Middele ages Iğdir history and immovable culturel assets

ABSTRACT It is a widely-known fact that Igdir and its surroundings have been used as a settlement and they have hosted various cultures since the ancient history. Archaeological findings demonstrate that the first settlement in this region dates back to Palaeolithic and Mesolithic periods. Small tools made of stone and of flint stone indicate that the region was also used during the Palaeolithic period. Igdir Fortress (korgan) and Surmeli Valley were ruled by the Urartian State which dominated a large part of the Eastern Anatolia in the first century. The region, which is known to have been invaded by the Scythians from time to time, saw Roman and Byzantine periods as well. During the Byzantine period, it was ruled by the Sasanians; it was later taken over by the Muslim Arabs during the invasion of Aras basin during the reign of Caliph Uthman (644-656); and after that it was ruled by Muslims and Byzantine government a number of times. Through the end of the 8th century, the Abbasids were known to struggle for domination in the region. Following this, the dominant political components in the region also changed due to the dense invasions organised by the Turks. In parallel with this, the region has various historical and cultural entities originating from different periods. This study is to examine the surviving caravansaries, bridges and castles from the middle ages in Igdir and its surroundings, which were ruled by many states and local governments then; and to evaluate those entities which could not survive up to the present in the light of the related documents.