- Istanbul (Wikipedia)
Istanbul is the largest city in Turkey, constituting the country’s economic, cultural, and historical center. With a population of over 15 million, it is home to 18% of the population of Turkey. Istanbul is among the largest cities in Europe and in the world by population. It is a city on two continents; about two-thirds of its population live in Europe and the rest in Asia. Istanbul straddles the Bosphorus – one of the world’s busiest waterways – in northwestern Turkey, between the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea. Its area of 5,461 square kilometers (2,109 mi2) is coterminous with Istanbul Province.
- Istanbul (Wikiquote)
Istanbul, formerly known as Constantinople, is the most populous city in Turkey. Istanbul is a transcontinental city in Eurasia, straddling the Bosphorus Strait (which separates Europe and Asia) between the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea. Its commercial and historical center lies on the European side and about a third of its population lives on the Asian side. The city is the administrative center of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (coterminous with Istanbul Province), both hosting a population of around 14.7 million residents. Istanbul is one of the world’s most populous cities and ranks as the world’s 7th-largest city proper and the largest European city.
- Istanbul (Wikivoyage)
Istanbul (Turkish: İstanbul) is a very large city of fantastic history, culture and beauty. Called Byzantium in ancient times, the city’s name was changed to Constantinople in 324 CE when it was rebuilt by the first Christian Roman Emperor, Constantine. The name “Istanbul”, perhaps surprisingly, comes from Greek and could be translated as a corruption of “to the city”. While the term had been in widespread use for centuries, it only became the official name of the city upon the foundation of the Republic of Turkey in the 1920s.