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{{About|a district in Turkey|the sports association commonly known as BAFRA|British American Football Referees' Association}}
{{Infobox Turkey place
| type                 = metro district
| name                 = Bafra
| image_skyline        = Ataturk_Bulvar_in_Bafra.png
| image_caption        = Atatürk Bulvar in Bafra
| image_map            = Bafra District Location in Samsun Province.png
| map_caption          = Map showing Bafra District in Samsun Province
| coordinates          = {{coord|41|34|20|N|35|54|53|E|region:TR|display=inline,title}}
| province             = Samsun
| leader_party         = AKP
| leader_name          = Hamit Kılıç
| leader_name1         = 
| area_total_km2       = 1503
| elevation_m          = 
| population_footnotes = <ref name=tuik/>
| population_total     = 143109
| population_as_of     = 2023
| postal_code          = 55400
| area_code            = 0362
| website              = {{url|https://www.bafra.bel.tr/}}
| blank1_name          = [[Köppen climate classification|Climate]]
| blank1_info          = [[Mediterranean climate#Hot-summer Mediterranean climate|Csa]]
}}
'''Bafra''' is a municipality and [[Districts of Turkey|district]] of [[Samsun Province]], [[Turkey]].<ref>[https://www.e-icisleri.gov.tr/Anasayfa/MulkiIdariBolumleri.aspx Büyükşehir İlçe Belediyesi], Turkey Civil Administration Departments Inventory. Retrieved 12 July 2023.</ref> Covering about 1,500&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.harita.gov.tr/uploads/files-folder/il_ilce_alanlari.xlsx|title=İl ve İlçe Yüz ölçümleri|publisher=General Directorate of Mapping|access-date=12 July 2023}}</ref> and with over 140,000 inhabitants<ref name=tuik>{{Cite web |title=Address-based population registration system (ADNKS) results dated 31 December 2023, Favorite Reports|url=https://biruni.tuik.gov.tr/medas/?kn=95&locale=tr |access-date=10 May 2024|publisher=[[Turkish Statistical Institute]]|language=tr|format=XLS}}</ref> it is a settlement located {{convert|20|km}} from the [[Black Sea]], in the fertile [[Kızılırmak Delta]]. The Bafra Plain is famous in [[Turkey]] for its rich soil and high quality tobacco growing conditions. The city is well known in Turkey for its ice cream, cigarettes, tobacco and agricultural produce. The city is located 52&nbsp;km northwest of [[Samsun]] and is connected by [[State road D.010 (Turkey)|State road D.010]].

==History==

[[File:Bafracesme.JPG|thumbnail|Alibey Fountain]]

The name of the municipality is thought to have come from the [[Phoenician language|Phoenician]] name "bafira" or "bavra".<ref>[http://docs.neu.edu.tr/library/6292179770.pdf Zengin, H. 2001. Samsun with its Cultural Values from Past to Present] {{web archive | date=February 2, 2017 |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202062450/http://docs.neu.edu.tr/library/6292179770.pdf}}, p.27. Near East University, Nicosia, KKTC.</ref><ref>[http://web.deu.edu.tr/erdin Erdin, E., 2006. Bafra and Dams] {{web archive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151231140959/http://web.deu.edu.tr/erdin/ |date=31 December 2015}}, Dokuz Eylül University, İzmir, Turkey.</ref> Other beliefs about the etymology of the region come from the name "Ba-Hura" (Great River) given to [[Kizilirmak]] which generates the delta upon which the city is located. Historical records of human settlement in Bafra and the [[Kızılırmak Delta|Kizilirmak delta]] date to as early as 5000 BC.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bafder.org/baframiz-hakkinda |title=Baframız Hakkında |trans-title=About our Bafra |website=Bafralılar Kültür ve Yardımlaşma Derneği [Bafra People's Culture and Solidarity Association] |language=tr |accessdate=2022-05-09 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20220509165226/http://www.bafder.org/baframiz-hakkinda?msclkid=584c1560cfb711ecbcc8fdbc0c21d2aa |archivedate=2022-05-09}}</ref> 

