Hatay; The City of Tolerance
Mosaics add an aura of great value to a center where different faiths meet in harmony with a culinary art worth exploring. The cultural diversity here adds more and more to the colorfulness of this region.
Hatay is an inexhaustible treasure house of history and a centre of civilizations. The evidence of the earliest settlement extends back as far as the Epipaleolithic Period (40.000- 9.000 BC) and can be seen in the caves found in Altınözü, Samandağ-Çevlik, Antakya-Şenköy and Yayladağ-Üçağızlı. From 9000 BC onwards, Hatay was controlled successively by the Akkadians, the Hurrians, the Hittites, the Assyrians, the Persians, the Macedonians, the Romans, the Arabs, the Byzantines, the Seljuks, the Crusaders, the Mamluks, and the Ottomans.
Hatay Province’s capitalAntakya, the biblical city of Antioch, lies on the banks of Asi River (Orontes) on a fertile plain surrounded by grand mountains. Once the capital of the Seleucid kings, it was renowned for its wealth and luxury. In the 7th century, Antioch was one of five patriarchal centres of the Christian church, the others being Rome, Alexandria, Jerusalem, and İstanbul (Constantinople). In Roman times, the city continued to thrive with commerce and culture. It featured prominently in early Christianity where the name ”Christian” was first coined.
With its 10.000 years of history that has hosted 13 civilizations, Hatay still maintains its legacy of tolerance for thousands of years with their “there is no you or me, there is only us” motto. Hatay, where tombs belonging to three celestial religions are located side by side and where you will have the opportunity to hear the prayer, bells and gems all together in the same street, offers unique experiences as millennia of tolerance and brotherhood meet with Turkish hospitality. And tables filled with Hatay’s unique dishes such as zahter salad, pepper bread, oruk and künefe, where you will share those experiences will make it even more unforgettable. Don’t forget to visit Uzun Çarşı for souveniers to remind you of Hatay until your next trip.
Destinations in Hatay
Titus Vespasianus Tunnel
The tunnel, which was included in the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List in 2014, was started to be built in 69 AD by the order of the Roman Emperor Vespasian against life-threatening floods and high-water. The construction of the tunnel that would circumvent the city and change the direction of the currents continued until Vespasian’s successor and son Titus’s period 81 AD and it was completed by Antonius Pius in the 2nd century AD. Roman legions and slaves worked in the construction of the tunnel, which was completely carved into the mountain and is 1380 m long, 7 m high and 6 m wide.
Rock Tombs and Beşikli Cave
The cave is near the Titus Tunnel. In the tombs carved into the rocky slopes, there are 12 royal tombs belonging to the Romans, as well as tombs of the kings’ families and the general public. Just above the Necropolis are the remains of the study rooms that were used as official offices at that time.
Saint Pierre and Saint Paul Church
The construction of the Orthodox Church on Hürriyet Caddesi in Antakya, known as a place where three celestial religions converge, started in the 1860s, but it was damaged by the earthquake of 1872 and destroyed.
The church, which was opened for worship in 1900, has a rectangular plan. The church, whose courtyard is surrounded by porticos, is open to worship today.
Harbiye
Harbiye, which is the Çağlayanlar Region of Hatay, is connected to Antakya with an 8 km road. The ancient names of these waterfalls, which flow into the Asi river, are Kastalia, Pallas and Saramanna.
From the findings obtained in archaeological researches, it is understood that this region has been used as a settlement since 4500-3000 BC. In the Hellenistic and Roman periods, the wealthy people built large mansions and villas to be used as a recreation area in archaic age, as it is today. Seleucus Nikator I, one of the generals of the Macedonian king Alexander the Great, constructed here while building up Antakya.
The Apollon Temple was built during the time of Antiochos Epiphanos, one of the Hellenistic kings. It gained fame with the races and games organized in the name of Apollon in the whole Near East in ancient times.
According to the Legend of Apollon and Daphne, the Harbiye Waterfalls, where the Nymph Daphne, who escaped from God of Light Apollon, turned into a laurel tree, and which is still flowing today is believed to be Daphne’s tears.
Samandağ Çevlik
There are cave settlements in the region dating back to the Paleolithic Age. It is especially known for Titus Tunnel and Rock Tombs.
Samandağ-Çevlik beach, which is one of the longest beaches in the world with a length of 14 km, is one of the spawning points for sea turtles.
Samandağ Musa Tree
The tree is located in Hıdırbey Village in Samandağ District of Hatay. Rumor has it that Hz. Hızır and Hz. Moses met in Samandağ Seaside and climbed the mountain together. When they come to the point where this tree is located, Hz. Moses thrust his staff into the ground, bent down and drank water. When he looked again, he saw that the staff was turning green and turned into a sapling. It is believed that the sapling, which came to life from Adam’s wine, has developed over thousands of years and taken its present form.
Hatay Archaeological Museum
Findings mostly dating back to the Roman period in the excavations carried out in Antakya between the years 1932-1939 revealed the richness and grandeur of the city. Many artifacts, including the rich mosaic artifact collection unearthed during the excavations in Antakya, Harbiye and Samandağ, are stored or exhibited in approximately 20 museums around the world such as Princeton University Art Museum (USA), Worcester Museum (USA), Louvre (France) as well as Hatay Archeology Museum today.
Uzun Bazaar
It is a historical bazaar in the center of Antakya, which consists of many sections and has served the people living in this city for centuries. The bazaar consists of historical inns, baths, mosques, historical trees and structures. There are many inns (han) and covered bazaars such as Kurşunlu Han, Sidikli Han, Sokullu Han in the bazaar. Cindi Hamamı (bath), Saka Hamamı, Meydan Hamamı, Yeni Hamam are also historical baths that still serve.
