View source for Muğla Province

{{Short description|Province of Turkey}}
{{About|the province of Turkey|the city in Turkey|Muğla}}
{{More citations needed |date=August 2024}}
{{Infobox Turkey place
| type                 = metro province
| name                 = 
| other_name           = Muğla ili
| image_skyline        = {{multiple image|total_width=265px|perrow=1/2/2/2|border=infobox
| image1                          = Muğla 9932 (cropped).JPG
| alt1                            = 
| image2                          = Ölüdeniz on the Turquoise Coast, Turkey.jpg
| alt2                            = 
| image3                          = Marmaris harbor aerial view, Muğla Province, southwest Turkey, Mediterranean (cropped).jpg
| alt3                            = 
| image4                          = Amynthas rock tomb August 2011 (cropped).jpg 
| alt4                            = 
| image5                          = Halicarnassus Theatre.jpg
| alt5                            = 
| image6                          = Bodrum Castle (2017).jpg
| alt6                            = 
| image7                          = KelebeklerVadisi (cropped).jpg
| alt7                            = 
}}
| image_caption        = '''Clockwise from top:''' Aerial view of Mugla, Marmaris Marina, [[Halicarnassus]] Theatre, [[Butterfly Valley, Fethiye|Butterfly Valley]], [[Bodrum Castle]], [[Tomb of Amyntas|Amyntas Rock Tombs]], [[Ölüdeniz|Ölüdeniz Beach]]
| image_logo           = muglavalilik.jpg
| image_map            = Muğla in Turkey.svg
| map_caption          = Location of the province within Turkey
| coordinates          = 
| seat                 = [[Muğla]]
| leader_name1         = İdris Akbıyık
| leader_party         = CHP
| leader_name          = Ahmet Aras
| area_footnotes       = 
| area_total_km2       = 12654
| elevation_m          = 
| population_footnotes = <ref name=tuik/>
| population_total     = 1048185
| population_as_of     = 2022
| website              = {{url|http://www.mugla.bel.tr/}}<br>{{url|http://www.mugla.gov.tr/}}
| area_code            = 0252
}}
'''Muğla Province''' ({{langx|tr|{{italics correction|Muğla ili}}}}, {{IPA|tr|muːɫa iˈli|pron}}) is a [[Provinces of Turkey|province]] and [[Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey|metropolitan municipality]] of [[Turkey]], at the country's southwestern corner, on the [[Aegean Sea]]. Its area is 12,654&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.harita.gov.tr/uploads/files-folder/il_ilce_alanlari.xlsx|title=İl ve İlçe Yüz ölçümleri|publisher=General Directorate of Mapping|access-date=19 September 2023}}</ref> and its population is 1,048,185 (2022).<ref name=tuik>{{Cite web |title=Address-based population registration system (ADNKS) results dated 31 December 2022, Favorite Reports|url=https://biruni.tuik.gov.tr/medas/?kn=95&locale=en |access-date=19 September 2023|publisher=[[TÜİK]]|language=en|format=XLS}}</ref> Its seat is the city of [[Muğla]], about {{convert|20|km|mi|abbr=on}} inland, while some of Turkey's largest holiday resorts, such as [[Bodrum]], [[Ölüdeniz]], [[Marmaris]] and [[Fethiye]], lie on the coast.

==Geography==
At {{convert|1,100|km|mi|abbr=on}}, Muğla's coastline is the longest among the [[Provinces of Turkey]] and is home to the [[Datça Peninsula]]. As well as the sea, Muğla has two large lakes, [[Lake Bafa]] in the district of [[Milas]] and Lake [[Köyceğiz]]. The landscape consists of pot-shaped small plains surrounded by mountains, formed by depressions in the [[Neogene]]. These include the plain of the city of [[Muğla]] itself, [[Yeşilyurt, Muğla|Yeşilyurt]], [[Ula, Muğla|Ula]], [[Gülağzı, Menteşe|Gülağzı]], [[Yerkesik, Menteşe|Yerkesik]], [[Akkaya, Muğla|Akkaya]], {{Interlanguage link multi|Çamköy, Milas|tr|3=Çamköy, Milas|lt=Çamköy}} and [[Yenice, Muğla|Yenice]]. Until the recent building of highways, transport from these plains to either the coast or inland was quite arduous, and thus each locality remained an isolated culture of its own. Contact with the outside world was through one of the three difficult passes: northwest to [[Milas]], north to the [[Menderes, İzmir|Menderes]] plain through [[Gökbel]], or northeast to [[Tavas]].{{cn |date=August 2024}}