The region came under the rule of the [[Roman Empire|Rome]] who renamed the area [[Gadilon]] and later Helega. After the [[Fall of the Western Roman Empire]], the area became part of the [[Byzantine Empire]]. The region was a part of the [[Byzantine Empire]] until the [[Battle of Manzikert]] in 1071. After that battle, Bafra was captured by the Anatolian [[Seljuk Sultanate of Rum|Seljuk]] Ruler [[Kaykaus I]]. After being conquered by the [[Seljuk Empire]] the region was repopulated by members of various Turkmen tribes. The invasion of the [[Mongol Empire]] began in 1243 and led to the collapse of [[Seljuk Empire]] and the establishment of scattered Turkish principalities. During this period, the Bafra Principality was briefly established. This political arrangement continued until 1460, when Bafra was again conquered and made part of the [[Ottoman Empire]].<ref>Hilal Inalcik, The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300-1600</ref>{{Request quote|date=March 2024}}

Under the [[Ottoman Empire]], the town of Bafra was incorporated into [[Trabzon Province]] under the leadership of Canik Sanjak. The region flourished as an agricultural, fishing and shipping center under the [[Ottoman Empire]]. The exact date of the establishment of the modern town is not known, though according to historical census records it appears in 1854.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bafratarim.gov.tr/Bafra.asp |title=Bafra date information |url-status=dead |archivedate=2014-12-31 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20141231144504/http://www.bafratarim.gov.tr/Bafra.asp}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.recepsen.com/bafratarih.html |title=Bafra date |archivedate=2014-09-15 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140915003428/http://www.recepsen.com/bafratarih.html |url-status=dead}}</ref>{{Dead link|date=May 2025}}
==Geography==
Bafra is located in the western portion of [[Samsun Province]]. The city is 52&nbsp;km northwest of [[Samsun]] City Center and neighboring [[Atakum]]. The town directly to the east of Bafra is [[Ondokuzmayıs]], the northern edge of the city is bounded by the [[Black Sea]], to the west is Alçam and to the south [[Kavak, Samsun|Kavak]], [[Havza]] and [[Vezirköprü]]. {{Cn|date=March 2024}}

Bafra sits in the Bafra Plain which is set in the Kızılırmak delta. To the south of the city are the [[Küre Mountains]]. The highest of these nearby mountains is Mount Nebiyan with an elevation of 1224 m. The Küre Mountains are the extensions of the [[Canik Mountains]]. The Kızılırmak River is Bafra's largest and Turkey's longest river. The river reaches the plain by crossing these mountains through a deep valley. The Bafra Plain was formed entirely by the sediment from the Kızılırmak River. The length of Kızılırmak is 1151&nbsp;km. It river originates from Kızıl Mountain in Sivas and draws a wide arc through Central Anatolia before meeting the [[Black Sea]] north of Bafra. The rainy season in the region is between April and July during which floods are a common occurrence.{{Cn|date=March 2024}}

