History of Anatolia

The history of Anatolia (often referred to in historical sources as Asia Minor) can be roughly subdivided into: Prehistory of Anatolia (up to the end of the 3rd millennium BCE), Ancient Anatolia (including Hattian, Hittite and post-Hittite periods), Classical Anatolia (including Achaemenid, Hellenistic and Roman periods), Byzantine Anatolia (later overlapping, since the 11th century, with the gradual Seljuk and Ottoman conquest), Ottoman Anatolia (14th–20th centuries) and the Modern Anatolia, since the creation of the Republic of Turkey. Prehistory of Anatolia Prehistory of Anatolia encompasses the entire prehistoric period, from the earliest archeological records of human presence in Anatolia, to the advent of historical era, marked by the appearance of literacy and historical sources related to the territory of Anatolia ( 2000 BCE). In 2014, a stone tool was found in the Gediz River that was dated with certainty to 1.2 million years ago. The 27,000 years old homo sapiens footprints of Kula and Karain Cave are samples for human existence in Anatolia, in this period. Because of its strategic location at the intersection of Asia and Europe, Anatolia has been the center of several civilizations since prehistoric times. Neolithic settlements include Çatalhöyük, Çayönü, Nevalı Çori, Hacılar, Göbekli Tepe, and Mersin. Ancient regions of AnatoliaList of ancient kingdoms of Anatolia and List of ancient peoples of Anatolia 1900 BCE Near East mass migration Bronze metallurgy spread to Anatolia from the Transcaucasian Kura-Araxes culture in the late 4th millennium BCE, marking the beginning of the Bronze Age in the region. Anatolia remained in the prehistoric period until it entered the sphere of influence of the Akkadian Empire in the 24th century BCE under Sargon I. The oldest recorded name for any region within Anatolia is related to its central areas, known as the "Land of Hatti". That designation that was initially used for the land of ancient Hattians, but later became the most common name for the entire territory under the rule of ancient Hittites.