The City of Karaburun gave its name to the Peninsula it is located on. Though it isn’t known with certainty since when the Karaburun Peninsula was inhabited, traces of settlements dating from the Calcolithic period (5000 B.C. – 3000 B.C.) have been found on the Peninsula. The fact that some tools and artifacts from the Bronze Age have been found in a cave at only 4 km. from Karaburun City, proves that Karaburun has a very old history. 

The oldest known name for the Peninsula was Mimas. An old Greek mythological tale gives us the explanation for this name. During the period of the Ionian Confederation, a settlement named Stelar or Stylarius existed on the place where modern Karaburun lays today. Middle age maps use the name of  Capo Calaberno for the Peninsula. Once the Peninsula came under Turkish control, the city of Karaburun was called Ahurlu or Ahırlı, meaning “The stables”. It was only in Ottoman times that it took the name of Karaburun.

The world famous seaman Piri Reis (16^th century), gives detailed information on the coastal line of the Peninsula in his Kitab-i Bahriye. The well known traveler Evliya Çelebi, who lived during the second half of the 17^th century, visited Karaburun and described the city as being “the source of income of the Mullah of Izmir, a place with one mosque, one Turkish bath, 7 shops and surrounded by olive groves and vineyards”.

It is also plausible that the name of “Karaburun” has been derived from the name “Calaberno”. Yet another explanation could be found in the fact that in pre-muslim times the Turks used the word “Kara” for “north” and “Ak” for “south”. This would explain the origin of the word “Karaburun” (North cape) which indeed forms the northern part of the Peninsula and “Akburun” (South cape), which lays more southwards on the eastern coast of the Peninsula (near Esendere)

Home | Municipality | Karaburun | Galleries | Announcements | Info | Links

Service guide | Water bills | Real estate taxes | Site map | Turkce | Deutsch