==Subdivisions==
There are 139 [[mahalle|neighbourhoods]] in Bafra District:<ref>[https://www.e-icisleri.gov.tr/Anasayfa/MulkiIdariBolumleri.aspx Mahalle], Turkey Civil Administration Departments Inventory. Retrieved 12 July 2023.</ref>
{{div col|colwidth=12em}}
* Adaköy
* Ağcaalan
* [[Ağıllar, Bafra|Ağıllar]]
* Akalan
* Aktekke
* Alaçam
* Alparslan
* Altınay
* Altınkaya
* Altınova
* Altınyaprak
* Asar
* Asmaçam
* Azay
* Bahçeler
* Bakırpınarı
* Balıklar
* Barış
* Başaran
* Başkaya
* Bengü
* Boğazkaya
* Burunca
* Büyükcami
* Çalköy
* Çamaltı
* Çatak
* Çataltepe
* Çetinkaya
* Çilhane
* Çulhakoca
* Cumhuriyet
* Darboğaz
* Dededağı
* Dedeli
* Derbent
* Dereler
* Dikencik
* Doğanca
* Doğankaya
* Düzköy
* Elalan
* Eldavut
* Elifli
* Emenli
* Emirefendi
* Esençay
* Evrenuşağı
* Eynegazi
* Fatih
* Fener
* Fevziçakmak
* Gazibeyli
* Gaziosmanpaşa
* Gazipaşa
* Gerzeliler
* Gökalan
* Gökçeağaç
* Gökçekent
* Gökçesu
* Göltepe
* Gümüşyaprak
* Hacınabi
* Hacıoğlu
* Harız
* Hıdırellez
* Hüseyinbeyli
* İğdir
* İkizpınar
* İkiztepe
* İlyaslı
* İnözükoşaca
* İshaklı
* İsmetpaşa
* Kahraman
* Kalaycılı
* Kamberli
* Kanlıgüney
* Kapıkaya
* Karaburç
* Karakütük
* Karıncak
* Karpuzlu
* Kavakpınar
* Kaygusuz
* Kelikler
* Kemalpaşa
* Keresteci
* Kızılırmak
* Kolay
* Komşupınar
* Koruluk
* Köseli
* Koşu
* Kozağzı
* Küçükkavakpınar
* Kuşçular
* Kuşluğan
* Kuzalan
* Lengerli
* Meşelitürkmenler
* Mevlana
* Müstecep
* Örencik
* Ortadurak
* Osmanbeyli
* Ozan
* Paşaşeyh
* Sahilkent
* Şahinkaya
* Sarıçevre
* Sarıkaya
* Sarıköy
* Sarpın
* Selemelik
* Şeyhören
* Şeyhulaş
* Şirinköy
* Sürmeli
* Tabakhane
* Taşköprü
* Tepebaşı
* Tepecik
* Terzili
* Türbe
* Türkköyü
* Tütüncüler
* Üçpınar
* Uluağaç
* Yağmurca
* Yaka
* Yakıntaş
* Yenialan
* Yeniköy
* Yeraltı
* Yeşilköy
* Yeşilyazı
* Yiğitalan
* Yörgüç
{{div col end}}

==Climate==
Bafra experiences a [[hot-summer Mediterranean climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification|Köppen]]: ''Csa''),<ref>{{Cite journal |title=Table 1 Overview of the Köppen-Geiger climate classes including the defining criteria. |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/s41597-023-02549-6/tables/1 |journal=Nature: Scientific Data |language=en}}</ref> with very warm, moderately dry summers, and cool, rainy, sporadically snowy winters.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kar Örtülü Gün Sayısı |url=https://www.mgm.gov.tr/FILES/resmi-istatistikler/parametreAnalizi/2022-ortalama-kar-ortulu.pdf |website=MGM}}</ref>

{{Weather box
 | width       = auto
 | metric first = yes
 | single line = yes
 | location    = Bafra (1991–2020)
 | Jan high C = 9.1
 | Feb high C = 10.0
 | Mar high C = 12.4
 | Apr high C = 15.9
 | May high C = 20.5
 | Jun high C = 25.2
 | Jul high C = 27.8
 | Aug high C = 28.2
 | Sep high C = 24.6
 | Oct high C = 20.4
 | Nov high C = 15.7
 | Dec high C = 11.2
 | year high C = 18.5
 | Jan mean C = 6.0
 | Feb mean C = 6.2
 | Mar mean C = 8.0
 | Apr mean C = 11.1
 | May mean C = 15.7
 | Jun mean C = 20.5
 | Jul mean C = 23.3
 | Aug mean C = 23.7
 | Sep mean C = 20.0
 | Oct mean C = 16.1
 | Nov mean C = 11.6
 | Dec mean C = 8.0
 | year mean C = 14.2
 | Jan low C = 3.6
 | Feb low C = 3.3
 | Mar low C = 4.7
 | Apr low C = 7.6
 | May low C = 12.0
 | Jun low C = 16.4
 | Jul low C = 19.1
 | Aug low C = 19.8
 | Sep low C = 16.3
 | Oct low C = 12.8
 | Nov low C = 8.6
 | Dec low C = 5.6
 | year low C = 10.9
 | precipitation colour = green
 | Jan precipitation mm = 77.22
 | Feb precipitation mm = 58.42
 | Mar precipitation mm = 61.27
 | Apr precipitation mm = 51.1
 | May precipitation mm = 47.22
 | Jun precipitation mm = 42.43
 | Jul precipitation mm = 28.74
 | Aug precipitation mm = 45.07
 | Sep precipitation mm = 58.6
 | Oct precipitation mm = 85.04
 | Nov precipitation mm = 82.49
 | Dec precipitation mm = 105.4
 | year precipitation mm = 743.0

