Mardin

Mardin is a city in southeastern Turkey. The capital of Mardin Province, it is known for its Arab-style architecture, and for its strategic location on a rocky mountain overlooking the plains of northern Syria.

Related Topics:
Turkey - Mardin Province - Arab - Syria

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Early settlers in Mardin were Syriac Orthodox Christians, arriving in the third century. It remained a heavily Christian area during occupations by Muslim Arabs between the seventh and twelfth centuries, and even during its use as a capital by the Artukid Turcoman tribe between the twelfth and fourteenth centuries. This tribe fell to the Mongols in 1394, but the Mongols never governed the area closely.

Related Topics:
Syriac Orthodox - Christian - Muslim - Arab - Artukid Turcoman - Mongol

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Mardin became a part of the Ottoman Empire under Selim I in 1517, and remained a part of the Empire until its fall during World War I. The city was the site of a Kurdish rebellion in 1832. Many of Mardin's Christian inhabitants, descended from the early settlers, were killed or forced to leave during the Turkish War of Independence, and Christians now form a tiny minority in the city.

Related Topics:
Ottoman Empire - Selim I - World War I - Kurd - Turkish War of Independence

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