Ankara is the capital of modern Turkey, but its history reaches far deeper than the Republic — the city was an ancient settlement of the Hittites, a Phrygian city, a Roman capital, and an Ottoman town before Mustafa Kemal Atatürk chose it as the base of the national movement and the capital of the new Republic in 1923. The city’s story is the story of the land itself: the deep history of Anatolia, and the modern nation that was founded upon it. This guide unpacks the history and culture of Ankara: how the city was made, what it became, and how the layers still visible in its streets tell the story.
The Ancient City: The Deep Layers
Ankara’s history begins deep in antiquity. The site was settled by the Hittites — the ancient empire of central Anatolia — and the city that would become Ankara was an important settlement of the region. The Phrygians followed, and the city grew as a center of the Anatolian world, and then as a city of the classical age.
The Roman era left the visible remains: the city was the capital of the Roman province of Galatia, and the great Temple of Augustus — with its inscribed account of the emperor’s deeds — the Column of Julian, and the Roman baths survive in the old city. The ancient Ankara was a provincial capital of the Roman world, and its remains are the deep layers beneath the modern city.
The Ottoman Town
For the centuries of the Ottoman era, Ankara was a provincial town of the empire — an important center of trade, famous for its mohair (the angora wool of the region’s goats, which gave the city its name to the world) and its markets. The old city of Ulus grew in this era: the Citadel, the old quarter, and the bazaar, and the town’s life as a trading center of central Anatolia.
The Ottoman Ankara was a modest but prosperous town, and its old city is the visible inheritance of that era: the walls and the lanes, the mosques, and the traditional life of the Anatolian town.
The Republic: The Making of the Capital
The modern history of Ankara is the making of the capital. When the Ottoman Empire collapsed after the First World War, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk — the leader of the national movement — chose Ankara as the base of the struggle, and in 1923 the new Turkish Republic made it the capital, replacing Istanbul.
The choice was deliberate: Ankara was inland, defensible, and free of the Ottoman past, and the new capital was built as the symbol of the new nation. The Republic built the modern Ankara — the boulevards, the government quarter, and the institutions of the state — and the city grew from a provincial town to the capital of the country. The mausoleum of Atatürk, Anıtkabir, stands on its hill as the monument of the founding.
The Culture of Ankara Today
The living culture of the capital is a fusion of the layers:
- The Republic. The memorial, the parliament, and the institutions of the state — the capital as the heart of modern Turkey.
- The deep history. The ancient remains and the great museum — the history of the land that the Republic inherited.
- The working city. The students, the civil servants, the markets, and the daily life of the capital.
- The table. The regional cooking of central Anatolia — the döner and the foods of the plateau.
- The hospitality. The welcome of the capital — the teahouses, the greetings, and the warmth of the working city.
Visiting the History: What to Look For
A walk through Ankara is a walk through the layers:
- The ancient city — the Temple of Augustus, the Column of Julian, and the Roman baths.
- The Ottoman town — the Citadel, the old quarter, and the old bazaar.
- The Republic’s capital — Anıtkabir, the parliament, and the boulevards.
- The deep history — the great museum, with the story of Anatolia.
- The working city — the quarters, the markets, and the life of the capital.
The Story of the Founding
The founding of the Republic deserves its own section, because it is the meaning of the capital. After the First World War, the Ottoman Empire collapsed, and the country faced the occupation of the victorious powers. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk — a military commander and a visionary — chose Ankara as the base of the national movement, and from the city the struggle for independence was organized and won. The Republic was proclaimed in 1923, and Ankara was made the capital — the deliberate choice of a new nation, built inland, free of the old imperial city. The story of the founding is the story that Anıtkabir tells, and it is the reason the capital has its meaning: the city where the struggle was organized, and where the nation was made.
The Capital as the Symbol
The capital was built as the symbol of the new nation. The Republic built the modern Ankara deliberately — the wide boulevards, the government quarter, the institutions of the state — as the physical expression of the modern, secular, forward-looking nation that the Republic created. The capital’s architecture and its plan carry the Republic’s vision, and the memorial of Anıtkabir crowns the city as its monument. For the visitor, the capital is the Republic made visible: the city that the new nation built for itself, and the symbol of the country’s founding. The capital as the symbol is the deepest meaning of Ankara.
The Deep History of the Land
The capital’s story is set within the deep history of the land. The Museum of Anatolian Civilizations tells that story — the Neolithic of the first villages, the Hittites of the ancient empire, and the civilizations of the Anatolian plateau — and the museum is one of the great institutions of the world. The deep history is the story of the land that the Republic inherited, and the capital sits at its heart: the ancient settlements and the modern nation, the millennia and the century. The traveler who visits the museum after the memorial sees the full arc — the deep history of Anatolia, and the modern state that was founded upon it. The deep history is the context of the capital, and it gives the city its depth.
The Living Culture of the Capital
The final layer is the living culture of the capital. Ankara is the working heart of the country — the parliament, the ministries, and the life of the Republic — and its culture is the fusion of the layers: the students and the civil servants of the working city, the markets and the teahouses of the quarters, the regional table of central Anatolia, and the hospitality of the plateau. The living culture is the capital as it is lived — the everyday life of the city where the country is governed, and the warmth that the traveler experiences. The living culture is the present of the capital, and it belongs to the traveler who walks the city with the time and the curiosity.
The Continuity of the City
The most remarkable thing about Ankara is the continuity of its story. The city has been inhabited for thousands of years — the Hittite settlement, the Roman capital, the Ottoman town, and the Republic’s capital — and each era has left its layer in the same ground. The traveler who walks the city walks the continuity: the ancient temple in the old city, the Ottoman walls, and the Republic’s memorial on its hill, all within sight of one another. The continuity of the city is the reason Ankara is more than a modern capital — it is the deep history of the land, and the modern nation, meeting in one place.
The Takeaway
Ankara’s history is the story of the land and the nation: the ancient city of the Hittites and the Romans, the Ottoman trading town, and the capital of the modern Republic, founded by Atatürk in 1923. The temple and the walls, the old quarter and the memorial, and the working life of the capital are all part of that long story. To walk Ankara is to walk through the deep history of Anatolia and the founding of modern Turkey — and to understand why this city, chosen as the heart of the nation, is the capital of the country’s story, where the deep past and the founding of the Republic meet.
Frequently asked questions
How old is Ankara?
The site has been settled since deep antiquity — the Hittite era — and the city has been inhabited for thousands of years.
What was Ankara before the Republic?
An ancient settlement, a Roman provincial capital, and an Ottoman trading town, famous for the mohair of the region.
Why was Ankara chosen as the capital?
Atatürk chose it as the base of the national movement — inland, defensible, and free of the Ottoman past — and it became the capital of the Republic in 1923.
What is the significance of Anıtkabir?
The mausoleum of Atatürk, the founder of the Republic — the monument of the founding, and the heart of the capital’s meaning.
What are the visible ancient remains?
The Temple of Augustus, the Column of Julian, and the Roman baths — the Roman layers of the city.
Is the city’s history visible today?
Yes — the ancient remains, the Ottoman old city, and the Republic’s monuments all stand within the modern capital.
All Over Information
The All Over Information editorial team researches and writes practical English-language guides to Turkey. Facts are checked against official and local sources before publication, prices are published as dated ranges rather than quotes, and guides are revised when things change. We accept no sponsored posts, paid placements or paid links.
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