Karayılan (literally "black snake") is a town in Hatay Province, Turkey.

Karayılan (Town)
Town
Karayılan (Town) Location in Turkey
Coordinates: 36°43′N 36°14′E
Country	Turkey
Province	Hatay Province
District	İskenderun
Elevation	25 m (82 ft)
Population  (2012)
• Total	10,574
Time zone	UTC+2 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal code	31217
Area code(s)	0326
Licence plate	31

Geography

Karayılan at 36°43′N 36°14′E is a part of İskenderun ilçe (district) of Hatay Province. It is situated to the east of Turkish state highway D.817 and Çukurova Motorway. Distance to İskenderun is 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) and to Antakya (administrative center of Hatay Province) is 93 kilometres (58 mi). The population was 10574 [1] as of 2012.

History

The name of the town refers to a 17th-century Turkmen family. In 1691 the Ottoman government tried to settle the nomads. The nomads struggled to continue their traditional lifestyle. Although the government punished them by exiling to Rakka Eyalet (now in Syria) they were able to return. But at the end of continuous struggles, towards the end of the 18th century, three families gave up and agreed to settle where they were assigned to.[2] In 1990, Karayılan was declared a seat of township.

Economy

Cereals and citrus are among the major crops. Many residents work in Isdemir (steel works)

References