Ferries in Istanbul Ferries in Istanbul The city of Istanbul is at a geographic crossroads, straddling Europe and Asia Minor, and is divided by a sea lane called the Bosphorus Strait, which joins the Black Sea in the northeast and the Marmara Sea in the southwest. This strait has played a key role in the history of the city. Boats have traversed the waters of the Bosphorus for millennia and until the opening of the first Bosphorus bridge in 1973, were the only mode of transport between the European and Asian halves of Istanbul. They continue to serve as a key public transport
Names of Istanbul Names of Istanbul The city of Istanbul has been known by a number of different names. The most notable names besides the modern Turkish name are "Byzantium", "Constantinople", and "Stamboul". Different names are associated with different phases of its history and with different languages. According to Pliny the Elder the first name of Byzantium was "Lygos". This may have been the name of a Thracian settlement situated on the site of the later city, near the point of the peninsula (Sarayburnu). "Byzantion" (Βυζάντιον), Latinized as "Byzantium", was founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC. The name is believed