

Henri Grégoire, on the other hand, refuted this as implausible, because a 13th-century text written by Ibn Bibi clearly distinguishes Dazimon and Tokat as separate places. Instead, he said, Tokat should be identified with the town of Dokeia ({{langx|el|Δόκεια}}) mentioned in another 10th-century text, by Theophanes Continuatus, which says that the Byzantine general John Kourkouas was born in a village near Dokeia sometime in the 9th century. According to Grégoire, the name "Dokeia" does not have a Greek etymology and probably represents an old Anatolian place name. The supposed derivation from "Eudokia", he claimed, is only a folk etymology that came much later.

After the Battle of Manzikert the town, like most of Asia Minor, came under the control of the Seljuk Turks. After the death of Sultan Suleiman ibn Qutulmish in 1086, the Emir Danishmend Gazi took control of the area, operating from his power base in the town of Sivas. It would be many decades before the Seljuks re-took control of that region, in the reign of Kilij Arslan II. After the Battle of Köse Dağ, Seljuk hold over the region was lost, and local Emirs such as the Eretna took power until the rise of the Ottomans, who captured the town in 1392 under Sultan Bayazid I.

File:Turkish and Azerbaijani flags in the Tokat Municipality Building (cropped).jpg and Azerbaijani flags on the Tokat Municipality Building.]]

Tokat has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate, or alternatively a continental climate (Köppen: Csa, Trewartha: Dc). Due to the relatively high altitude and inland location, winters are fairly cold with average lows below the freezing point and significant snowfall.

Highest recorded temperature:{{Convert|45.0|C|F|abbr=on}} on 30 July 2000
Lowest recorded temperature:{{Convert|-23.4|C|F|abbr=on}} on 20 January 1972{{cite web

| url = https://www.mgm.gov.tr/veridegerlendirme/il-ve-ilceler-istatistik.aspx?k=A&m=TOKAT | title = İllerimize Ait Genel İstatistik Verileri | publisher = Turkish State Meteorological Service| language = tr| access-date = 19 July 2024}}

{{Weather box

|metric first= Yes

|single line= Yes

|location= Tokat (1991–2020, extremes 1929–2023)

