Elazığ

Elazığ is a city in Turkey’s Eastern Anatolia region and the administrative centre of both Elazığ Province and Elazığ District. It occupies a fertile plain in the upper Euphrates basin at roughly 1,067 metres above sea level. The modern city developed below the older fortress settlement of Harput, which remains an important historic district and municipal dependency several kilometres north of the contemporary urban centre. In 2022, Elazığ had a population of 387,072. The settlement’s immediate predecessor was Mezre, originally a small hamlet associated with Harput. Its growth accelerated in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries as notable families, administrators, merchants and craftsmen moved from the hilltop settlement to the more accessible plain. In the 1830s, Ottoman governor and military commander Reşid Mehmed Pasha used Mezre as a garrison base, helping to stimulate its administrative and urban development. The town became the seat of the Mamuret-ul-Aziz Vilayet in 1878. The official name gradually shifted through forms including Mamuret-ul-Aziz, Elaziz and Elazık before the modern form Elazığ was adopted in the Republican period. During the late Ottoman era, Elazığ and Harput were commercially and culturally diverse centres. Armenians, Muslims, Assyrians and Kurds lived in the wider area, while Mezre developed an Armenian bourgeois population involved in trade, crafts, administration and manufacturing. Educational institutions included Armenian schools, missionary colleges and seminaries. The surrounding region was affected by the massacres of 1895 and the Armenian and Assyrian persecutions and genocide during the First World War, which caused extensive loss of life, displacement and destruction of communities and institutions. In the Turkish Republican period, Elazığ became a significant administrative and military centre. It was the headquarters of the Fourth Inspectorate-General from 1936 to 1952, an institution that gave a military-appointed governor extensive authority over several eastern provinces. The city also served as a base for state military operations during the Sheikh Said rebellion and the Dersim rebellion. Meanwhile, modern Elazığ expanded across the plain while Harput declined into a largely abandoned historic settlement. Restoration and tourism work from the 1950s onward brought renewed attention to Harput Castle, religious buildings and traditional urban fabric. Elazığ’s economy combines public administration, education, agriculture, mining, manufacturing and services. The Keban Dam, built during the 1960s and 1970s, transformed the regional landscape and displaced more than 30,000 people and at least 212 villages. Reservoirs associated with Keban, Karakaya, Kıralkızı and Özlüce dams surround or influence the province, giving the city a distinctive inland, lake-and-reservoir setting. Agriculture remains associated with vineyards, apricots, raisins, almonds, honey and regional food production. Elazığ is particularly known for the Öküzgözü and Boğazkere grape varieties and for Buzbağ wine. The city is also a regional education and transport centre. Fırat University, established in 1975, is one of the principal higher-education institutions in eastern Turkey. Elazığ Airport provides domestic connections and some seasonal international services, while intercity coaches, rail services and reservoir ferries connect the city with surrounding provinces and settlements. Cultural and visitor attractions include Harput Castle, Hazar Lake, Buzluk Cave, the Archaeology and Ethnography Museum, parks, historic mosques and the city’s distinctive cuisine. Elazığ municipality administers the modern city and its quarters, including Harput.

Elazığ developed on the plain below Harput, an older fortified settlement whose history reaches back to the ancient civilizations of the upper Euphrates region. The Hurrians were among the earliest known inhabitants, and the area later formed part of the Urartian sphere. Harput subsequently came under a succession of regional powers, including the Artuqids, the Sultanate of Rum, the Ilkhanate, the Dulkadirids, Aq Qoyunlu, the Safavids and the Ottoman Empire. Turkish control followed the Battle of Manzikert and was consolidated in the region during the late eleventh century. The modern city began as Mezre, a small settlement southwest of Harput. Its name was associated with a hamlet or cultivated settlement and may have referred to land connected with notable families from Harput who were relocated there in the late eighteenth century. Reşid Mehmed Pasha developed Mezre as a garrison and administrative base in 1834–1836. During the 1850s and 1860s it grew into a commercially active suburb with merchants, artisans, officials and a substantial Armenian bourgeois community. In 1869, Krikor Ipekjian, later known as Fabrikatorian, established a silk factory there. Mezre became the provincial capital of Mamuret-ul-Aziz Vilayet in 1878. The late Ottoman city contained Armenian Apostolic, Catholic and Protestant institutions, as well as schools and missionary establishments. The Armenian National Central Academy was founded in 1892, and other Armenian, French and German educational institutions operated in the area. The American missionary presence included Euphrates College and related schools and seminaries. This plural social and institutional life was severely damaged by the massacres of 1895 and the Armenian and Assyrian genocide during the First World War. Churches, schools, businesses and communities were destroyed or depopulated, and many residents were killed, deported or displaced. The city was captured by Kurdish rebels during the Sheikh Said rebellion in 1925 and was later used by the Turkish Army during operations connected with the Dersim rebellion. From 1936 to 1952 it hosted the Fourth Inspectorate-General, a centralized military-administrative structure covering several eastern provinces. Elazığ expanded rapidly in the Republican period, while Harput lost population and became increasingly ruinous. Restoration projects beginning in the 1950s preserved selected historic structures and promoted Harput as a cultural and tourism destination. Some ruined Armenian neighbourhoods were levelled during urban interventions in the 1960s and 1970s. Large-scale infrastructure further altered the city’s economic and physical environment. Keban Dam construction from 1966 to 1974 inundated settlements and agricultural land, displaced tens of thousands of people and created new reservoirs. Many displaced residents moved to Elazığ, investing compensation payments in housing and small businesses, although landless families often received limited or no compensation. Dam building, mining, industry and public investment contributed to urbanization above the regional average. Today Elazığ is the provincial capital and a regional centre for government, higher education, commerce, transport, agriculture and services. Its built environment combines modern neighbourhoods with the historic Harput area. Fırat University, founded in 1975, is a major institution. Elazığ Airport, rail and coach services connect the city with other parts of Turkey, while ferries serve settlements around the reservoirs. Vineyards and regional food traditions remain important markers of local identity, particularly products associated with Öküzgözü and Boğazkere grapes. The city’s cultural landscape includes Harput Castle, historic mosques and churches, museums, Hazar Lake, Buzluk Cave and recreational parks.

