Aksaray (pronounced [ˈaksaɾaj], Koine Greek: Ἀρχελαΐς Arhelays, Medieval Greek: Κολώνεια Koloneya, Ancient Greek: Γαρσάουρα Garsaura) is a city in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey. It is the seat of Aksaray Province and Aksaray District.[3] Its population is 247,147 (2021).[2] In 2021 the province had an estimated population of 429,069 distributed over about 7,659 km2 (2,957 sq mi).[2][4] The average elevation is 980 m (3,215 ft), with the highest point being Mt. Hasan (Turkish: Hasan Dağı) at 3,253 m (10,673 ft).
Country
Turkey
Province
Aksaray
District
Aksaray
Population (2021)[2]
247,147
Time zone
TRT (UTC+3)
The city of Aksaray has a long history and was an important stopover point on the Silk Road that transited Anatolia for centuries. It is a pleasant mid-sized city with the Melendiz river running through it and several monuments dating back to the pre-Ottoman era as well as some impressive examples of government buildings from the early Turkish Republic that are gathered around the main square.
The nearest airport is Kapadokya Nevşehir Airport (NAV) which is 62.1 km away from the city.
First mentioned as Šinaḫuttum-Šinuhtu in ancient Hittite texts, and later Nenaşşa, (also spelled as Nenessa and Nenossós in Ancient Greek texts) and Kurşaura, The town of Garsaura was named Archelaïs (Greek: Ἀρχελαΐς) by Archelaus of Cappadocia, the last Cappadocian king. In Roman times, the town was known as Colonia (Κολώνεια). When Aksaray became part of the Seljuk Empire, its name was changed to Taksará and Aksará, which is a rendering of Garsáoura. Colonia was a bishopric and an important military centre, holding an imperial aplekton. Of its bishops, Euphrasius was at the First Council of Nicaea in 325; Bosporus (who is mentioned in the correspondence of Basil the Great and Gregory of Nazianzus) at the First Council of Constantinople in 381; Daniel at the Council of Ephesus in 431; Aristomachus (who was also a signatory of the letter of the bishops of the Roman province of Cappadocia Tertia, to which Colonia belonged, to Byzantine Emperor Leo I the Thracian about the killing of Proterius of Alexandria in 458) at the Council of Chalcedon in 451; Alexander at a council in Constantinople called by Patriarch Menas of Constantinople in 536; and Conon at the Trullan Council of 692.[5][6][7] No longer a residential bishopric, Colonia in Cappadocia is today listed by the Catholic Church as a titular see.[8] Colonia is also a titular Turkish metropolis of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.
International relations
See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Turkey
Aksaray is twinned with:
Ganja, Azerbaijan
Venice, Italy
Graz, Austria
Sankt Pölten, Austria
Lons-le-Saunier, France
Ajaccio, France
Hódmezővásárhely, Hungary
Osaka, Japan
Banska Bystrica, Slovakia
Košice, Slovakia
Slovenska Bistrica, Slovenia
Burgas, Bulgaria
Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russian Federation