Anatolia

Table of Contents

Introduction & Top Questions
Ancient Anatolia
- Prehistoric cultures of Anatolia
  - The Neolithic Period
  - The Chalcolithic Period
  - Early Bronze Age
  - Middle Bronze Age
- The rise and fall of the Hittites
  - The Hittite occupation of Anatolia
  - The Old Hittite Kingdom
  - The Middle Kingdom
  - The Hittite empire to c. 1180 bce
- Anatolia from the end of the Hittite Empire to the Achaemenian Period
  - Phrygia from c. 1180 to 700 bce
  - The neo-Hittite states from c. 1180 to 700 bce
  - The Cimmerians, Lydia, and Cilicia, c. 700–547 bce
  - Greek colonies on the Anatolian coasts, c. 1180–547 bce
- Anatolia in the Achaemenian and Hellenistic periods
  - Diversity of cultural influences
  - The Anatolian Greeks in the Achaemenian period
  - Caria, Lycia, and Cilicia in the Achaemenian period
  - Anatolia in the Hellenistic Age (334–c. 30 bce)
Roman, Byzantine, and Seljuq rule
- Anatolia in the later Roman and Byzantine periods
  - Administration and settlement patterns
  - War and social dislocation
  - Late Byzantine rule
- The Seljuqs of Anatolia
  - Origins and ascendancy
  - Seljuq expansion
  - Division and decline

References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics

Images

archaeological sites of Anatolia and northern Syria

This map shows the territorial expansion of the Ottoman Empire from 1300 to its greatest extent in 1683-99, highlighting different periods under rulers such as Mehmed II, Selim I, and Süleyman the Magnificent, and marking key cities, seas, and geographical boundaries in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East.

For Students

Anatolia summary

Anatolia

Q: Where is Anatolia located?

Anatolia, also called Asia Minor, is the peninsula of land that today constitutes the Asian portion of Turkey. In geographic terms Anatolia may be described as the area in southwestern Asia bounded to the north by the Black Sea, to the east and south by the Southeastern Taurus Mountains and the Mediterranean Sea, and to the west by the Aegean Sea and Sea of Marmara.

Q: When did the Mongols rule Anatolia?

In 1243 the Seljuq sultan Ghiyās̄ al-Dīn Kay-Khusraw II was crushed by the Mongol commander Bayjū at Köse Dağ between Sivas and Erzincan, and the Anatolian Seljuqs became vassals to the Mongols. In 1335 Mongol power collapsed, clearing the way for the political fragmentation of the beylik (principality) period in Anatolia and the rise of the Ottoman Empire.

Q: When did the Phrygians arrive in Anatolia?

Greek tradition usually dates the migration of the Phrygians to Anatolia from Europe to roughly the period of the Trojan War in the early 12th century BCE.

Q: When did Anatolia become part of the Ottoman Empire?

Turkish tribes created the Ottoman Empire in Anatolia, and it grew to be one of the most powerful states in the world during the 15th and 16th centuries. The Ottoman period spanned more than 600 years and came to an end in 1922, when it was replaced by the Turkish Republic.

historical region, Asia

Also known as: Anadolu, Asia Minor

Written by Seton H.F. Lloyd, John Frederick Haldon•All

Fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Nov 19, 2024 • Article History

Turkish:: Anadolu

Also called:: Asia Minor

Major Events:: Russo-Turkish wars; Greco-Turkish wars; Battle of Chaldiran; Jelali Revolts; Syrian Wars

Key People:: St. Paul the Apostle; Pompey the Great; Ibn Battuta; Galen; St. Irenaeus

Related Topics:: Cabeiri

Where is Anatolia located?

When did the Mongols rule Anatolia?

When did the Phrygians arrive in Anatolia?

When did Anatolia become part of the Ottoman Empire?

Anatolia, the peninsula of land that today constitutes the Asian portion of Turkey. Because of its location at the point where the continents of Asia and Europe meet, Anatolia was, from the beginnings of civilization, a crossroads for numerous peoples migrating or conquering from either continent. This article discusses the history and cultures of ancient Anatolia beginning in prehistoric times and including the Hittite empire, the Achaemenian and Hellenistic periods, and Roman, Byzantine, and Seljuq rule. For later periods, see Ottoman Empire and Turkey, history of. Anatolia may be defined in geographic terms as the area bounded to the north ...(100 of 19433 words)

Access the full article

Help support true facts by becoming a member.