Mersin Province
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–
·
·
·
·
(
January
2017
)
(
)
Mersin Province
Mersin ili
and
Mersin coastline
Location of the province within Turkey
Country
Seat
Government
• Mayor
Vahap Seçer
(
)
•
Ali Hamza Pehlivan
Area
16,010 km
2
(6,180 sq mi)
Population
(2022)
1,916,432
• Density
119.7/km
2
(310.0/sq mi)
(
)
0324
Website
Mersin Province
(
:
Mersin ili
), formerly
İçel Province
(
İçel ili
),
is a
and
in southern
, on the
coast between
and
. Its area is 16,010 km
2
,
and
its population is 1,916,432 (2022).
The provincial capital and the biggest
city in the province is
, which is composed of four municipalities and
district governorates:
,
,
and
. Next largest
is
, the birthplace of
. The province is considered to
be a part of the geographical, economical and cultural region of
,
which covers the provinces of Mersin, Adana,
and
.
Etymology
[
]
The province is named after its biggest city Mersin. Mersin was named after
the aromatic plant genus
(
:
Μυρσίνη
,
:
mersin
) in the
family
, a
that grows in abundance in the area. The 17th-
century Ottoman traveler
has recorded in his
that
there was also a clan named Mersinoğulları in the area.
Geography
[
]
Köppen map of Mersin Province and
surrounding regions:
Ninth biggest province of Turkey by land area, Mersin consists 2,02% of
.
87% of the land area is mountain, leading up to the rocky heights
of the central
, the highest peak is
(3,584 m) in
the
range, and there are a number of important passes over to central
. There are many high meadows and small plains between 700 and
1500m.
The coastal strip has many large areas of flatland, formed from soil brought
down by rivers and streams running off the mountains. This is fertile land,
the largest area being the plain of
. The largest rivers are the
and the
(Göksu
Calycadnus
and
Berdan
Cydnus
of antiquity), but there
are many small streams running into lakes, reservoirs or the Mediterranean
sea. Mersin has 321 km of coastline, much of it sandy beach. The climate is
typical of the Mediterranean; very hot and rainless in summer, mild and wet in
winter. The winter rains can be very heavy and flooding is a problem in many
areas, but it never snows on the coast, only in the mountainous areas.
Climate chart (
)
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
116
15
8
79
16
8
56
19
11
35
22
14
27
26
19
12
29
23
9.3
32
26
7.3
33
26
13
31
23
36
28
19
80
22
13
163
17
9
█
Average max. and min. temperatures in
°C
█
Precipitation totals in mm
Source:
Imperial conversion
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
4.6
59
46
3.1
61
47
2.2
66
52
1.4
72
58
1.1
78
65
0.5
84
73
0.4
89
78
0.3
91
79
0.5
88
74
1.4
82
65
3.2
72
55
6.4
62
48
█
Average max. and min. temperatures in
°F
█
Precipitation totals in inches
Climate chart (
)
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
107
15
5
78
16
6
54
19
8
38
22
11
23
26
15
7.5
29
20
2
32
23
2.7
32
24
8.4
31
20
35
28
15
72
22
10
141
17
7
█
Average max. and min. temperatures in
°C
█
Precipitation totals in mm
Source:
Imperial conversion
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
4.2
59
41
3.1
61
42
2.1
66
46
1.5
72
52
0.9
78
60
0.3
84
68
0.1
89
74
0.1
90
75
0.3
87
68
1.4
82
59
2.8
71
50
5.6
62
44
█
Average max. and min. temperatures in
°F
█
Precipitation totals in inches
Climate chart (
)
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
68
11
3
51
13
4
35
18
7
22
23
11
26
29
16
12
34
21
0.9
37
24
2.7
37
24
5.5
33
20
20
27
15
43
19
9
76
13
5
█
Average max. and min. temperatures in
°C
█
Precipitation totals in mm
Source:
Imperial conversion
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
2.7
52
38
2
56
40
1.4
64
45
0.9
73
52
1
83
60
0.5
93
69
0
99
75
0.1
99
75
0.2
92
68
0.8
80
58
1.7
65
47
3
55
40
█
Average max. and min. temperatures in
°F
█
Precipitation totals in inches
Climate chart (
)
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
192
16
9
136
16
9
82
19
10
46
22
13
28
26
17
3.5
30
21
0.8
33
24
1.2
34
25
13
31
22
56
28
18
135
22
14
209
18
10
█
Average max. and min. temperatures in
°C
█
Precipitation totals in mm
Source:
Imperial conversion
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
7.6
61
47
5.3
62
47
3.2
66
51
1.8
71
55
1.1
78
62
0.1
86
69
0
92
75
0
93
76
0.5
89
71
2.2
82
65
5.3
72
57
8.2
64
50
█
Average max. and min. temperatures in
°F
█
Precipitation totals in inches
History
[
]
Main article:
Mersin from the sky
In antiquity, this coast was part of
, named for a
or
prince that had settled here. Trade from
and
over the mountains
to central
passed through here, through the
. The geographer
, described the region as being divided into "Rugged Cilicia" (
Cilicia
Trachea
, Κιλικία Τραχεία in
) and "Flat Cilicia" (
Cilicia Pedias
, Κιλικία Πεδιάς). The capital of both sections
of Cilicia was
and
was its seaport. The
later captured it from the
and it then came
under the
then the
again and finally the
captured it and it remained part of the
until 1922.
Administration
[
]
The province of Mersin until 1933 didn't include the western territories of the modern province, which then
constituted the separate İçel province, with
as its administrative center. In 1933, the provinces of Mersin
and İçel were merged. The new province was named "İçel" and the city of
was made its capital.
The province
was renamed to "Mersin" on 28 June 2002.
Districts
[
]
Mersin province is divided into thirteen districts four of which are
actually included within the municipality of Mersin city (shown in boldface
letters).
Demographics
[
]
Historical population
Year
Pop.
±% p.a.
1927
211,543
—
1935
244,236
+1.81%
1940
257,709
+1.08%
1950
317,929
+2.12%
1960
444,523
+3.41%
1970
590,943
+2.89%
1980
843,931
+3.63%
1990
1,266,995
+4.15%
2000
1,651,400
+2.69%
2010
1,647,899
−0.02%
2020
1,868,757
+1.27%
Source:Turkstat
About 50% of the population of the province is younger than 24 years of age. 68% were
born in Mersin. The
is 89%. About 43% of the male population and about
27% of the female population graduated from middle school.
is 0.48%.
Urban population growth rate is 2.42%.
is 117 as of November 2020.(In
the table below, the four second-level municipalities are merged within Mersin proper.)
Name of the district
Population
(urban area)
Population
(district total,
including rural area)
Mersin
842,230
888,803
Anamur
34,227
62,702
Aydıncık
8,004
11,651
Bozyazı
15,615
26,295
Çamlıyayla
2,861
9,847
Erdemli
45,241
125,391
Gülnar
8,357
19,141
Mut
28,966
63,673
Silifke
51,684
113,404
Tarsus
233,436
308,681
Economy
[
]
Mersin skyline
The city of Mersin is one of busiest cities in Turkey. Due to the economic activity
in this part of Turkey generated by the
Mersin is Turkey's biggest
Mediterranean port, and also hosts an oil refinery and a
; there are
a number of factories along the road between Mersin and
, manufacturing glass,
detergents, fertilizers and many more. With all this activity a modern city has grown with a university and other
major amenities.
Tourism
[
]
Mersin does not have the huge volume of tourists enjoyed by neighbouring
or the
coast, but Turkish
people do come to this coast, especially now that the hotels have air-conditioning, and perhaps more to the mountain
country behind where there are healing mineral water springs. In summer the hills are a popular retreat from the high
humidity and extreme heat on the coast. West of Mersin includes bays, and little islands. Yacht touring is a tourism
income in these areas.
Places of interest
[
]
The city of
, birthplace of
, whose house and well are sites of Christian pilgrimage.
- ancient
, buildings include the church of
, the first female saint.
The ancient Roman town of
-Pompeiopolis, now within the city.
The ancient Roman town of
, adjacent to the modern town of
.
Another ancient city of
, 55 km from the city of Mersin.
Castles including
,
and
.
Towns and other geographic features
[
]
Towns
[
]
Archaeological and historical
[
]
Museums
[
]
Other
[
]
(
Yenice Görüşmesi
)
Gallery
[
]
Mediterranean sea
shore
Mersin
Refah monument
Mersin
Light house
Mersin
Harbor
Mersin
Soli ruins
Mamure castle
Aynalıgöl
Aydıncık
Detail from the
mosaic
Aydıncık
Dörtayak
, Mersin
Province
citadel
Kadıncık dam
Maiden's castle
,
Mersin Province.
View from
, Mersin
Province.
See also
[
]
Notes
[
]
. Mersin Büyükşehir Belediyesi. Archived from
on 2019-03-23
. Retrieved
2022-05-12
.
^
(XLS)
.
.
Retrieved
19 September
2023
.
. General Directorate of Mapping
. Retrieved
19 September
2023
.
İçel: Mersin- Tarsus- Çamlıyayla- Erdemli- Silifke- Aydıncık- Bozyazı- Anamur- Gülnar- Mut
(Kültür, Turizm ve Tanıtım
yayınları, 1992), p. 7.
"Present and future Köppen-Geiger climate classification maps at 1-km resolution". Nature Scientific Data.
:
.
(in Turkish). 2022-03-22
. Retrieved
2022-09-27
.
(in Turkish). Turkish State Meteorological Service
.
Retrieved
6 July
2021
.
. National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
. Retrieved
January 15,
2024
.
. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
.
Retrieved
January 15,
2024
.
(CSV)
.
. Retrieved
18 August
2025
.
(PDF)
. TBMM. 20 May 1933. p. 198. Archived from the original on 4 July 2020
.
Retrieved
30 December
2022
.
İçel ve Mersin vilâyetleri birleştirilerek merkezi Mersin olmak üzere 'İçel' vilâyeti teşkil
edilmiştir.
.
mersin.gov.tr
. Retrieved
30 December
2022
.
. Turkish Statistical Institute.
from the
original on 2021-10-28
. Retrieved
7 December
2021
.
External links
[
]
Wikimedia Commons has media
related to
.
2008-11-03 at the
of
Districts
List of
by
are bolded.
are bolded.
Settlements
Center city
Districts
(İlçe)
All settlements
Culture
Universities
Museums etc.
Monuments
Archaeological
wealth
others
Buildings and structures
Modern
Mosques
and
madrasas
Churches
Cemeteries
Dams
Industry and trade
Transportation
Sports venues
Geographical features
Soğuksu Creek
International
Geographic
Other
:
This page was last edited on 6 April 2026, at 23:21
(UTC)
.
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