Göreme Historical National Park
UNESCO site with eroded tuff landscape and ancient underground settlements.
Göreme Historical National Park is a national park in Cappadocia, central Turkey, located in Nevşehir Province. It became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985 under the name Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia, recognized for its rocky, water- and wind-eroded landscape and ancient interconnecting underground settlements.
- location
- Nevşehir Province, central Turkey
- area
- nearly 100 km² (39 sq mi)
- unesco_designation
- 1985
- geology
- volcanic tuff and basalt
- annual_precipitation
- 380 mm (15 in)
- known_for
- fairy chimneys, underground dwellings, rock-cut churches
Lore & Background
The park lies in the volcanic region of Mount Hasan and Mount Erciyes, near Ürgüp, Çavuşin, and Göreme. Its landscape consists of plateaus and high hills dissected by streams and river valleys. The soft tuff rock, formed from volcanic ash millions of years ago and capped by hardened lava, has eroded into multi-coloured cliffs, rock towers, pillars, tent rocks, and fairy chimneys, such as those in Love Valley. Vegetation is sparse except in riverine corridors, and annual precipitation is 380 mm.
Reader's Guide
The earliest signs of monastic activity in Cappadocia date to the 4th century, when small anchorite communities following Basileios the Great began hewing cells from the rock. To resist Arab marauders, these cells were linked into underground communities with chapels, storerooms, and living quarters. By 842, underground churches were richly decorated with coloured paintings. Today, some people still live in cave dwellings with ground-level openings, but long-term cave dwellers face a high incidence of mesothelioma, linked to inhalation of erionite fibers common in tuff formations. The park's significance lies in its unique geological formations and the historical adaptation of human habitation within them.
Did You Know?
- The park occupies an area of nearly 100 km² (39 sq mi).
- The tuff rock was formed from volcanic ash emitted millions of years ago.
- Love Valley is known for its fairy chimneys.
- Long-term cave dwellers have a high incidence of mesothelioma from erionite fibers.
More in World Heritage Sites in Turkey 1-24
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