Gaziantep

Gaziantep (gä'zēän`tĕp), formerly Aintab (īntäb`), city (1990 pop. 627,584), capital of Gaziantep prov., S Turkey. Gaziantep is an important trading and manufacturing center known for its textiles, pistachio nuts, copperware, and furniture inlaid with mother-of-pearl. An ancient Hittite city, it was occupied (8th cent. B.C.) by Sargon of Assyria. It occupied a strategic position in the Crusades and was taken by Saladin in 1183. It was the center of Turkish resistance (1920–21) to the French occupation of the region. After a long siege it was captured by the French, but was returned to Turkey in 1921. For its heroic resistance the city was awarded the title of Gazi, which means "Warrior for the Faith" or "Veteran," and from that time has been known as Gaziantep.

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Gaziantep

City (pop., 2000: 853,513), south-central Turkey. Located north of Aleppo, it was strategically situated near ancient trade routes and has been inhabited since the early 4th millennium BC. Known as Hamtap, it was an important stronghold guarding the Syrian-Byzantine border routes. It was captured by Turks in 1183 and later changed hands among various invaders until its absorption into the Ottoman Empire in the early 16th century. Called Aintab (or Ayintap) under the Ottomans, it was occupied by the British and French after World War I (1914–18). By then it was a centre of Turkish nationalist resistance to European occupation, and, upon its return to Turkey in 1922, it was renamed in honour of its heroic stand (Turkish gazi, “champion”).

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Gaziantep

a city in S Turkey: base for Ibrahim Pasha's campaign against the Turks (1839) and centre of Turkish resistance to French forces (1921). Pop.: 1 004 000 (2005 est.)