<gallery>
File:Kelebekler Vadisi (1).jpg|[[Butterfly Valley, Fethiye]] located in Muğla Province
File:Marmaris_harbor_(aerial_view),_Muğla_Province,_southwest_Turkey,_Mediterranean.jpg|[[Marmaris]] located in Muğla Province
File:Bodrum - 46216644144.jpg|[[Bodrum]] located in Muğla Province
File:Fethiye Town in Daylight (cropped).jpg|[[Fethiye]] located in Muğla Province
</gallery>

===Environment===
Despite court decisions upheld by the [[European Court of Human Rights|ECHR]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.eufje.org/images/docConf/buc2016/CASE%20OF%20OKYAY%20AND%20OTHERS%20%20v.%20TURKEY.pdf|title=CASE OF OKYAY AND OTHERS v. TURKEY}}</ref> as of 2020, the [[Yatağan power station|Yatağan]], [[Yeniköy power station|Yeniköy]] and [[Kemerköy power station|Kemerköy]] [[coal-fired power station]]s continue operations as a major source of pollution in the area.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.enerjiportali.com/mmo-baskani-termik-santraller-ile-ilgili-bir-basin-aciklamasi-yapti/|title=MMO Başkanı, Termik Santraller İle İlgili Bir Basın Açıklaması Yaptı|last1=Başkanı|first1=M. M. O.|last2=ki|first2=Termik Santraller İle İlgili Bir Basın Açıklaması Yaptı-Kararara Haber – Güncel Hukuk Haberleri dedi|date=2020-01-24|website=Enerji Portalı|language=tr|access-date=2020-02-10}}</ref>

===Transportation===
[[File:YalikavakPalmarina.jpg|thumb|Yalikavak Marina]]

Muğla province is served by land, sea, and air connections. As a costal province, it is home to several marinas and ports.

* There are two airports in [[Dalaman Airport|Dalaman]] and [[Milas–Bodrum Airport|Milas-Bodrum]], serving domestic and international flights and catering to the [[Tourism in Turkey|tourism industry]].
* There are yacht marinas in [[Bodrum]], [[Marmaris]], [[Fethiye]] and [[Güllük]].
* There are many privately run [[bus]] connections to [[İzmir]], [[Antalya]], [[Ankara]], [[Istanbul]] and other major cities in Turkey both from Muğla and directly from the coastal resorts.

==History==
{{Unsourced section |date=August 2024}}
In ancient [[Anatolia]], the region between the  [[Büyük Menderes River|Menderes]] and [[Dalaman]] rivers in the south was called [[Caria]]. Caria was inhabited by the eponymous [[Carians]] and the [[Leleges]]. In the ''[[Iliad]]'', [[Homer]] described the Carians as natives of [[Anatolia]], defending their country against the Greeks in joint campaigns in collaboration with the [[Troy|Trojans]].{{cn |date=August 2024}}

A major city of ancient [[Caria]], Muğla is known to have been occupied by raiding parties of [[Egyptians]], [[ancient Assyrians|Assyrians]] and [[Scythians]], until eventually the area was settled by [[Ancient Greek]] colonists. The Greeks inhabited this coast for a long time and built prominent cities, such as [[Knidos]] (at the end of the Datça Peninsula) and [[Bodrum]] ([[Halicarnassos]]), as well as  many smaller towns along the coast of the Bodrum Peninsula and surrounding islands. In the district of [[Fethiye]], ruins remain of the cities of [[Telmessos]], [[Xanthos]], [[Patara (Lycia)|Patara]] and [[Tlos]]. Eventually the coast was conquered by the [[Persian Empire|Persians]] who were in turn removed by [[Alexander the Great]], bringing an end to the [[satrapy]] of Caria.{{cn |date=August 2024}}

In 1261, Menteshe Bey, founder of the [[Anatolian beyliks|Beylik]] (principality) that carried his name, with its capital in [[Milas]] and nearby [[Medieval City of Beçin|Beçin]], established his rule over the region of Muğla as well. The beys of [[Menteshe]] held the city until 1390 and were the first Turkish state in the region.

