Turkey Map – Cities & Towns [TR]

Turkey is easiest to understand on a map when you read it in layers. First come cities as province names, then districts, then the smaller labels that often represent towns and neighbourhoods. Once you know what each label usually stands for, a Turkey map becomes fast to scan and simple to compare.

Turkey Map – Cities & Towns

At A Glance

81 provinces (Il)
7 geographic regions
01–81 licence plate codes for provinces
5 digits postal codes, starting with the province code

What Most Maps Show

Province borders as the main outline
District names inside each province
Town labels near roads, coasts, or valleys
Merkez marking the central district in many provinces

All Provinces In Turkey By Plate Code

The table below lists every province and its plate code. The third column uses a plain Latin spelling that can help when a keyboard does not include Turkish letters.

Plate Code	Province Name	Plain Latin Spelling
01	Adana	Adana
02	Adıyaman	Adiyaman
03	Afyonkarahisar	Afyonkarahisar
04	Ağrı	Agri
05	Amasya	Amasya
06	Ankara	Ankara
07	Antalya	Antalya
08	Artvin	Artvin
09	Aydın	Aydin
10	Balıkesir	Balikesir
11	Bilecik	Bilecik
12	Bingöl	Bingol
13	Bitlis	Bitlis
14	Bolu	Bolu
15	Burdur	Burdur
16	Bursa	Bursa
17	Çanakkale	Canakkale
18	Çankırı	Cankiri
19	Çorum	Corum
20	Denizli	Denizli
21	Diyarbakır	Diyarbakir
22	Edirne	Edirne
23	Elazığ	Elazig
24	Erzincan	Erzincan
25	Erzurum	Erzurum
26	Eskişehir	Eskisehir
27	Gaziantep	Gaziantep
28	Giresun	Giresun
29	Gümüşhane	Gumushane
30	Hakkâri	Hakkari
31	Hatay	Hatay
32	Isparta	Isparta
33	Mersin	Mersin
34	İstanbul	Istanbul
35	İzmir	Izmir
36	Kars	Kars
37	Kastamonu	Kastamonu
38	Kayseri	Kayseri
39	Kırklareli	Kirklareli
40	Kırşehir	Kirsehir
41	Kocaeli	Kocaeli
42	Konya	Konya
43	Kütahya	Kutahya
44	Malatya	Malatya
45	Manisa	Manisa
46	Kahramanmaraş	Kahramanmaras
47	Mardin	Mardin
48	Muğla	Mugla
49	Muş	Mus
50	Nevşehir	Nevsehir
51	Niğde	Nigde
52	Ordu	Ordu
53	Rize	Rize
54	Sakarya	Sakarya
55	Samsun	Samsun
56	Siirt	Siirt
57	Sinop	Sinop
58	Sivas	Sivas
59	Tekirdağ	Tekirdag
60	Tokat	Tokat
61	Trabzon	Trabzon
62	Tunceli	Tunceli
63	Şanlıurfa	Sanliurfa
64	Uşak	Usak
65	Van	Van
66	Yozgat	Yozgat
67	Zonguldak	Zonguldak
68	Aksaray	Aksaray
69	Bayburt	Bayburt
70	Karaman	Karaman
71	Kırıkkale	Kirikkale
72	Batman	Batman
73	Şırnak	Sirnak
74	Bartın	Bartin
75	Ardahan	Ardahan
76	Iğdır	Igdir
77	Yalova	Yalova
78	Karabük	Karabuk
79	Kilis	Kilis
80	Osmaniye	Osmaniye
81	Düzce	Duzce

Reading The Province Names Fast

If you see İ and I, they are different letters in Turkish. Plain Latin spellings often remove this difference.
Letters like Ş, Ç, Ğ, and Ö may appear without marks on some maps.
Many maps show the province name as the biggest label. District and town labels usually appear smaller.

City, Town, And District Labels On Turkey Maps

In everyday English, city and town can feel flexible. On a Turkey map, labels usually follow the administrative structure, even if the map does not say it directly.

Administrative Layers

Il means province. Each province is often referred to as a city on maps and in travel planning.
Ilce means district. Districts divide provinces into smaller units.
Belde often means a town municipality inside a district, when used.
Mahalle means neighbourhood, common in cities and towns.
Koy means village, used more in rural areas.

How Mapmakers Use These

Large text often indicates a province name.
Medium text is often a district or a well known town.
Small text can be neighbourhoods, local places, or small settlements.
Road shields and route labels help confirm if a name is a town on a travel map.

Major Cities That Anchor Most Turkey Maps

Many maps highlight a set of widely recognised cities because they are key reference points. These names often appear even on simple overview maps.

İstanbul as the main northwest reference point on many national maps
Ankara as the central anchor for routes and provinces
İzmir as a major west coast point
Antalya as a key south coast label
Bursa as a strong Marmara region reference
Konya as a major Central Anatolia map label
Adana as a common Mediterranean corridor reference
Gaziantep as a major southeast reference on many road maps
Trabzon as a notable Black Sea coast label
Erzurum as a frequent eastern reference point

Quick map habit: When comparing cities, check the province border first. Then look inside for the main district name, often matching the central urban area.

Towns On Turkey Maps

Towns appear in many different ways: coastal settlements, mountain gateways, inland market centres, or district seats. A town label may match the name of a district, or it may be one of several towns inside the same district.

Recognisable Town Examples

Safranbolu (Karabük)
Alaçatı (İzmir)
Kaş (Antalya)
Fethiye (Muğla)
Ayvalık (Balıkesir)
Amasra (Bartın)
Ürgüp (Nevşehir)

Clues That A Label Is A Town

It sits on a road junction between larger city names.
It appears near a coastline, bay, or valley and is repeated on travel maps.
It is listed alongside several nearby small labels, suggesting a local centre.
It matches a district name, especially when a province has many districts.

Plate Codes And Postal Codes

Two everyday numbering systems make map reading simpler. Licence plate codes run from 01 to 81 and identify provinces. Postal codes have five digits, and the first two digits match the province plate code.

Example	What You See	What It Means
34	Plate code on a vehicle or map legend	Province is İstanbul
*34000*	Postal code format with five digits	First two digits point to İstanbul province
06	Plate code	Province is Ankara
*06000*	Postal code format	First two digits point to Ankara province

Practical Checklist For Reading A Turkey Map

Start with the province name in large text.
Locate the district names inside that province.
Use roads, coastlines, rivers, and mountains to separate town labels from neighbourhood names.
When a map feels crowded, rely on plate codes and the first digits of postal codes to confirm the province.
If a name appears in several places, look for Turkish letters like ş and ı to avoid mix ups.

Common Turkish Map Words

Word On The Map	Meaning In English	Why It Matters
İl	Province	The main city level shown on national maps
*İlçe*	District	The next layer inside a province
*Merkez*	Central district	Often the district that contains the provincial capital
*Belde*	Town municipality	A town level label in some contexts
*Mahalle*	Neighbourhood	Smaller local areas inside cities and towns
*Köy*	Village	Small settlements, common in rural map details
*Caddesi*	Avenue	Useful for city maps and navigation
*Sokak*	Street	Common label on detailed town and city maps
*Meydan*	Square	Often marks a central point in towns and cities