Bandırma

Bandırma (from Greek: Πάνορμος, Panormos) is a city in northwestern Turkey with 143,000 inhabitants (2012 estimate) on the Sea of Marmara. Bandırma is a district of Balıkesir Province.

This article is about the district. For the Turkish ship, see SS Bandırma.
Bandırma
Town
Bandırma
Location of Bandırma
Coordinates: 40°21′N 27°58′E
Country Turkey
RegionMarmara
ProvinceBalikesir
Government
 • MayorTolga Tosun(CHP)
Area
 • District713.38 km2 (275.44 sq mi)
Elevation
20 m (70 ft)
Population
 (2012)[2]
 • Urban
122,010
 • District
139,874
 • District density200/km2 (510/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal code
10200 or 10220
Area code(s)(+90) 0266
Vehicle registration10
Websitewww.bandirma-bld.gov.tr

The city is a commercial centre and its harbour serves as a transit point for trade between Istanbul and İzmir. There is also agriculture produced in the surrounding areas, producing products like cereals, sheep wool and meat, cattle, grain and the mineral boracite.

The city has road and rail connections with other urban centres. Balıkesir which is province centre is 90 km, Istanbul is 100 km northeast (by boat), Bursa 100 km east, İzmir 270 km southwest and Çanakkale 170 km west. Also city has a seaport and military airport.

Bandırma's twin towns are Kamen, Germany, Tongxiang, China, and Mardin, Turkey.

History

The area was conquered by the Ottoman Empire from the Byzantine Empire in the 14th century.

The town, once known as Panderma, grew with the opening of the Izmir Railway in 1912. The port was active, and hosted steamships from throughout the world, including British and Greek ships. The city had intentions to build larger docks for large steamships.

When World War I started, construction halted.[3] In 1918 the last shot of World War I was fired in the city. A monument stands at the location of the shell fall.

Transportation

Bandırma is one of TCDD's main seaports, therefore the city sees much freight railroad traffic. Two passenger trains also operate from Bandırma to İzmir daily. These being the "6 Eylül Ekspresi", and the "17 Eylül Ekspresi". A new railway project will connect Bandırma with Bursa.[4] İDO also connects Bandırma with İstanbul, via ferry.[5] There is also a ferryboat from Tekirdag to Bandirma.

Education

There is one public university in Bandırma: Bandırma Onyedi Eylül University.

Population
population by years
year centrum villages total
2010 116319 18775 135094
2007 100248 11652 119000
1997 90719 113000
1990 77444 25816 103260
1985 70200 94000
1980 53497 80000
1975 45700
1970 39521
1965 33200
1960 28800
1950 19500
1927 10981
1891 9100

International relations
See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Turkey

Twin towns — Sister cities

Bandırma is twinned with:

Notable People from Bandırma

References
  1. "Area of regions (including lakes), km²". Regional Statistics Database. Turkish Statistical Institute. 2002. Retrieved 2013-03-05.
  2. "Population of province/district centers and towns/villages by districts - 2012". Address Based Population Registration System (ABPRS) Database. Turkish Statistical Institute. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  3. Prothero, G.W. (1920). Anatolia. London: H.M. Stationery Office.
  4. Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Devlet Demiryolları Archived 2013-07-20 at the Wayback Machine
  5. Inter-City Lines Archived 2013-06-03 at the Wayback Machine
  6. Sister/Twin Cities of Balıkesir Province
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.