In 1390, Muğla was taken over by the [[Ottoman Empire]]. However, just twelve years later, [[Tamerlane]] and his forces defeated the Ottomans in the [[Battle of Ankara]], and returned control of the region to its former rulers, the Menteshe Beys, as he did for other [[Anatolian beyliks]]. Muğla was brought back under [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] control by Sultan [[Mehmed II]] the Conqueror, in 1451. One of the most important events in the area during the Ottoman period was the well-recorded campaign of [[Suleiman the Magnificent]] against [[Rhodes]], which was launched from [[Marmaris]].{{cn |date=August 2024}}

=== Archaeology ===

With this long history Muğla is rich in ancient ruins, with over 100 excavated sites including the [[UNESCO World Heritage Site]] of [[Letoon]], near [[Fethiye]].

In 2018, archaeologists unearthed a 2,300-year-old rock [[Tomb|sepulchre]] of an ancient Greek boxer called [[Diagoras of Rhodes]] on a hill in the Turgut village, Muğla province, [[Marmaris]]. This unusual pyramid tomb was considered to belong to a holy person by the local people. The [[shrine]], used as a [[pilgrimage]] by locals until the 1970s, also has the potential to be the only pyramid grave in [[Turkey]]. The excavation team also discovered an inscription with these words: ''“I will be vigilant at the very top so as to ensure that no coward can come and destroy this grave".''<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://eu.greekreporter.com/2018/05/21/turkey-shrine-turns-out-to-be-tomb-of-ancient-greek-boxer/|title=Turkey 'Shrine' Turns Out to be Tomb of Ancient Greek Boxer {{!}} Greek Reporter Europe|last=Smith|first=John|language=en-US|access-date=2019-09-02}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.trthaber.com/haber/turkiye/yillarca-turbe-sanildi-mozole-cikti-426813.html|title=Yıllarca türbe sanıldı; mozole çıktı|website=www.trthaber.com|access-date=2019-09-02}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://neoskosmos.com/en/115755/shrine-in-turkey-uncovered-as-tomb-of-ancient-greek-boxer/|title=Shrine in Turkey uncovered as tomb of ancient Greek boxer {{!}} Neos Kosmos|date=2018-05-22|website=English Edition|language=en|access-date=2019-09-02}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.turkishminute.com/2018/05/21/previous-holy-site-in-turkeys-marmaris-revealed-to-be-tomb-of-greek-boxer/|title=Previous holy site in Turkey's Marmaris revealed to be tomb of Greek boxer - Turkish Minute|last=TM|language=en-US|access-date=2019-09-02}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://greekcitytimes.com/2018/05/23/2300-year-old-shrine-in-turkey-turns-out-to-be-tomb-of-ancient-greek-boxer-diagoras/|title=2,300 year old shrine in Turkey turns out to be tomb of ancient Greek Boxer Diagoras|last=Team|first=G. C. T.|website=Greek City Times|date=23 May 2018 |language=en-US|access-date=2019-09-02}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ahvalnews.com/archaeology/aegean-villagers-mistook-greek-boxers-tomb-islamic-holy-site-archaeologists-discover|title=Aegean villagers mistook Greek boxer's tomb for Islamic holy site, archaeologists discover|website=Ahval|language=en|access-date=2019-09-02}}</ref>

In July 2021, archaeologists led by Abuzer Kızıl have announced the discovery of two 2,500-year-old [[marble]] statues and an [[Epigraphy|inscription]] during excavations at the Temple of Zeus Lepsynos in [[Euromus]]. According to Abuzer Kızıl, one of the statues was naked while other was wearing armor made of leather and a short skirt. Both of the statues were depicted with a lion in their hands.<ref>{{Cite web|title=2,500-year-old statues, inscription unearthed in western Turkey|url=https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/2-500-year-old-statues-inscription-unearthed-in-western-turkey-166256|access-date=2021-08-31|website=Hürriyet Daily News|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=2,500-year-old statues, inscription unearthed in western Turkey|url=https://www.aa.com.tr/en/culture/2-500-year-old-statues-inscription-unearthed-in-western-turkey/2301173|access-date=2021-08-31|website=www.aa.com.tr}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Gershon|first=Livia|title=Archaeologists in Turkey Unearth 2,500-Year-Old Temple of Aphrodite|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/2500-year-old-temple-aphrodite-found-turkey-180976694/|access-date=2021-08-31|website=Smithsonian Magazine|language=en}}</ref>

