Country
Countries A-Z
Turkey
Republic of Turkey
Türkiye Cumhuriyeti
Political Status: Independent republic established in 1923; parliamentary democracy since 1946, save for military interregna from May 1960 to October 1961 and September 1980 to November 1983; present constitution approved by referendum of November 7, 1982.
Area: 300,948 sq. mi. (779,452 sq. km).
Population: 79,622,000 (2016E—UN); 80,274,604 (2016E—U.S. Census).
Major Urban Centers (2016E—UN): ANKARA (4,852,000), İstanbul (14,365,000), İzmir (3,090,000), Bursa (1,974,000), Adana (1,879,000), Gaziantep (1,567,000), Konya (1,226,000).
Official Language: Turkish. A 1982 law banning the use of the Kurdish language was rescinded in early 1991.
Monetary Unit: Turkish Lira (Türk Lirası—TL) (market rate October 1, 2016: 3.00 Turkish New Liras = $1US).
President of the Republic: Recep Tayyip ERDOĞAN (Justice and Development Party); elected in presidential elections on August 10, 2014, and inaugurated on August 28, succeeding Abdullah ...