Ürgüp

Description

There is no place in the world more strange and interesting than this.
Charles Texier

We can say that Ürgüp is the first center where tourism started and developed in Cappadocia. Ürgüp is an important center in Cappadocia tourism because of its geographical location, its lively and outward-looking sociological structure, its liveliness in commercial matters with its surroundings, and its direct effects on the tourism process in Cappadocia.

Etymology

Although there is no clear opinion about the first name of Ürgüp, it is the subject of the thesis that the name given in the earliest period is Tomissos. The name given according to the records of the Roman Empire period was Osiana (Assiana), ( Bulgut Castle), together with the Byzantines, it was called Prokopi (Prokopios), Başhisar during the Seljuk Empire, and Burgut Castle during the Ottoman Empire. It took the name Ürgüp together with the Republic of Turkey.

Geography

It is the center located in a narrow and rocky area between Başhisar Castle, Kadıkalesi and Burhan Castle in Ürgüp. Its height from the sea is 1050 meters. Its villages and center have a rugged rocky terrain.

Nevşehir is located in the west, and its distance from Ürgüp is 20 km; If you come to Ürgüp from this direction, the Three Beauties Fairy Chimney, the symbol of Cappadocia, welcomes you. To the east is İncesu and 60 km to Kayseri, 10 km to the north is the Kızılırmak, Turkey’s longest river, which divides the Avanos district into two.

Mustafapaşa (Sinasos), Ortahisar are the most important centers of Ürgüp.

Ürgüp, which does not have a lot of fertile and flat land, has come to the fore with its trade throughout history. Today, with the development of tourism, the main source of income in the center and in certain touristic villages and towns connected to the center has been tourism.

History The history of Ürgüp and its surroundings dates back to the Neolithic period. Although not many historical findings were found from the ancient ruins on the top of Ürgüp Avlaga Mountain, it constitutes the oldest settlement date of the Ürgüp region in terms of its dating. Sobesos, which is more concrete and the only mosaic-built ancient settlement discovered in the Cappadocia region, is also located within the borders of Ürgüp. All the great civilizations that have been in Anatolia throughout history have interacted with the Ürgüp region, conquered or passed through this region. Hittites, Assyrian Trade Colonies, Persian Empire, Alexander the Great, Alexander the Great also left their commander Ariarrathes to administer this region while passing through this region, and Ariarrathes established the Kingdom of Cappadocia in the region in 323 BC. During the kingdom period, Ürgüp experienced one of its most vibrant periods. It is estimated that the population of Ürgüp in this period was between 25 and 30 thousand. After the Roman Empire dominated the region, it became one of the extreme provinces of Rome, especially with the spread of Christianity after Christ, during the transition of Rome from paganism to Christianity, the Christians who escaped from Roman persecution took refuge in the Cappadocia region and made this region a center of life and belief. There are some of these important churches in and around Ürgüp. This structuring continued in the Byzantine period. Ürgüp lived its dominant and vibrant period in another region during the Seljuk Empire, this region served as an important defense fortress for the Seljuks. With the Ottomans, Ürgüp became a common life and trade center for both Muslims and Christians. There were many people who went to work in the Ottoman palace from Ürgüp due to the fact that they must have been developed in trade, open to interaction, and inefficient and insufficient agricultural lands, and we can still see their cultural traces in the local right of Ürgüp. Until the time of the Ottoman Grand Vizier, Nevşehirli (the status of Nevşehir was a village) Damat İbrahim Pasha, Ürgüp was the center of the region, while the Ottoman district judge resides in Ürgüp. Damat İbrahim suggested that Ürgüp Kadi be moved to Nevşehir in return for solving the water problem of Ürgüp, and he accepted this agreement because there was an important problem in Ürgüp. The distribution of these brought waters to the districts of Ürgüp was provided by street fountains, and inscriptions written by Poet Nedime, one of the important poets of the Ottoman and his period, were placed on these fountains. In the period of the Republic of Turkey, the population and vitality of Ürgüp decreased as the Christian people living in the region were taken to the Balkans during the population exchange with the Balkan countries. With the tourism industry that started after the 1980s, it became an important and lively center of the region again.

Three Beauties

If you are coming to Ürgüp via Nevşehir, three beautiful fairy chimneys formed as a result of volcanic eruptions, also called Üç Güzeller or Çatalkaya, which have become the symbol of the Cappadocia region, greet you at the entrance. Mount Erciyes, which is the highest volcanic mountain of the region that appears just behind these fairy chimneys, and with the lights, offers a fascinating view during the night, especially during the full moon. Temenni Hill: When you come to the center of Ürgüp, the first place that will catch your eye will be the hill of wishing. The reason why this hill is called wishing (to wish, to wish) was given this name because it has been accepted as a sacred area for centuries, including pagan times, and because it is a place of dedication. There are some tombs on the hill. One of them is the Seljuk Sultan III. Alaeddin Keykubad, the other's IV. If it is stated that they belong to Rükneddin Kılıçaslan, these tombs are symbolic tombs built later. There is also a square-planned domed building, which was built in 1855 and is still referred to as the library. This building is worth a museum where beverages are served and old photographs of Ürgüp are exhibited. While watching Ürgüp from a bird's eye view, you can enjoy the city with a nice Turkish coffee made here.

Urgup Museum

There are many artifacts belonging to different civilizations in the region. Among these finds are works belonging to the Old Bronze, Hittite, Phrygian, Persian, Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine periods. In addition, a mammoth tusk fossil and ethnographic artifacts dating back ten million years ago are exhibited.

Tagar (Saint Theodoros) Church

It is located in Yeşilöz Village, approximately 10 kilometers southeast of Ürgüp. This church, which has the most contradictory architecture of Cappadocia, is a church with three apses and a three-clover-leaf plan, which is not an example among rock-cut churches in the region. It is a monumental building with its incredible dimensions and height. It is one of the most interesting works of Cappadocia with its sitting styles, its gallery carved for women and its unique iconographic features. In the Deesis scene in the main apse, Jesus, making a sign of blessing with his right hand, is holding a closed book with a cross motif in his left hand. On the right of Jesus sitting on the throne is Mary, on his left John the Baptist, as well as two archangels Michael and Gabriela, dressed in imperial clothes. There are five black star motifs in the round medallion on the crusader halo of Jesus. In the lower part of the semi-circular apse, which is separated from the Deesis scene by a horizontal band, seven of the nine figures standing side by side and understood to be bishops by their clothes are identified. These are St. Germanios, St. Balsios, St. Epiphanios, St. Gregorius, St. Basileios, St. Epiphanios, St. John Krysostomos. Apart from this, there are scenes such as the birth, the Crucifixion and the Annunciation. It is one of the two rock-carved churches with a gallery dedicated to women in the Cappadocia region.