The Anadolu or Anatolian is a Turkish breed of small horse within the broad Anatolian Native group of breeds. It has some relation to a broad range of western Asian breeds of riding horse.
History
The Anadolu is a traditional breed of Anatolia – the Asian part of Turkey, from which the name of the breed derives – and of eastern and south-eastern Anatolia in particular. It has some relation to a broad range of western Asian breeds, among them the Akhal-Teke, the Arab, the Deliboz, the Kabarda, the Karabakh, the Persian and the Turkoman.
It is the most numerous horse breed of Turkey, but no population data has ever been reported to DAD-IS; in 2025 its conservation status was unknown.
Characteristics
The horses usually stand between at the withers. The profile of the head is variable, ranging from concave or dished to convex.
Use
The Anadolu may be used as a riding horse, as a pack animal or to pull light vehicles.
References Barbara Rischkowsky, Dafydd Pilling (editors) (2007). List of breeds documented in the Global Databank for Animal Genetic Resources, annex to: The State of the World's Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. Rome: Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. . Archived 23 June 2020.
Valerie Porter, Lawrence Alderson, Stephen J.G. Hall, D. Phillip Sponenberg (2016). Mason's World Encyclopedia of Livestock Breeds and Breeding (sixth edition). Wallingford: CABI. .
Breed data sheet: Anatolian / Türkiye (Horse). Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed August 2025.
Valerie Porter, Ian Lauder Mason (2002). Mason's World Dictionary of Livestock Breeds, Types, and Varieties (fifth edition). Wallingford: CABI. .