The Marmara Sea in Turkey is a small inland sea from which the Bosphorus natural strait extends. And separates the Asian part from the European part.
It has been known throughout history for the spread of marble islands in it, from which its name is derived.
Marmara Sea Hypotheses
- History and Myth Hypotheses
Some hypotheses see that the sea was the result of the “Great flood”; that supposedly occurred twenty million years ago. And that the Sea of Marmara was just a part of one big sea; that also included the Black Sea and the Khazar Sea.
- Geological Hypotheses
Also see that the sea went through many stages in its formation. But it was known by its current name between 6500 and 7000 BC; within the history of Istanbul as a peninsula located between three seas: the Mediterranean Sea, the Aegean Sea and the Sea of Marmara.
More than 600 species of living creatures such as black seals, sharks and sea turtles live in the sea.
Dimensions and Contents
The total area of the Marmara Sea reaches about 11 thousand and 350 square kilometers, and its length between the two farthest points east and west is about 225 km, and its width reaches 65 km at its maximum breadth between the cities of Bursa and Istanbul, and its maximum depth is 1270 meters.
Cities and Bays
They are on the coasts of Marmara; 43 cities and residential areas all over seven governorates. Including 14 districts of Istanbul on its northern coasts, and the rest are among the governorates of Belkisir, Bursa, Janakkale, Kocaeli, Tekirdag and Yalova.
On the outskirts of the sea, the bays and harbors used for navigation and the transportation of local travelers and tourists between Turkish provinces, or to transport goods and catch fish, are the most important ports located in it, the port of Izmit, the port of Cemlik, Banda and Erdek.
Islands and Rivers
The sea includes three concentrations of small islands; the most important of which is the Princes’ Islands; which includes Princesses Island, which is one of the most important tourist attractions in Turkey, and Marmara Island, which contains large quantities of alabaster marble, from which the name of this sea is derived, and Oshar Island.
The Economic Value of the Sea of Marmara
Marmara Sea is a great economic value, as it constitutes the first natural gas mine in Turkey, and huge quantities of gas were discovered in the exploration work in the north of the sea in 1988 and Marmara gas extraction projects were established in 1997.