Akyaka, Kars

Akyaka (Ottoman Turkish: شوره کل Şoregil or Şöregel;[3] Azerbaijani: Ağyaxa or Şörəyəl; Kurdish: Şûrêgel; Armenian: Ղզըլ-Չախչախ, romanized: Ghzyl-Chakhchakh) is a district of Kars Province in eastern Turkey, and the name of the small town that is the district's administrative capital. It is located on Turkey's closed border with Armenia. The population was 2,273 in 2010.

Akyaka
Akyaka is located in Turkey
Akyaka
Akyaka
Location of Akyaka in Turkey
Coordinates: 40°44′40″N 43°37′30″E
CountryTurkey
RegionEastern Anatolia
ProvinceKars
Government
 • MayorErgüder Toptaş (AKP)
 • KaymakamNur Sevinç Özbek
Area
[1]
 • District406.77 km2 (157.05 sq mi)
Population
 (2012)[2]
 • Urban
2,094
 • District
11,641
 • District density29/km2 (74/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal code
36780
Area code+(90)474
Websitewww.yerelnet.org.tr
Districts of Kars

Government

Ergüder Toptaş was elected mayor in the local elections in March 2019.[4] Nur Seninç Özbek serves as Kaymakam.[5]

Etymology

The settlement was known as Şuregel (Russian: Шурагель) or Kızılçakçak (Russian: Кизил-Чахчах) whilst part of the Russian Empire[6]—until 1961 when it was renamed Akyaka.[7] Nowadays, the town is referred to by its Azerbaijani and Karapapakh residents as Ağyaxa or Şörəyəl.

In the town's original name Kızılçakçak, kızıl may refer to bright red in Turkish or gold in Azerbaijani, whilst çak refers to something strong, precise or in high measure in Turkic.

History

Akyaka was a district between 1922 and 1926 and a township in the Arpaçay district between 1926 and 1988. The Akyaka municipality was established in 1972.

Transport

Akyaka is a border checkpoint on the railway into Armenia, which has been closed since 1993. The route D.060 from Kars runs next to the railway leading to the border.[8]

Demographics

The town—then known as Kızılçakçak—was exclusively Armenian during the Russian Empire whilst it was part of the Kars Okrug of the Kars Oblast.[6] Following the conclusion of the Turkish–Armenian war and Turkey's annexation of the region, Azerbaijanis and Karapapakhs who had fled from Armenia in 1918–1920 settled in Akyaka, replacing the Armenian population which was expelled in 1920. Nowadays, Azerbaijanis form 50% of the population, Sunni Karapapakhs 45%, and Kurds and others form the remaining 5%.[7][9]

References
  1. "Area of regions (including lakes), km²". Regional Statistics Database. Turkish Statistical Institute. 2002. Retrieved 2013-03-05.
  2. "Population of province/district centers and towns/villages by districts - 2012". Address Based Population Registration System (ABPRS) Database. Turkish Statistical Institute. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  3. Tahir Sezen, Osmanlı Yer Adları (Alfabetik Sırayla), T.C. Başbakanlık Devlet Arşivleri Genel Müdürlüğü, Yayın Nu 21, Ankara, p. 474.
  4. "Kars Akyaka Seçim Sonuçları - 31 Mart 2019 Yerel Seçimleri". www.sabah.com.tr. Retrieved 2019-12-19.
  5. "Akyaka İlçe Kaymakamı". www.akyaka.gov.tr. Retrieved 2019-12-19.
  6. Кавказский календарь на 1910 год [Caucasian calendar for 1910] (in Russian) (65th ed.). Tiflis: Tipografiya kantselyarii Ye.I.V. na Kavkaze, kazenny dom. 1910. p. 288. Archived from the original on 15 March 2022.
  7. "Nisanyan Yeradları".
  8. Kanbolat, Hasan (October 9, 2007). "Ermenistan'ın Türkiye ile Sorunu Nedir, Sınır Kapısı Açılmalı mıdır?" (in Turkish). Avrasya Bir Vakfı-Avrasya Stratejik Araştırmalar Merkezi. Archived from the original on May 20, 2007. Retrieved March 15, 2009.
  9. "Gümrü'den Kars'a Hüryurt Ailesinin Hayatı Kitap Oldu - Kars Haberleri".


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