Siverek (; ; ) is a municipality and district of Şanlıurfa Province, Turkey.Büyükşehir İlçe Belediyesi, Turkey Civil Administration Departments Inventory. Retrieved 19 September 2023. Its area is 3,936 km2, and its population is 267,942 (2022). Siverek is in the Şanlıurfa province but is geographically closer to the larger city of Diyarbakır (approx. 83 km).
Etymology Siverek was historically known in medieval Arabic as Hisn ar-Ran (), which was corrupted into Greek as Chasanara (), as found in the Escorial Taktikon.
The word "Siverek" is of Armenian origin. In Byzantine sources, it is mentioned as Sevaverag. The literal meaning of this name used for Siverek in Byzantine and Armenian sources is Sev "black" and Averag "ruins". Other ways to spell Sevaverag include Sebabarak, Sebabarok, Sevaverak, Severags and Suveyda.
History The town came under Byzantine control sometime after AD 956 and had become the seat of a strategos by the early 970s. Together with Edessa, Gargar, Samosata and Hisn Mansur formed part of the Byzantine defence system up to the 1060s when 200 Frankish horsemen were stationed there.
In the Ottoman Empire period, Siverek was within the Diyarbekir vilayet, and it had several Christian settlements.
2026 school shooting
Demographics 9,275 Armenians lived in the kaza on the eve of the First World War according to the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople. They had eight churches and three schools. 5,450 Armenians and 1,200 Assyrians lived in the town of Siverek. 6,550 Assyrians lived in 32 surrounding villages. Armenian men were massacred in May 1915, followed by the deportation of the women and children, as part of the Armenian genocide. Faiz El-Ghusein reported that the road between Urfa and Severek was littered with corpses.
Politics In common with other districts of Şanlıurfa, business and politics in Siverek are strongly influenced, even controlled, by a powerful clan. Siverek is the home town of Sedat Bucak, the former DYP member of parliament who survived the car crash in the Susurluk scandal. He is the leader of the Bucak tribe, one of whom has represented the area in the Turkish Parliament since its foundation. Sedat Bucak remains a friend of former DYP leader Mehmet Ağar. In the local elections in March 2019, Şehmus Aydın was elected mayor. He resigned due to health problems in 2020, and was succeeded by Ayşe Çakmak (AKP).Siverek Belediye Başkanlığına Ayşe Çakmak seçildi, Anadolu Agency, 3 December 2020. The current kaymakam is Musa Aydemir.
Composition There are 180 neighbourhoods in Siverek District:Mahalle, Turkey Civil Administration Departments Inventory. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
Abdalağa Alagün Alanyurt Altaylı Altınahır Altınlı Altınpınar Anacak Armağanlı Aşağı Alınca Aşağı Karabahçe Aşağı Karacaören Aşağıyalankoz Aşlıca Atmaca Avurtepe Ayrancı Ayvanat Azıklı Bağcı Bağlar Bahçe Bahçelievler Bakı Takoran Bakırca Bakmaç Bardakçı Başbük Başdeğirmen Batı Bayırözü Beğdeş Benek Beyali Beybaba Beyçeri Böğürtlen Bozkuyu Bozlak Bürüncek Büyük Kazanlı Büyük Oba Büyük Tepe Büyük Yakıtlı Büyükgöl Çağa Çağdaş Camiikebir Çanakçı Canpolat Çatlı Çavuşlu Çaylarbaşı Çeltik Çepni Çevirme Çiftçibaşı Çinhisar Çubuklu Dağbaşı Damlıca Dardağan Darıcalı Deliktaş Dicle Dilekli Direkli Divan Doğukent Dönemeç Düğerin Ediz Eğriçay Endarlı Erbey Ergen Erkonağı Ertem Eskihan Esmerçayı Fırat Fırın Gaziköy Gedik Gerçek Gözcek Gözelek Gözeli Gülabibey Güllice Gülpınar Güney Güney Karabahçe Gürakar Güvenli Güvercin Güzelpınar Hacıömer Haliliye Hamamören Hamidiye Hasançelebi Hasırlı Hayriye İleri İnanlı Kale Kalemli Kalınağaç Kamışlı Kapıkaya Karabahçe Karacadağ Karadibek Karahisar Karakeçi Karakoyun Kargalı Karkaşı Karpuzcu Kavaklıdere Kavalık Kayalı Kayseri Keçiburcu Keçikıran Keş Kesmekaya Kıvançlı Konurtepe Küçükgöl Kulaksız Küptepe Kurbağalı Kuşlugöl Mezraa Narlıkaya Nohut Ofis Oluklu Onar Önder Örgülü Ortanca Oyman Oyuktaş Peynirci Sabancı Şairibrahimrafet Salur Sarıdam Sarıkaya Sarıören Savucak Şekerli Selimpınar Şirinkuyu Sislice Soydan Söylemez Sumaklı Tanrıverdi Taşağıl Taşhan Taşıkara Taşlı Turna Ülkülü Üstüntaş Uzunpınar Uzunziyaret Yeleken Yeniceli Yenişehir Yoğunca Yoğurtçu Yücelen Yumrutepe Yuvar Zincirliçay
Climate Siverek has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification: Csa).
Notable people
Osman Efendîyo Babij (1852-1929), Kurdish religious figure Yılmaz Güney (1937–1984), Kurdish film director, scenarist, novelist and actor Necmettin Büyükkaya, (1943-1984), Kurdish activist Mehmed Uzun (1953–2007), Kurdish writer Sedat Bucak (b. 1960), politician Adnan Selçuk Mızraklı (b. 1963), politician İbrahim Ayhan (1968-2018), politician Filiz İşikırık (b. 1993), footballer Remziye Bakır (b. 1997), footballer
References
Sources
External links District governor's office Siverek News Siverek Municipality