Posof

Posof
Posof
Coordinates: 41°30′42″N 42°43′45″E / 41.51167°N 42.72917°E
Country	Turkey
Province	Ardahan
Government
• Mayor	Cahit Ulgar (AKP)
• Kaymakam	Muammer Köken
Area [1]
• District	623.25 km2 (240.64 sq mi)
Population (2012)[2]
• Urban	2,046
• District	8,016
• District density	13/km2 (33/sq mi)
Post code	75800
Website	www.posof.bel.tr

Posof (Georgian: ფოცხოვი, Potskhovi) is a district of Ardahan Province of Turkey, in the far east of the country, 75 km from the city of Ardahan. It has a border crossing with neighboring Georgia at Türkgözü. Posof is well known for its handicrafts particularly its ornate silver belts and knives.

Geography

Posof is high in the mountains near the source of the River Çoruh, much of the district is pine forest.

Villages

The district of Posof has 49 villages; this list includes the new and old names (new names having been used for several years now):

History

Posof or Potskhovi was part of Iberia, Kingdom of Georgia, Georgian Principality of Samtskhe, Ottoman Empire, Russian Empire, and the Democratic Republic of Georgia. After the Treaty of Kars Posof was included into the Republic of Turkey.

Throughout most of the Middle Ages, the valley belonged to the noble Georgian House of Jaqeli. In 1064 the Seljuk Turkish Sultan Alp Arslan besieged Queli castle while passing over Mount Arşiyan to conquer the city of Ani.

During the First World War and the Turkish War of Independence in the 1920s Posof was the scene of fighting between Turkey and Russia.

Today this is an impoverished rural area that has seen many of its residents migrate to jobs abroad. One source of income is beekeeping.

References