Cappadocia is a region in Central
Anatolia in Turkey.
The area, known as Cappadocia, nowadays
mainly comprises the provinces of Nevsehir, Nigde, Aksaray, Kayseri
and Kırşehir. One of the most famous places is Goreme with its
carved out of the soft tuba cave architecture. Goreme is the center
of Cappadocia, who located there unique complex of rock formations
was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1985.
Another special
feature is a large number of underground cities, the most famous are
Kaymaklı and Derinkuyu, which were uncovered by archaeologists since
the 1960s. Other well-known towns are Urgup and Avanos.
The name Cappadocia comes from the Old Persian Katpatuka and means land of beautiful horses.
By tectonic movements in Central Anatolia, on the one hand surveys and depressions of the Valley floor on the other hand, the remaining lakes were drained over a large area, which led to a strong erosion continues to this day, which influences the geomorphology image of tough landscape of Cappadocia. As a result of erosion activities created the bizarre and unique shape of the landscape.
In early Christianity was an important bishopric. In church history, the three Cappadocian Fathers are known to come from this area and mainly lived there. Cappadocia was one of the most important early Christian centers. Until 1071, it was under Byzantine rule. More than 3,000 churches, that were discovered to this day bear witness to the Christian past, to the beginnings of the 20th Century had reached. The last Greek Orthodox Christians left the region in the context of the great population exchange between Turkey and Greece in the period from 1922 until 1924.
