section_path: Geography
section_name: Geography
paragraph_text: Geography
  
  Turkey covers an area of 783,562 square kilometres (302,535 square miles). With Turkish straits and Sea of Marmara in between, Turkey bridges Western Asia and Southeastern Europe. Turkey's Asian side covers 97% of its surface, and is often called Anatolia. Another definition of Anatolia's eastern boundary is an imprecise line from the Black Sea to Gulf of Iskenderun. Eastern Thrace, Turkey's European side, includes around 10% of the population and covers 3% of the surface area. The country is encircled by seas on three sides: the Aegean Sea to the west, the Black Sea to the north and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. Turkey is bordered by Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Iran to the east. To the south, it's bordered by Syria and Iraq. To the north, its Thracian area is bordered by Greece and Bulgaria.
  
  Turkey is divided into " seven major regions ": Marmara, Aegean, Central Anatolia, Black Sea, Eastern Anatolia, Southeastern Anatolia and the Mediterranean. As a general trend, the inland Anatolian Plateau becomes increasingly rugged as it progresses eastward. Mountain ranges include Köroğlu and Pontic mountain ranges to the north, and the Taurus Mountains to the south. The Lakes Region contains some of the largest lakes in Turkey such as Lake Beyşehir and Lake Eğirdir.
  
  Geographers have used the eastern Anatolian plateau, Iranian plateau, and Armenian plateau terms to refer to the mountainous area around where Arabian and Eurasian tectonic plates merge. The eastern Anatolian plateau and Armenian plateau definitions largely overlap. The Eastern Anatolia Region contains Mount Ararat, Turkey's highest point at 5,137 metres (16,854 feet), and Lake Van, the largest lake in the country. Eastern Turkey is home to the sources of rivers such as the Euphrates, Tigris and Aras. The Southeastern Anatolia Region includes the northern plains of Upper Mesopotamia.
  
  Earthquakes happen frequently in Turkey. Almost the entire population lives in areas with varying seismic risk levels, with around 70% in highest or second-highest seismic areas. Anatolian plate is bordered by North Anatolian Fault zone to the north; East Anatolian Fault zone and Bitlis–Zagros collision zone to the east; Hellenic and Cyprus subduction zones to the south; and Aegean extensional zone to the west. After 1999 İzmit and 1999 Düzce earthquakes, North Anatolian Fault zone activity "is considered to be one of the most dangerous natural hazards in Turkey". 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes were the deadliest in contemporary Turkish history. Turkey is sometimes unfavorably compared to Chile, a country with a similar developmental level that is more successful with earthquake preparedness.