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If you say that Turkey is a Mediterranean country, you will be not wrong. Or, if you say that it is an Asiatic country –
either. Or a European country. Or a Balkan country. Or even a Caucasus country in its North Eastern territories. This is because
the territory of Turkey - 302,382 km2 (116,750 sq mi) lies between Europe and Asia and occupies geographies whose names have
been known since the antiquity.
Turkey is a country in Asia Minor: 97 % of its territory belongs to Anatolia, another
name for this most Western part of the Asian Continent. Turkey is also European Country, with part of its territory belonging
to the Balkans with its province of southern Thrace. Turkey is also a Mediterranean Country, with coasts on three other seas
– the Black Sea, the Aegean Sea and the Marmara Seas.
Turkey also has a lot of neighbors: in South Eastern
Europe: Bulgaria and Greece. In the Caucasus it borders with Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan. Middle Eastern neighbors are
Iran, Iraq and Syria.
With beautiful beaches and fecund valleys, Turkey also is a mountainous country – 85%
of its territory is elevated 450 meters above the sea level (almost 1,500 feet). The highest peak in Turkey is Mount Ararat
at 5,137 meters (16,854 ft) - a legendary peak sought by many as the place where the Ark of Noah would be found.
Turkey
is surrounded by sea on three sides, by the Black Sea in the north, the Mediterranean in the south and the Aegean Sea in the
west. In the northwest there is also an important internal sea, the Sea of Marmara, between the straits of the Dardanelles
and the Bosphorus. The total of Turkish coastline is 5000 miles.
Many fault lines in the region can be attributed in
the creation of the varied landscape found in Turkey. One fault line falls across northern Turkey and is the cause of frequent
tremors. Occasional volcanic eruptions also occur in Turkey. While these tectonic events are dangerous, Turkey would not have
the natural features it has now without it.
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