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Definition: Istanbul from Collins English Dictionary

n

1 a port in NW Turkey, on the western (European) shore of the Bosporus: the largest city in Turkey; founded in about 660 bc by Greeks; refounded by Constantine the Great in 330 ad as the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire; taken by the Turks in 1453 and remained capital of the Ottoman Empire until 1922; industrial centre for shipbuilding, textiles, etc. Pop: 9 760 000 (2005 est) Ancient name: Byzantium Former name (330–1926): Constantinople

Istanbul

From Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World
Istanbul is the cultural and economic capital of modernday Turkey. As Turkey's largest city, its 14 million inhabitants constitute 18 percent of the country's population. However, it has not been the administrative capital since the founding of the Republic of Turkey (1923). Before that and for over 1,500 years of its history, it was an imperial capital of the Eastern Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman Empires. The city was established by Emperor Constantine on the site of an older Greek colony (330) CE , at which time it became known as both New Rome and Constantinople, the city of Constantine. Its conquest in 857/1453 by the Ottomans became a catalyst in the growth of what used to be a frontier principality into a world empire. Today, the city's exact beginnings are uncertain as construction work on a new suburban train line in Yenikapı led in 2005 to the discovery of an ancient port, taking the city's timeline back to 8,500 years ago. Istanbul is located in northwestern Turkey, …
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Full text Article Byzantium

From The Classical Tradition
Successor state to the Roman Empire in the eastern Mediterranean. As with Rome, the name Byzantium (Greek Byzantion) originated with a founding city. Unlike Rome, the city of Byzantium was rechristened at a crucial point in its history, and only the state with its spreading dominions retained the…
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Full text Article Istanbul

From Environmental History and Global Change: A Dictionary of Environmental History
Originally Byzantium, later Constantinople, the 5th largest city in the world (12.8 million population) on the Bosphorous Strait between the Mediterranean and Black Sea , overlooking the harbour of the Golden Horn. Originally Phonecian then Greek colonies were established here before it became the…
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Full text Article Istanbul

From Philip's Encyclopedia
City and seaport in NW Turkey, astride the Bosporus , partly in Europe and partly in Asia, at the entrance to the Sea of Marmara. The city was founded by Greek colonists in the 7th century bc . It was known as Byzantium until ad 330 when Constantine I chose it as the capital of the Eastern Roman…
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Full text Article Istanbul

From Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World
Istanbul is the cultural and economic capital of modernday Turkey. As Turkey's largest city, its 14 million inhabitants constitute 18 percent of the country's population. However, it has not been the administrative capital since the founding of the Republic of Turkey (1923). Before that and for over…
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Full text Article Istanbul

From The Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets
is Turkey's largest city, known in antiquity as Byzantium and from the fourth century until the Turkish conquest in 1453 as Constantinople. The city was first settled around 6500 b.c.e. , and it was through the surrounding region that agriculture spread from the Near East into Europe the following…
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Full text Article Istanbul

From Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedias in Social Sciences: The Wiley-Blackwell Encyclopedia of Urban and Regional Studies
In how many cities of the world does a list of “must-see places” cover ancient buildings from 330 ce , a transcontinental bridge development from 2016, relics from all major Abrahamic faiths, and many ancient and modern masterpieces, including Hagia Sophia, that have changed the course of…
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Full text Article İstanbul

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
(ĭs´´tănbōl', ĭstan'bōl), city (1990 pop. 6,748,435), capital of İstanbul prov., NW Turkey, on both sides of the Bosporus at its entrance into the Sea of Marmara. Its name was officially changed from Constantinople to İstanbul in 1930; before A.D. 330 it was known as Byzantium. (For the history of…
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Full text Article Istanbul

From Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
City and seaport (pop., 2000: 8,803,468), Turkey. Situated on a peninsula at the entrance to the Black Sea , Turkey’s largest city lies on either side of the Bosporus and thus is located in both Europe and Asia. Byzantium was founded as a Greek colony in the 8th century bc . Passing to the Persian…
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Full text Article Istanbul

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide
City and chief seaport of Turkey, on both sides of the Bosporus at its entrance into the Sea of Marmara; population (2003 est) 9,419,00, urban agglomeration 10,048,900. It produces textiles, shoes, motor vehicles, ships, chemicals, food products, tobacco, cement, glass, and leather. The city is…
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Full text Article İstanbul

From Merriam-Webster's Geographical Dictionary
anc. By•zan•ti•um \bə-ˈzan-shəm, -shē-əm, -tē-əm\. Province of Turkey, on both sides of Bosporus, thus partly in Europe and partly in Asia. See table at turkey . anc. By•zan•ti•um \bə-ˈzan-shəm, -shē-əm, -tē-əm\. City, its ✽, on both sides of the Bosporus; old part of city on W side of the Bosporus; …
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