Kayseri

Kayseri (Turkish pronunciation: [ˈkajseɾi]) is a large city in Central Anatolia, Turkey, and the capital of Kayseri province. Historically known as Caesarea, it has been the historical capital of Cappadocia since ancient times. The Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality area is composed of five districts: the two central districts of Kocasinan and Melikgazi, and since 2004, also outlying Hacılar, İncesu, and Talas.

As of 31 December 2024, the province had a population of 1 452 458 of whom 1 210 983 lived in the four urban districts (Melikgazi, Kocasinan, Talas, Incesu), excluding İncesu which is not conurbated, meaning it is not contiguous and has a largely non-protected buffer zone.

Kayseri sits at the foot of Mount Erciyes (Turkish: Erciyes Dağı), a dormant volcano that reaches an altitude of 3,917 metres (12,851 feet), more than 1,500 metres above the city's mean altitude. It contains a number of historic monuments, particularly from the Seljuk period. Tourists often pass through Kayseri en route to the attractions of Cappadocia to the west. Kayseri is known for local dishes such as sucuk, pastırma, and mantı, which are commonly associated with the region.

Kayseri is served by Erkilet International Airport and is home to Erciyes University.

Kayseri has been equated with the early Hittite kingdom of Kussara, referenced sporadically in early Assyrian trading records. It was called Mazaka or Mazaca (Armenian: Մաժաք, romanized: Mažak'; according to Armenian tradition, it was founded by and named after Mishak) and was known as such to the geographer Strabo, during whose time it was the capital of the Roman province of Cappadocia, known also as Eusebia at the Argaeus (Εὐσέβεια ἡ πρὸς τῷ Ἀργαίῳ in Greek), after Ariarathes V Eusebes, King of Cappadocia (r. 163–130 BC).

In 14 AD its name was changed by Archelaus (d. 17 AD), the last King of Cappadocia (r. 36 BC–14 AD) and a Roman vassal, to "Caesarea in Cappadocia" (to distinguish it from other cities with the name Caesarea in the Roman Empire) in honour of Caesar Augustus upon his death. This name was rendered as Καισάρεια (Kaisáreia) in Koine Greek, the dialect of the later Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire, and it remained in use by the natives (nowadays known as Cappadocian Greeks, due to their spoken language, but then referred to as Rum due to their previous Roman citizenship) until their expulsion from Turkey in 1924. (Note that letter C in classical Latin was pronounced K. This pronunciation was adapted by the Arabs, who called the city Kaisariyah (قيصرية), and the Turks, who gave the city its current name Kayseri (قیصری)).

Kayseri experienced three golden ages. The first, dating to 2000 BC, was when the city formed a trade post between the Assyrians and the Hittites. The second came under Roman rule from the 1st to the 11th centuries. The third golden age was during the reign of the Seljuks (1178–1243), when the city was the second capital of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum.

As Mazaca (Ancient Greek: Μάζακα), the city served as the residence of the kings of Cappadocia. In ancient times, it was on the crossroads of the trade routes from Sinope to the Euphrates and from the Persian Royal Road that extended from Sardis to Susa during the 200+ years of Achaemenid Persian rule. In Roman times, a similar route from Ephesus to the East also crossed the city.