World Factbook
Turkey
Turkey Cumhuriyeti
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Area
land
769,632 sq km
water
13,930 sq km
total
783,562 sq km
Climate
temperate; hot, dry summers with mild, wet winters; harsher in interior
Terrain
high central plateau (Anatolia); narrow coastal plain; several mountain ranges
Land use
other
20.5% (2023 est.)
forest
29.3% (2023 est.)
agricultural land
50.1% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: arable land
arable land: 26.3% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent crops
permanent crops: 4.8% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent pasture
permanent pasture: 19% (2023 est.)
Location
Southeastern Europe and Southwestern Asia (that portion of Turkey west of the Bosporus is geographically part of Europe), bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Georgia, and bordering the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, between Greece and Syria
Coastline
7,200 km
Elevation
lowest point
Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point
Mount Ararat 5,137 m
mean elevation
1,132 m
Irrigated land
52,150 sq km (2022)
Map references
Middle East
Land boundaries
total
2,816 km
border countries
Armenia 311 km; Azerbaijan 17 km; Bulgaria 223 km; Georgia 273 km; Greece 192 km; Iran 534 km; Iraq 367 km; Syria 899 km
Maritime claims
note
note: 12 nm in Black Sea and in Mediterranean Sea
territorial sea
6 nm in the Aegean Sea
exclusive economic zone
in Black Sea only: to the maritime boundary agreed on with the former USSR
Natural hazards
severe earthquakes, especially in northern Turkey, along an arc extending from the Sea of Marmara to Lake Van; landslides; flooding volcanism: limited volcanic activity; the three historically active volcanoes (Ararat, Nemrut Dagi, and Tendurek Dagi) have not erupted since the 19th century or earlier
Geography - note
strategic location controlling the Turkish Straits (Bosporus, Sea of Marmara, Dardanelles) that link the Black and Aegean Seas; the 3% of Turkish territory north of the Straits lies in Europe and goes by the names of European Turkey, Eastern Thrace, or Turkish Thrace; the 97% of the country in Asia is referred to as Anatolia; Istanbul, which straddles the Bosporus, is the only metropolis in the world located on two continents; Mount Ararat, reputed to be the landing place of Noah's ark, is in the far-eastern part of the country
Natural resources
coal, iron ore, copper, chromium, antimony, mercury, gold, barite, borate, celestite (strontium), emery, feldspar, limestone, magnesite, marble, perlite, pumice, pyrites (sulfur), clay, arable land, hydropower
Area - comparative
slightly larger than Texas
Geographic coordinates
39 00 N, 35 00 E
Population distribution
the most densely populated area is found around the Bosporus in the northwest, where 20% of the population lives in Istanbul; with the exception of Ankara, urban centers remain small and scattered throughout the interior of Anatolia; an overall pattern of peripheral development exists, particularly along the Aegean Sea coast in the west, and the Tigris and Euphrates River systems in the southeast
Major lakes (area sq km)
salt water lake(s)
Lake Van - 3,740 sq km; Lake Tuz - 1,640 sq km;
fresh water lake(s)
Lake Beysehir - 650 sq km; Lake Egridir - 520 sq km
Major watersheds (area sq km)
Indian Ocean drainage
(Persian Gulf) Tigris and Euphrates (918,044 sq km)
Major rivers (by length in km)
Euphrates river source (shared with Syria, Iran, and Iraq [m]) - 3,596 km; Tigris river source (shared with Syria, Iran, and Iraq [m]) - 1,950 km note: [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth