The Gaziantep Province reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Apr-2004 (provided by Fixed Reference: snapshots of Wikipedia from wikipedia.org)

Gaziantep Province

Gaziantep is a province in south-central Turkey, and is also the name of the province's capital and largest city (population 853,513 as of 2000).

An important trading center since ancient times, the province is also one of Turkey's major manufacturing zones, and its agriculture is dominated by the growing of pistachio nuts.

In ancient times, first the Hittites and later the Assyrians controlled the region. It saw much fighting during the Crusades, and the Saladin won a key battle there in 1183. After World War I and Ottoman Empire's disintegration, it was invaded by French forces during the Turkish War of Independence. It was returned to Turkish control after the Treaty of Lausanne was signed, formally ending hostilities between Turkey and the Allies.

Originally known as Aintab, the name of the provincial capital was changed to Gaziantep in 1921 ("gazi" means "veteran" in Turkish).

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