Saint Pierre Church
Accepted “the first cave church in the world”, St. Pierre Church is located on the Antakya-Reyhanlı road, on the western slope of Stauris Haç Mountain, which is an extension of Habib-i Neccar Mountain and in the east of the city. The building, which was transformed into a church with additions when it was a natural cave, has a gothic style with the additional construction made on its front facade in the 12th and 13th centuries. The church was included in the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List in 2011.
St. Pierre, one of the 12 apostles of Jesus, came to Antakya between 29-40 AD and held his first religious meeting in the cave known as St. Pierre today. It is believed to be the first place where St. Pierre preached and that the congregation in the cave was named “Christian” (Hristos) for the first time. Therefore St. Pierre Church is known as the first church of Christianity.
St. Pierre (Saint Petrus) Church was declared a “place of Pilgrimage” by Pope VI in 1963. In the church, which is visited with a modern city view in the background, a ritual is organized by the Catholic Church every year on 29 June.
The cave floor has some mosaic remains belonging to the 4th and 5th centuries. There is an altar, a small marble statue of St. Pierre in a niche, holy water and a tunnel for the congregation to escape secretly during an attack on the church as well. Thousands of local and foreign tourists visit St. Pierre Church every year.
Antakya Ulu Mosque
Ulu Mosque, the oldest and largest among Antakya mosques, is a structure of the social complex, which consists of structures such as a madrasah, summer mosque, şadırvan (water tank with a fountain) fountain, imaret (soup-kitchen) and shops built in different periods, located in the central district of Antakya in Hatay province. The exact construction date of the mosque is unknown. The oldest data that has been found on this subject is the date of 670 (1271) in an inscription found in the minaret and it belongs to the period when Mamluk Sultan Baybars I ruled the city.
Habib-i Neccar Mosque
Habib-i Neccar Mosque was built in 638, when Antakya was dominated by Muslim Arabs. It is accepted to be the first mosque in Anatolia and the Republic of Türkiye. The mosque on Kurtuluş Caddesi was named after an Antiochian who was the first to believe in the apostles of Jesus and died for this cause.
Rumor has it that in the 40s AD, when the helpers of Jesus came to Antakya and tried to explain that God is one, a carpenter (neccar) was the first among those who believed in them. The carpenter gave up his Pagan belief and joined them. However, the new sermons of the apostles angered the people. The king put the apostles in prison. Upon this, a new envoy, Şem’un Safa (Simun Petrus), was sent to Antakya. Şem’un convinced the king with his miracles and saved his friends. The people were determined not to believe in the apostles. The people planned to stone him to death because they thought he brought bad luck. Habib-i Neccar was killed while trying to stop the angry people.
The mosque was built in the place of an old temple during the period of Mamluk Emperor Baybars. In the northeast corner of the mosque, 4 meters below the ground, there are the tombs of Habib-Neccar and Şem’un Safa, and at the entrance there are the tombs of John of patmos and Pavlos. It is surrounded by madrasah rooms. The fountain in the courtyard of the mosque is a 19th century work.
Old Antakya Houses and Streets
Antakya houses that shape its typical narrow streets and give life to these streets with high stone walls, usually single-storey or two-storey architectural structures with rooms around the courtyard inside reflect the way of life, traditions and customs of the people. The houses were made of stone, mudbrick and wood in a way that they have little connection to the streets.
Most of the houses have large courtyards, pools, wells, orchards adorned with fruit trees and flowers. In these houses, which were built 2 centuries ago; ornamentation and craftsmanship are observed in the style of Anatolian architecture.
Catholic Church
The church, located in Kurtuluş Caddesi in the city center of Antakya, was opened for worship in the 19th century, when an old Antakya house was converted into a church with a special permission from the Ottoman sultan. The church, which is one of the pillars of the tolerance triangle where the mosque, synagogue and church are located and which is also known as the framework of belief in Antakya has a history of 600 years.
Vakıflı Village
Vakıflı, the only Armenian village of Türkiye, that is 4 km from Hatay’s Samandağ district, is also one of Türkiye’s first organic villages. The village’s two green gardens and the scent of orange blossoms, spread over the broad foothills of Kel Mountain and Musa Mountain, enchant visitors. The entire village population consists of Turkish citizens of Armenian origin.
Vakıflı stands out with products such as organic wine, jam, olive oil, boğma raki made of figs and liqueur made of myrtle fruit produced by the Armenians. The village continues its traditions with the religious ceremonies of Christmas, Easter and the Ascension of the Virgin Mary every year.
Rediscovering Turkish cuisine in Antakya
Antakya, located in the border province of Hatay, is a melting pot of religions and cultures. It is said to be influenced by 13 civilizations from the ancient world. The city was once held by Akkadians, Hittites, Assyrians, Persians, Seleucids, Romans, Arabs, Byzantines, Seljuks, Crusaders, Mamluks, Ottomans, and the French. Hatay is now a part of Türkiye since 1939.
As most Antakya locals will tell you, visitors come here for the food but stay for the rich culture and elegant mosaics. Although unfairly overshadowed by the neighboring Adana’s delicious kebabs and Türkiye’s food capital Gaziantep, this charming Mediterranean city boasts a unique culinary tradition blending the Middle Eastern, Anatolian, and the Mediterranean ingredients and flavours.
The city is blessed with thyme-scented mountains, shores with a refreshing breeze, and plains covered with fragrant lemon, orange, olive, fig groves, and vineyards. Spices and aromatic herbs also abound thanks to its mild climate and extremely rich flora. It is estimated that the Antakya kitchen offers over 600 dishes.