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CUMALIKIZIK VILLAGE
Cumalıkızık is an early Ottoman foundation village located in the east of Bursa, north of Uludağ at the 12th km of Bursa-Ankara highway.
The name ‘Kızık’ is mentioned in the 11th century Divan-ı Lugat-it Türk as a word describing Turkmen settlements called ‘Kızık’ in Anatolia and Northern Syria.
The Kizık villages in Bursa are thought to have been established in the early 1300s. Cumalıkızık, the most authentic and best preserved of these, also reflects the Ottoman strategy of first conquering the countryside and then the cities, in order to create a secure hinterland for the army. The village is a Vakıf Village – which means that it is permanently owned by a public institution (külliye), with the aim of generating income for the construction of other külliyes and the new town. The creation of the village is part of the establishment of Bursa as a capital city.
In 17th century records, Ortakızık Village was referred to as Cumalıkızık or Camilikızık. It is thought to have been so named because it had a mosque with a minbar where Friday prayers could be performed among the other six Kızıks (Derekızık, Hamamlıkızık, Değirmenlikızık, Fidyekızık, Bayındırkızık and Dalkızık, which do not exist today).
The village itself, its structure, setting and houses have retained their original plans and construction techniques, and the village as a whole has the closest ‘flavour’ to the Early Ottoman period. The land around the village is still used for agriculture and forestry, as it was originally.
In 2014 it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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