URFA

Urfa, the city of the prophets. Urfa is located in the southwest of Turkey near the Syrian border. Urfa showed great resistance during the British and French invasion in 1918-1920, and the city was named Great Urfa by the Turkish government in 1975. In ancient times, Urfa had been a crossroads between the middle east, Anatolia, Mesopotamia, and an important commerce city.

The city was under the control of many civilizations such as; Mesopotamia, Macedonia, Persian, Hittite, Roman, Seljuks, and the Ottoman Empires. It is believed that the Prophet Abraham, Jacob, Noah, Jetroh, Lot, Elisha, and Moses lived in Urfa. In ancient times, Urfa was known as Edessa, meaning in Illyrian “the water city.”

It was named after another Edessa, the ancient capital of Macedonia. Coins minted under Antiochus Epiphanes (175-164) referred to it as “Antioch by the Callirhoe,” that is, by the beautiful flowing water. Edessa emerged as the early center of Syriac Christianity in the east and became the literary capital of the Syriac world.

Urfa has many historical spots; Balıklı Göl (Fish Pools), Grand Mosque, Old City, and Gobekli Tepe. According to the latest research, Gobekli Tepe is the oldest settlement and temple in the world; its history goes back to 10,000 B.C.  Excavations are still going on to find out the secrets of Gobekli Tepe.

You can book Urfa Tour with Package Tour Turkey