• 1975

  Fırat University established

  [1]Elazığen.wikipedia.org

  The university reinforced Elazığ’s role as an educational centre.

• 1966

  Keban Dam construction begins

  [1]Elazığen.wikipedia.org

  The project initiated major demographic, economic and environmental changes across the province.

• 1936

  Fourth Inspectorate-General headquartered in Elazığ

  [1]Elazığen.wikipedia.org

  Elazığ became the seat of a military-backed regional administrative authority.

• 1925

  Captured during the Sheikh Said rebellion

  [1]Elazığen.wikipedia.org

  The city was temporarily captured by Kurdish rebels during the uprising against the Turkish Republic.

• 1892

  Armenian National Central Academy founded

  [1]Elazığen.wikipedia.org

  The academy added to the city’s network of Armenian educational and religious institutions.

• 1878

  Provincial capital designation

  [1]Elazığen.wikipedia.org

  Mezre became the administrative centre of Mamuret-ul-Aziz Vilayet.

• 1869

  Silk factory established

  [1]Elazığen.wikipedia.org

  Krikor Ipekjian founded a silk factory in Mezre, reflecting the settlement’s expanding commercial and manufacturing economy.

• 1834

  Mezre developed as an Ottoman garrison

  [1]Elazığen.wikipedia.org

  Reşid Mehmed Pasha used Mezre as a military and administrative base, helping the settlement grow below Harput.

A regional administrative, educational, agricultural and cultural centre of Eastern Anatolia, distinguished by its connection to historic Harput, upper-Euphrates geography, vineyards and reservoir landscapes.

• Wine

  Buzbağ wine

  A wine associated with Elazığ’s state vineyard tradition and the region’s grape-growing economy. It is particularly connected with full-bodied red wine made from locally important varieties, including Öküzgözü.

• Agricultural product

  Öküzgözü grapes

  A grape variety strongly associated with Elazığ and its vineyards. It forms part of the region’s agricultural identity and is used in local wine production.

• Food culture

  Elazığ regional cuisine

  Local culinary traditions include kofik dolma, Harput köfte, kelecoş, sırın, kömme, taş ekmeği, işkene, orcik and dishes made with naturally dried vegetables and fruits. The cuisine is closely linked to Harput and the surrounding agricultural landscape.

• 1915

  Armenian and Assyrian genocide in the region

  During the First World War, Armenians and Assyrians in Harput and its surrounding districts experienced mass killing, deportation, dispossession and institutional destruction. The historical consequences remain central to the region’s demographic and cultural history.

  Source

• 1895

  Massacres and destruction in the Harput-Elazığ area

  Government-backed violence in 1895 included attacks, looting and the burning of Armenian villages and institutions on the surrounding plain. The events severely damaged the area’s Armenian community and missionary infrastructure.

  Source

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• 1966

  Keban Dam project launchedStrategy

  Background

  The dam was planned as major regional infrastructure on the Euphrates and ultimately affected a large number of settlements and households.

  Action taken

  Construction proceeded from 1966 to 1974, creating a large reservoir and changing transport, agriculture, settlement patterns and local economic activity.

  Aftermath

  Elazığ experienced increased urbanization and received many displaced residents, while numerous villages and agricultural areas were inundated.

  Source

• 1937

  Modern Turkish form of the city name adoptedOther

  Background

  The settlement had used names including Mamuret-ul-Aziz, Elaziz and Elazık during the Ottoman and early Republican periods.

  Action taken

  The name was first Turkified as Elazık and subsequently standardized as Elazığ because of pronunciation difficulties.

  Aftermath

  Elazığ became the established official name of the modern provincial capital, while Harput continued as the historic older settlement.

  Source

1. 1Elazığen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Elazığ Municipalityelazig.bel.tr