|width = auto

| Jan record high C = 21.9

| Feb record high C = 22.8

| Mar record high C = 31.1

| Apr record high C = 35.1

| May record high C = 37.2

| Jun record high C = 39.8

| Jul record high C = 45.0

| Aug record high C = 40.8

| Sep record high C = 40.7

| Oct record high C = 35.3

| Nov record high C = 30.8

| Dec record high C = 26.0

| year record high C = 45.0

| Jan high C = 6.5

| Feb high C = 8.8

| Mar high C = 13.8

| Apr high C = 19.4

| May high C = 24.1

| Jun high C = 27.6

| Jul high C = 30.2

| Aug high C = 30.9

| Sep high C = 27.4

| Oct high C = 21.5

| Nov high C = 13.6

| Dec high C = 8.0

| year high C = 19.3

| Jan mean C = 2.1

| Feb mean C = 3.6

| Mar mean C = 7.8

| Apr mean C = 12.6

| May mean C = 16.6

| Jun mean C = 20.1

| Jul mean C = 22.9

| Aug mean C = 23.3

| Sep mean C = 19.6

| Oct mean C = 14.6

| Nov mean C = 7.6

| Dec mean C = 3.7

| year mean C = 12.9

| Jan low C = -1.4

| Feb low C = -0.6

| Mar low C = 2.9

| Apr low C = 6.6

| May low C = 10.3

| Jun low C = 13.7

| Jul low C = 16.3

| Aug low C = 16.7

| Sep low C = 13.0

| Oct low C = 9.0

| Nov low C = 3.0

| Dec low C = 0.4

| year low C = 7.5

| Jan record low C = -23.4

| Feb record low C = -22.1

| Mar record low C = -21.2

| Apr record low C = -6.3

| May record low C = 0.0

| Jun record low C = 2.7

| Jul record low C = 6.1

| Aug record low C = 6.7

| Sep record low C = 2.4

| Oct record low C = -3.2

| Nov record low C = -11.8

| Dec record low C = -21.0

| year record low C = -23.4

| precipitation colour = green

| Jan precipitation mm = 41.1

| Feb precipitation mm = 33.8

| Mar precipitation mm = 45.8

| Apr precipitation mm = 52.5

| May precipitation mm = 61.7

| Jun precipitation mm = 40.4

| Jul precipitation mm = 12.7

| Aug precipitation mm = 10.1

| Sep precipitation mm = 18.2

| Oct precipitation mm = 41.4

| Nov precipitation mm = 43.1

| Dec precipitation mm = 42.1

| year precipitation mm = 442.9

| Jan precipitation days = 11.13

| Feb precipitation days = 10.5

| Mar precipitation days = 12.67

| Apr precipitation days = 12.47

| May precipitation days = 13.87

| Jun precipitation days = 9.17

| Jul precipitation days = 2.93

| Aug precipitation days = 2.73

| Sep precipitation days = 5.17

| Oct precipitation days = 8.33

| Nov precipitation days = 8.83

| Dec precipitation days = 11.6

| year precipitation days = 109.4

| Jan snow days =7.48

| Feb snow days =6.05

| Mar snow days =4.95

| Apr snow days =0.5

| May snow days =0

| Jun snow days =0

| Jul snow days =0

| Aug snow days =0

| Sep snow days =0

| Oct snow days =0.14

| Nov snow days =1.09

| Dec snow days =4.23

| year snow days =

| Jan humidity =71

| Feb humidity =65.5

| Mar humidity =60.8

| Apr humidity =58.9

| May humidity =62.3

| Jun humidity =61.2

| Jul humidity =57.9

| Aug humidity =58.4

| Sep humidity =59.9

| Oct humidity =65.7

| Nov humidity =71.1

| Dec humidity =73.6

| year humidity =

| Jan sun = 83.7

| Feb sun = 104.5

| Mar sun = 142.6

| Apr sun = 183.0

| May sun = 223.2

| Jun sun = 234.0

| Jul sun = 260.4

| Aug sun = 282.1

| Sep sun = 246.0

| Oct sun = 173.6

| Nov sun = 120.0

| Dec sun = 77.5

| year sun =

| Jand sun = 2.7

| Febd sun = 3.7

| Mard sun = 4.6

| Aprd sun = 6.1

| Mayd sun = 7.2

| Jund sun = 7.8

| Juld sun = 8.4

| Augd sun = 9.1

| Sepd sun = 8.2

| Octd sun = 5.6

| Novd sun = 4.0

| Decd sun = 2.5

| yeard sun = 5.9

|source 1 = Turkish State Meteorological Service{{cite web

| url = https://www.mgm.gov.tr/veridegerlendirme/il-ve-ilceler-istatistik.aspx?k=H&m=TOKAT

| title = Resmi İstatistikler: İllerimize Ait Mevism Normalleri (1991–2020)

| publisher = Turkish State Meteorological Service

| language = tr

| access-date = 7 August 2021}}

|source 2 = NOAA NCEI(humidity 2002-2023),{{Cite web |url=https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/data/oceans/archive/arc0216/0253808/4.4/data/0-data/Region-6-WMO-Normals-9120/Turkiye/CSV/Tokat_17086.csv |title=World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1991-2020: Tokat |access-date=19 July 2024 |website=ncei.noaa.gov |publisher=National Oceanic and Atmosoheric Administration |format=CSV |quote=WMO number: 17086}} Meteomanz(snowy days){{Cite web |url=http://www.meteomanz.com/sy3?l=1&cou=6290&ind=17086&m1=01&y1=2000&m2=07&y2=2024 |title=Tokat - Weather data by months |access-date= |website=meteomanz}}

}}

Historically, copper was mined in the area. According to Greek researcher, Dimosthenis Oeconomidis (1858–1938):

{{blockquote|The town was notorious for its textile industry and its copper manufacturing plants which were reliant on the Kempan Maden mine, a mine which has since been depleted but which in the prior century kept 600 factories in operation.|source=}}

File:Tokat Havalimanı Terminal Binası.jpg Terminal]]

File:Gaziosmanpaşa Üniversitesi Fen-Edebiyat Fakültesi binası.JPG Faculty of Arts and Sciences building.]]

Tokat Gaziosmanpaşa University is one of Turkey's newer tertiary institutions, founded in 1992. It was named after the local hero Gazi Osman Paşa.

{{See also|Category:Sport in Tokat}}

Football is the most popular sport: in the older districts above the city center children often kick balls around in the evenings in the smallest streets. The city's football club is Tokatspor, which plays its games at the Tokat Gaziosmanpaşa Stadium.

Basketball, volleyball, tennis, swimming, cable skiing (in summer), horse riding, go karting, paintballing, martial arts and many other sports are played. Cycling and jogging are only common along the sea front, where recreational fishing is also popular.

