Turkey's Geography: The Anatolian Peninsula Bridge

Turkey straddles two continents, but its heartland is the Anatolian Peninsula (Asia Minor).

Continental Split

• Asia (Anatolia): 97% of land area (756,000 km²). Central plateau, Pontic & Taurus Mountains, eastern highlands.
• Europe (East Thrace): 3% (23,000 km²). West of the Turkish Straits. Includes European Istanbul districts.

The Anatolian Peninsula

• Bounded by: Black Sea (north), Mediterranean (south), Aegean (west), Turkish Straits (northwest), Iranian/Armenian/Georgian borders (east).
• Geology: Active collision zone (Arabian + Eurasian plates). North & East Anatolian Faults = high earthquake risk.
• Climate Zones: Mediterranean coast, Continental interior (hot summers, cold winters), Black Sea temperate, Eastern alpine.

Strategic Waterways

The Turkish Straits (Bosporus, Sea of Marmara, Dardanelles) connect Black Sea to Mediterranean. Montreux Convention (1936) governs passage. Istanbul straddles the Bosporus—the only city on two continents.

Why "Anatolia" Matters

Anatolia = "Land of the Rising Sun" (Greek anatolē). Cradle of Çatalhöyük, Hittites, Phrygians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Seljuks, Ottomans. The peninsula is Turkey's geographic and historical core.