Akşehir is a municipality and district of Konya Province, Turkey. Its area is 895 km, and its population is 93,965 (2022). It was known historically as Philomelium.

The town is situated at the edge of a fertile plain, on the north side of the Sultan Mountains. Its elevation is 1,025 m (3,363 ft).

History

Philomelion (Φιλομήλιον) was probably a Pergamene foundation on the great Graeco-Roman Highway from Ephesus to the east and Cicero, on his way to Cilicia, dated some of his extant correspondence there. St Paul passed the city on his second and third missionary journey in the first century and his impact can be traced by numerous Christian inscriptions in the region. The Smyrniotes wrote the letter that describes the martyrdom of Polycarp to the townspeople of Philomelion. The town became at some point a bishopric and remains a titular see of the Catholic Church.

At some point after 1071, the city fell to the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum. It was retaken by forces of the First Crusade and in 1098 Stephen of Blois met emperor Alexios I Komnenos here, persuading him to not continue his march to Antioch. Alexios returned in one of his final campaigns in 1116 to Philomelion which he conquered and returned with many Greek refugees to Byzantine lands. In 1146, the town was taken by emperor Manuel I Komnenos after defeating forces of the Sultanate of Rum at Akroinon. Manuel burned the town and released several prisoners who had been detained here. The town was taken a final time by German members of the Third Crusade in 1190 but rebuilt in 1196 by Kaykhusraw I and resettled with Greek captives taken on a raid from Caria.

It became an important Seljuk town, and late in the 14th century passed into Ottoman hands. There Sultan Bayezid I is said by Ali of Yezd to have died after his defeat at the Battle of Ankara at the hands of Emir Timur.

The town's landmarks include the alleged tomb of Nasreddin Hoca, the tomb of Seydi Mahmut, the house used as headquarters by the Turkish Army during the last phase of the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922), other monuments and old Turkish houses.

Between 5 July and 10 July each year, commemorations with concerts and other social activities are held to the memory of Akşehir's famous resident, Nasreddin Hodja.

With its rich architectural heritage, Akşehir is a member of the Norwich-based European Association of Historic Towns and Regions.

Name

The Turkish name Akşehir literally means "white city". It is a compound of two words, namely ak, "white", a Turkic word; and şehir, "town", which is from Persian شهر shahr, "town".

In English usage other spellings of the name include Ak-Shehr, Ak-Shahr, Akshehr, Akshahr, Akshehir, and Aqshahr.

Composition

There are 55 neighbourhoods in Akşehir District:

Climate

Akşehir experiences a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen: Csa), with hot, dry summers, and chilly, rainy, often snowy winters.