Ayaş is a municipality and district of Ankara Province, Turkey. Its area is 1,041 km, and its population is 12,998 (2022). It is 58 km from the city of Ankara, and very rich for historical monuments. Its elevation is 910 m (2,986 ft).

The district is known for its mulberry trees, its tasty tomatoes and its healing mineral water spas, both for drinking and bathing. There is an annual mulberry festival in the town of Ayaş. The town has a long history and is mentioned in folk songs and the journals of the traveller Evliya Çelebi.

History

The citizens of Ayaş were Oghuz tribes as the village names Bayat, Afşar and Peçenek implies. In 1554, it became a sanjak center, and in 1864 it became a Kaza in Ankara Vilayeti. In Ottoman period, education was advanced in Ayaş. In 1900, there were eight medreses, two primary mekteps and one rüşdiye.

Composition

There are 33 neighbourhoods in Ayaş District:

Picture gallery

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  Ayaş houses
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  Ulu Cami
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See also

• Ayaş Tunnel, railway tunnel under construction, which will be Turkey's longest when completed.