== Gallery ==
<gallery>
File:Temple of Zeus Lepsynus, built on the site of an earlier Carian temple, 2nd century AD (probably during the reign of the emperor Hadrian), Euromos, Turkey (17332257671).jpg|The Temple of Zeus Lepsynos, built on the site of an earlier [[Carians|Carian]] temple, 2nd century AD (probably during the reign of the emperor [[Hadrian]]), [[Euromus|Euromos]], [[Turkey]].
File:Temple of Apollo, Didyma 02.jpg|The Temple of Apollo in [[Didyma]], [[Turkey]].
File:Muğla-Saklıkent Kanyonu.jpg|Saklıkent Canyon in [[Saklıkent National Park]]
File:Rock tombs (1091851058).jpg|[[Lycia|Lycian]] rock tombs in [[Dalyan]]
File:This amphitheatre @ Myra Turkie is situated next to the Lycian rock tombs. It is interesting to see as it is quite well preserved and the largest in Lycia. It is associated with ancient history.jpg|[[Theatre at Halicarnassus]] in [[Bodrum]], with the [[Bodrum Castle]] in the background.
File:Ghost town Kayakoy IMGP8857.jpg|[[Kayaköy]] village founded by Greek Christians, now largely a ghost town near [[Fethiye]].
File:Muğla Province montage555.png|Montage of Mugla Province's monuments and sights
</gallery>

==Notable people==
The following are notable residents of Muğla province:
* [[Herodotus]] of [[Halicarnassos]], historian 
* [[Turgut Reis]], seaman
* [[Basil Zaharoff]], arms dealer born in Muğla
* [[Osman Hamdi Bey]], painter, had his summer residence in Yatağan.
* [[Şükrü Kaya]], Minister of the Interior under [[Atatürk]], born in İstanköy.
* [[Mustafa Muğlalı]], general in the [[Turkish War of Independence]]. 
* [[Yunus Nadi Abalıoğlu]], founder of the [[Cumhuriyet]] newspaper and key supporter of Atatürk, from Fethiye.
* [[Zihni Derin]], agriculturalist responsible for planting tea in the Eastern Black Sea region, from Muğla.
* [[Necati Çiller]], father of Prime Minister [[Tansu Çiller]], governor of Istanbul in the 1950s, from Milas.
* [[Cevat Şakir Kabaağaçlı]], writer of The "Fisherman of Halicarnasoss" and his student [[Şadan Gökovalı]]
* [[Nail Çakırhan]], architect of the [[Akyaka, Muğla|Akyaka]] Çakırhan houses and winner of the [[Aga Khan Award for Architecture]] 
* [[Janet Akyüz Mattei]], amateur astronomer and president of the American Association of Variable Star Observers ([[American Association of Variable Star Observers|AAVSO]]), of Bodrum.
* [[Zeki Müren]], singer and fixture of the Bodrum nightclub scene for many years
* Poet [[Can Yücel]] is buried in [[Datça]], his home in his final years
* Former president and general [[Kenan Evren]] lived in Marmaris after he retired until his death.

==Districts==
[[File:Districts of Province Muğla.png|thumb]]
{{columns-list|colwidth=10em|
* [[Bodrum]]
* [[Dalaman]]
* [[Datça]]
* [[Fethiye]]
* [[Kavaklıdere, Muğla|Kavaklıdere]]
* [[Köyceğiz]]
* [[Marmaris]]
* [[Menteşe, Muğla|Menteşe]]
* [[Milas]]
* [[Ortaca]]
* [[Seydikemer]]
* [[Ula, Muğla|Ula]]
* [[Yatağan, Muğla|Yatağan]]
}}

=== Politics ===
{{Update section|date=February 2020}}
The [[Republican People's Party]] (CHP), Turkey's principal [[Left of Center (Turkey)|center-left]] party has a traditionally strong presence across the political landscape of Muğla Province, closely followed by the traditional center-right represented by the [[Democrat Party (Turkey, current)|Democrat Party]] (DP) in Turkey's politics. The incumbent [[Justice and Development Party (Turkey)|Justice and Development Party]] (AKP) has enjoyed less support in the province.{{cn |date=August 2024}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons}}
* [http://www.mugla.gov.tr Muğla governor's official website] {{in lang|tr}}
* [http://www.mugla.bel.tr Muğla municipality's official website] {{in lang|tr}}

{{Districts of Turkey|provname=Muğla|image=Mugla|sortkey=Mugla}}
{{Provinces of Turkey}}
{{Authority control}}
{{Coord|37|01|49|N|28|30|23|E|region:TR-48_type:adm1st|display=title}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:MuAla Province}}
[[Category:Muğla Province| ]]
[[Category:Provinces of Turkey]]