Devrek

Shows the location of the Province Zonguldak

Devrek is a town and district of Zonguldak Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey. It was founded under the name Hamidiye to be affiliated with the sanjak (subdivision) of Bolu. Devrek was incorporated into the Zonguldak Province on May 14, 1920. Devrek is famous with its "simit" which is similar to the sesame seed bagel and walking stick called "baston".It consists of five quarters, three subdistricts and seventy-six villages. The three subdistricts are Çaydeğirmeni, Eğerci, and Özbağı. According to estimates for the year 2000, the population of the Devrek district is 66,518. The mayor is Özcan Ulupınar (AKP).

Geography and climate

Devrek is in the inner zone of west Black Sea region of Turkey, with an altitude of 86 meters and a surface area of 1,080 km². It is located at 56 km from Zonguldak, 210 km from Ankara and 370 km from Istanbul. Geographically, it is completely surrounded by mountains - the major ones; Babadağı, Göldağı (the highest), Akçasu and Yenice mountains; in Eğerci subdistrict Aksu, Karadere and Kuşkayası mountains. The highest plateau is Aksu and the highest hill is Dorukan. The most important river is Devrek creek. Devrek creek joins the Yenice creek in Gökçebey district and takes the name of Filyos River. Devrek has the most luxuriant forest in that area. Pine, oak, fir tree, beech, elm, chestnut, and lime trees can be found in throughout the area. Mild weather is the characteristic of Devrek. Cool during the summer, warm and rainy in during the winter season.

Social and cultural structure

Every year on the third week of July, there is a festival called "Devrek walking stick and culture festival", which has been celebrated since 1984. The most renowned tourist destination is "Yedigöller (Seven Lakes) National Park", in addition to the famous picnic area called "Bostandüzü".However, "Yedigöller" belongs to another city called "Bolu". It is like 4 hours drive from Devrek. It is not recommended to drive during the winter because of the heavy snow. During February and March there are hunting drives for pigs.

Principal industrial companies

• CİLAS KAUÇUK, (rubber chock products)
• BAŞOĞLU (Forest products ve tyre coating)
• Atılım (Forest products)
• AYANOĞLU A.Ş. (Snail products)
• Devrektaş - (bankrupted) (Forest products)
• Devlas (Rubber chock products)
• Devmer (Marble Fabric)
• Pınartaş (Powder Lime)
• Dev-Ser (white groos first class service)

International relations

Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in Turkey

Twin towns — Sister cities

Devrek is twinned with:

Arua, Uganda

Suspected cities

Betio, Kiribati

Moroni, Comoros

External links

• District governor's official website (Turkish)

Coordinates: 41°13′31″N 31°57′37″E / 41.22528°N 31.96028°E / 41.22528; 31.96028