Darıca

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title: "Darıca" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["districts-of-kocaeli-province", "former-greek-communities-in-turkey", "metropolitan-district-municipalities-in-turkey"] topic_path: "geography/turkey" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darıca" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox Turkey place"]

Field	Value
type	metro district
name	Darıca
image_skyline	Bayramoglu.JPG
image_map	Kocaeli location Darıca.svg
map_caption	Map showing Darıca District in Kocaeli Province
coordinates
province	Kocaeli
leader_party	AKP
leader_name	Muzaffer Bıyık
area_total_km2	23
population_footnotes
population_total	225602
population_as_of	2022
postal_code	41700
area_code	0262
website
::

History

Though Greek settlement around the Sea of Marmara dates to the first millennium BCE, the earliest reference to the Byzantine fortress of Ritzion (τὰ Ῥίτζιον) is in the works of the 12th-century historian John Kinnamos. The ruins of the fortress, which gives the town its modern name, are still located in present-day Darıca.

Prior to the expulsion of Ottoman Greeks and the population exchange between Greece and Turkey, a vast majority of the residents were ethnic Greeks who practiced Orthodox Christianity. Refugees from Aretsou/Darıca founded the Nea Aretsou neighborhood in Thessaloniki, Greece.

The Darıca district was created in 2008 from part of the district of Gebze, along with the districts Çayırova and Dilovası.

Modern town

There are 14 neighborhoods in Darıca District:

Abdi Ipekçi
Bağlarbaşı
Bayramoğlu
Cami
Emek
Fevzi Çakmak
Kazım Karabekir
Nenehatun
Osman Gazi
Pirireis
Sırasöğütler
Yalı
Yeni
Zincirlikuyu

Darıca is located 3 km (1.8 mi) south of Gebze, 38 km southeast from Istanbul and sits 10 km from Sabiha Gokcen Airport, 50 km away from the Atatürk International Airport and 90 km from Istanbul Airport in Arnavutköy. Darıca is in close proximity to large-scale transit infrastructure including the D-100 highway and the Turkish State Railway station for Kocaeli.

The district contains numerous social areas and hosts a number of festivals. It is also home to the Faruk Yalçın Zoo.

In 2021, Darıca attracted controversy for naming a park after Dzhokhar Dudayev, a Chechen separatist leader who was the first president of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. The name was criticized by Russian-backed Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who called Dudayev a terrorist.

References

[https://www.e-icisleri.gov.tr/Anasayfa/MulkiIdariBolumleri.aspx Büyükşehir İlçe Belediyesi] {{Webarchive. link. (2015-07-06 , Turkey Civil Administration Departments Inventory. Retrieved 19 September 2023.)
"İl ve İlçe Yüz ölçümleri". General Directorate of Mapping.
"Address-based population registration system (ADNKS) results dated 31 December 2022, Favorite Reports". [[TÜİK]].
Hendrix, David. "Fortress of Ritzion".
"Darıca".
[https://www.resmigazete.gov.tr/eskiler/2008/03/20080322M1-1.htm Kanun No. 5747], Resmî Gazete, 22 March 2008.
"İl İdaresi ve Mülki Bölümler Şube Müdürlüğü İstatistikleri - İl ve İlçe Kuruluş Tarihleri".
[https://www.e-icisleri.gov.tr/Anasayfa/MulkiIdariBolumleri.aspx Mahalle] {{Webarchive. link. (2015-07-06 , Turkey Civil Administration Departments Inventory. Retrieved 19 September 2023.)
"Hayvanlar – Faruk Yalçın ZOO".
(2021-12-25). "Cevher Dudayev Parkı’na Rusya da kızdı".
(December 28, 2021). "Turkish Decision To Name Park After Chechen Independence Leader Draws Fire And Retaliation Threats From Russia".

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