Turkey (Türkiye in Turkish) is a country located at a point where the 3 continents of the old world (Asia, Africa and Europe) are closest to each other and where Asia and Europe meet. Because of its geographical location, Anatolia has always been important throughout history and is the birthplace of many great civilizations. Turkey is rectangular in shape with a length of 1.660 km and a width of 550km. The surface area of Turkey including the lakes is 814,578 km2. It is much larger than many European countries. Out of the total land 97% is in Asia and this part is called Anatolia or Asia Minor; 3% is in Europe which is called Thrace. Although 97% turkey is located in Asia, in many respects it is accepted as a European country and as a result. Turkey takes its place in nearly all European contents and associations.

Turkish tulips in the Garden of  Topkapı Palace