- published: 03 Dec 2015
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Çorum Province (Turkish: Çorum ili) is a province in the Black Sea Region of Turkey, but lying inland and having more characteristics of Central Anatolia than the Black Sea coast.
With important archaeological sites going back 5,000 years and a unique natural beauty, Çorum is attractive to visitors.
The province of Çorum is a mixture of mountains and high plateaus, some of it watered by the Kızılırmak and Yeşilırmak rivers. The province includes much attractive high meadow and mountain for walking and excursions from the city and towns.
Excavations reveal that Çorum area was inhabited during the Paleolithic, Neolithic period and the 4th stage of the Calcolithic Age. Remains of these periods have been found at Büyük Güllüce, Eskiyapar and Kuşsaray.
In later times Çorum and its environs were dominated by Hittites and in the district of Boğazkale is one of the most important Hittite sites in Anatolia, the UNESCO World Heritage listed Hattusa, the capital of the Hittite Empire from 1700 BC to 1200 BC. Other important Hittite site include the open-air temples at Yazılıkaya and Alacahöyük; royal tombs; and the excavations of Boğazköy including tablets proving tradings links between the Hittites and the Ancient Egyptians.
Çorum (Turkish pronunciation: [ˈtʃoɾum]) is a landlocked northern Anatolian city that is the capital of the Çorum Province of Turkey. Çorum is located inland in the central Black Sea Region of Turkey, and is approximately 244 km (152 mi) from Ankara and 608 km (378 mi) from Istanbul. The city has an elevation of 801 m (2,628 ft) above sea level, a surface area of 12,820 km² (4950 mi²), and as of the 2009 census, a population of 218,130.
Çorum is primarily known for its Phrygian and Hittite archaeological sites, its thermal springs, and its native dried chick-pea snacks known nationally as leblebi.
The history of the area around the present-day city is known to go as far back as the Paleolithic ages, with small settlements and tools from the era variously having been excavated over the past century.
The town also seems to have been an Assyrian trading post acting as a connection between Anatolia and Mesopotamia between 1950-1850 BC.
The city and surrounding area rose to prominence with the emergence of the Hittite Empire between 1650-1200 BC, under the patronage of which the arts and local economy significantly developed and prospered. Hattusa, the capital of Hittite Empire, was located in the region owing to its inherent geographic protection, and the well-established local economy as supported by the regional Karum system.