Image:Tokatkebap.JPG

Foods distinctive to Tokat include Tokat kebabı and Zile pekmezi, the latter being served in a wooden pot. Tokat kebabı consists of sliced lamb, aubergines, potatoes, green bell peppers and tomatoes. The slices are laid on their sides in rows in a dish and baked with cloves of garlic.{{YouTube |_krOBKf-IXk|Tokat Kebabı}} Zile pekmezi is a grape-molasses confection, prepared from a variety of small green grapes, which are pressed (traditionally by foot but nowadays by machine) and then evaporated to a thick syrup by boiling. Egg-whites are then beaten into the syrup until it forms a pale marshmallow-like paste. It is sold commercially in tubs.[http://zilehabercom.blogspot.in/2011/06/zile-pekmezi_19.html "Zile pekmezi"], Zile haber (Commerce of Zile), Tokat, Turkey (Turkish)

Image:Gök Medrese at Tokat.jpg in around 1270.]]

The most important landmark is Tokat Castle, an Ottoman citadel with 28 towers on a rocky hill overlooking the town. Vlad the Impaler, who may have inspired Bram Stoker's fictional character Count Dracula, was imprisoned in one of its dungeons.[http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/draculas-dungeon-discovered-by-archaeologists-tokat-castle-turkey-1467632 'Dracula's Dungeon' Discovered by Archaeologists at Tokat Castle in Turkey][http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/01/draculas-dungeon-found-turkey-tokat-castle_n_5907838.html Archaeologists In Turkey Say They've Discovered Dracula's Dungeon] Other sights include the remains of several Greek Orthodox churches and a cathedral, the Garipler Mosque dating to the 12th century, the Ali Paşa Mosque (16th century), the Hatuniye Külliyesi, also 16th century and the Gök Medrese (Pervane Bey Darussifasi), which was constructed in 1270. It was founded as a school of theology, and was converted into a museum, housing archaeological finds from the area, until that function was transferred in 2012 to another location.

File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque 2419.jpg|Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque

File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque 2423.jpg|Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque View along side

File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque 8117.jpg|Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque View along side

File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque 2421.jpg|Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque Entrance

File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque 2422.jpg|Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque Entrance

File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque 8127.jpg|Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque Interior

File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque 8128.jpg|Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque Interior

File:Tokat Ali Pasha Mausoleum 8124.jpg|Tokat Ali Pasha Mosque Mausoleum

The Latifoglu Konak, a late 18th-century Ottoman residence, is an example of Baroque architecture. The two-story building has been restored and has been converted into a small museum. Much of the furniture in the kitchen, study, visitors' rooms with bath and toilet, bedroom, master's room, and harem is original.

Ballıca Cave is a small cave situated at 6 km (3.8 mi) southeast of Pazar, Tokat Province.

File:Ballıca_Cave_1933.jpg|Ballıca Cave Image

File:Ballıca Han 2021.jpg|Ballıca Han Door decoration

File:Ballıca Han 2027.jpg|Ballıca Han Decoration at entrance

File:Ballıca Han 2025.jpg|Ballıca Han View into closed courtyard

File:Ballıca Han 2026.jpg|Ballıca Han Exterior wall

File:Tokat Saat Kulesi.jpg|Tokat Clock Tower.

• 1984-1989 Hüdayi Sayıbaş ANAP
• 1989-1994 İsmet Saraçoğlu DYP
• 1994-2004 Nizamettin Aydın Refah Party, Fazilet Partisi, DYP, Saadet Party
• 2004-2014 Adnan Çiçek AK Party
• 2014-2024 Eyüp Eroğlu AK Party
• 2024-present Mehmet Kemal Yazıcıoğlu MHP

File:Gazi_Osman_Paşa_Heykeli.JPG in Tokat]]

• Apkar Tebir Tokhatetsi (1520?–1572?), Armenian printer and typographer
• Gazi Osman Paşa (1832–1897), Ottoman commander
• Symeon Savvidis (1859–1927), Greek painter
• Mehmet Emin Tokadi Hazretleri (1664–1745), Sufi saint of Istanbul
• Krikor Balakian (1875–1934), Armenian bishop
• Cahit Külebi (1917–1997), Turkish poet
• Engin Günaydın (born 1972), Turkish actor and comedian
• Hüseyin Akbaş (1933–1989), Turkish World and Olympic Champion in wrestling
• Seda Sayan (born 1964), Turkish pop folk singer, actress and TV variety-show hostess
• Aziz Kocaoğlu (born 1948), mayor and politician.

Tokat is twinned with:

• Tokat Airport
• Tokat (electoral district)
• Tokat Province
• Rûm Eyalet

{{notelist}}

{{reflist}}

{{Commons|Tokat}}

• [http://www.kultur.gov.tr/EN,34697/tokat.html Tokat] at kultur.gov.tr
• [http://www.tokat.com Tokat web news]

{{Tokat District}}

{{Portal bar|Turkey|Geography}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Provincial municipalities in Turkey

Category:Former Armenian Catholic eparchies

Category:History of Tokat Province

Category:Populated places in Tokat District