Siverek (; ; ) is a municipality and district of Ã
Âanlñurfa Province, Turkey. Its area is 3,936 km<sup>2</sup>, and its population is 267,942 (2022). Siverek is in the Ã
Âanlñurfa province but is geographically closer to the large city of Diyarbakñr (approx. 83 km).
Etymology
Siverek was historically known in medieval Arabic as Hisn ar-Ran (), which was corrupted into Greek as Chasanara (), as found in the Escorial Taktikon.
The word "Siverek" is of Armenian origin. In Byzantine sources, it is mentioned as Sevaverag. The literal meaning of this name used for Siverek in Byzantine and Armenian sources is Sev "black" and Averag "ruins". Other ways to spell Sevaverag include Sebabarak, Sebabarok, Sevaverak, Severags and Suveyda.
History
The town came under Byzantine control sometime after 956 and had become the seat of a strategos by the early 970s. Together with Edessa, Gargar, Samosata and Hisn Mansur formed part of the Byzantine defence system up to the 1060s when 200 Frankish horsemen were stationed there.
In the Ottoman Empire period, Siverek was within the Diyarbekir vilayet, and it had several Christian settlements.
Demographics
9,275 Armenians lived in the kaza on the eve of the First World War according to the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople. They had eight churches and three schools. 5,450 Armenians and 1,200 Assyrians lived in the town of Siverek. 6,550 Assyrians lived in 32 surrounding villages. Armenian men were massacred in May 1915, followed by the deportation of the women and children, as part of the Armenian genocide. Faiz El-Ghusein reported that the road between Urfa and Severek was littered with corpses.
Politics
In common with other districts of Ã
Âanlñurfa, business and politics in Siverek are strongly influenced, even controlled, by a powerful clan. Siverek is the home town of Sedat Bucak, the former DYP member of parliament who survived the car crash in the Susurluk scandal. He is the leader of the Bucak tribe, one of whom has represented the area in the Turkish Parliament since its foundation. Sedat Bucak remains a friend of former DYP leader Mehmet AÃÂar. In the local elections in March 2019, Ã
Âehmus Aydñn was elected mayor. He resigned due to health problems in 2020, and was succeeded by AyÃ
Âe ÃÂakmak (AKP). The current kaymakam is Musa Aydemir.
Composition
There are 180 neighbourhoods in Siverek District:
- AbdalaÃÂa
- Alagün
- Alanyurt
- Altaylñ
- Altñnahñr
- Altñnlñ
- Altñnpñnar
- Anacak
- ArmaÃÂanlñ
- AÃ
ÂaÃÂñ Alñnca
- AÃ
ÂaÃÂñ Karabahçe
- AÃ
ÂaÃÂñ Karacaören
- AÃ
ÂaÃÂñyalankoz
- AÃ
Âlñca
- Atmaca
- Avurtepe
- Ayrancñ
- Ayvanat
- Azñklñ
- BaÃÂcñ
- BaÃÂlar
- Bahçe
- Bahçelievler
- Bakñ Takoran
- Bakñrca
- Bakmaç
- Bardakçñ
- BaÃ
Âbük
- BaÃ
ÂdeÃÂirmen
- Batñ
- Bayñrözü
- BeÃÂdeÃ
Â
- Benek
- Beyali
- Beybaba
- Beyçeri
- BöÃÂürtlen
- Bozkuyu
- Bozlak
- Bürüncek
- Büyük Kazanlñ
- Büyük Oba
- Büyük Tepe
- Büyük Yakñtlñ
- Büyükgöl
- ÃÂaÃÂa
- ÃÂaÃÂdaÃ
Â
- Camiikebir
- ÃÂanakçñ
- Canpolat
- ÃÂatlñ
- ÃÂavuÃ
Âlu
- ÃÂaylarbaÃ
Âñ
- ÃÂeltik
- ÃÂepni
- ÃÂevirme
- ÃÂiftçibaÃ
Âñ
- ÃÂinhisar
- ÃÂubuklu
- DaÃÂbaÃ
Âñ
- Damlñca
- DardaÃÂan
- Darñcalñ
- DeliktaÃ
Â
- Dicle
- Dilekli
- Direkli
- Divan
- DoÃÂukent
- Dönemeç
- DüÃÂerin
- Ediz
- EÃÂriçay
- Endarlñ
- Erbey
- Ergen
- ErkonaÃÂñ
- Ertem
- Eskihan
- Esmerçayñ
- Fñrat
- Fñrñn
- Gaziköy
- Gedik
- Gerçek
- Gözcek
- Gözelek
- Gözeli
- Gülabibey
- Güllice
- Gülpñnar
- Güney
- Güney Karabahçe
- Gürakar
- Güvenli
- Güvercin
- Güzelpñnar
- Hacñömer
- Haliliye
- Hamamören
- Hamidiye
- Hasançelebi
- Hasñrlñ
- Hayriye
- ðleri
- ðnanlñ
- Kale
- Kalemli
- KalñnaÃÂaç
- KamñÃ
Âlñ
- Kapñkaya
- Karabahçe
- KaracadaÃÂ
- Karadibek
- Karahisar
- Karakeçi
- Karakoyun
- Kargalñ
- KarkaÃ
Âñ
- Karpuzcu
- Kavaklñdere
- Kavalñk
- Kayalñ
- Kayseri
- Keçiburcu
- Keçikñran
- KeÃ
Â
- Kesmekaya
- Kñvançlñ
- Konurtepe
- Küçükgöl
- Kulaksñz
- Küptepe
- KurbaÃÂalñ
- KuÃ
Âlugöl
- Mezraa
- Narlñkaya
- Nohut
- Ofis
- Oluklu
- Onar
- ÃÂnder
- ÃÂrgülü
- Ortanca
- Oyman
- OyuktaÃ
Â
- Peynirci
- Sabancñ
- Ã
Âairibrahimrafet
- Salur
- Sarñdam
- Sarñkaya
- Sarñören
- Savucak
- Ã
Âekerli
- Selimpñnar
- Ã
Âirinkuyu
- Sislice
- Soydan
- Söylemez
- Sumaklñ
- Tanrñverdi
- TaÃ
ÂaÃÂñl
- TaÃ
Âhan
- TaÃ
Âñkara
- TaÃ
Âlñ
- Turna
- ÃÂlkülü
- ÃÂstüntaÃ
Â
- Uzunpñnar
- Uzunziyaret
- Yeleken
- Yeniceli
- YeniÃ
Âehir
- YoÃÂunca
- YoÃÂurtçu
- Yücelen
- Yumrutepe
- Yuvar
- Zincirliçay
Climate
Siverek has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification: Csa).
Notable people
- Osman Efendîyo Babij (1852-1929), Kurdish religious figure
- Yñlmaz Güney (1937âÂÂ1984), Kurdish film director, scenarist, novelist and actor
- Necmettin Büyükkaya, (1943-1984), Kurdish activist
- Mehmed Uzun (1953âÂÂ2007), Kurdish writer
- Sedat Bucak (b. 1960), politician
- Adnan Selçuk Mñzraklñ (b. 1963), politician
- ðbrahim Ayhan (1968-2018), politician
- Filiz ðÃ
Âikñrñk (b. 1993), footballer
- Remziye Bakñr (b. 1997), footballer
References
Sources
External links