 | unit precipitation days = 1.0 mm
 | Jan precipitation days = 10.5
 | Feb precipitation days = 9.2
 | Mar precipitation days = 9.4
 | Apr precipitation days = 8.1
 | May precipitation days = 6.9
 | Jun precipitation days = 5.8
 | Jul precipitation days = 3.5
 | Aug precipitation days = 4.9
 | Sep precipitation days = 6.3
 | Oct precipitation days = 8.5
 | Nov precipitation days = 8.2
 | Dec precipitation days = 10.7
 | year precipitation days = 92.0

 | Jan humidity = 75.3
 | Feb humidity = 76.9
 | Mar humidity = 79.1
 | Apr humidity = 80.5
 | May humidity = 81.3
 | Jun humidity = 77.4
 | Jul humidity = 75.1
 | Aug humidity = 75.9
 | Sep humidity = 78.2
 | Oct humidity = 80.2
 | Nov humidity = 75.2
 | Dec humidity = 73.6
 | year humidity = 77.4
 | source = [[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration|NOAA]]<ref name="WMONormals">{{cite web
|url = https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/2.2/data/0-data/Region-6-WMO-Normals-9120/Turkiye/CSV/Bafra_17622.csv
|title = World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1991-2020 — Bafra
|publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
|access-date = January 13, 2024}}</ref>
}}

[[File:Panoramic photo of Bafra.jpg|thumbnail|A Panoramic Photo of Bafra]]

==Economy==
{{Update section|date=April 2024|reason=economy now?}}
Bafra's economy has historically been driven by the growth and export of [[tobacco]]. The region's tobacco is known to be very low [[nicotine]], small, red, light red colored, fine-grained, fine-grained, elastic, high-smoked, sweet, and aromatic. Foreign [[cigarette]] manufacturers were said to desire the tobacco grown on the Bafra Plain in order to improve the quality of their products. Bafra tobacco was long sought as the highest quality of natural tobacco in the world.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://blog.milliyet.com.tr/Blog.aspx?BlogNo=192580 | title = Bafra and World Use of Turkish Tobacco | accessdate = | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20150603170512/http://blog.milliyet.com.tr/Blog.aspx?BlogNo=192580 | archivedate = June 3, 2015 | url-status = dead}}</ref> Due to a variety of factors including agricultural mismanagement, reduced demand, logistical challenges and innovation in tobacco growth elsewhere in the world has led to a decline in tobacco exports from Bafra. This has had a significant adverse effect on the local population and contributed to persistently high unemployment and out-migration among working age people in the region. This crisis was further exacerbated by the Turkish government's shutdown of [[TEKEL]]. Today tobacco production in the region is negligible with most former farms now growing other products.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.tarimsalhaber.com/bafrada-tutun-ekimi-h101.html | title = Decreased Production AA News | accessdate = | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20130605001654/http://www.tarimsalhaber.com/bafrada-tutun-ekimi-h101.html | archivedate = June 5, 2013 | url-status = dead}}</ref>

==Cuisine==
*[[İçli Pide]]: is Bafra's most famous dish. Colloquially known as Pide, this is a popular and savory dish known for its origins in and around [[Samsun]].<ref>{{cite web | url = http://tokalakbafrapide.com/catering/index.html | title = Pita and Bafra Pita History | accessdate = | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20150522203523/http://www.tokalakbafrapide.com/catering/index.html | archivedate = 22 May 2015 | url-status = dead}}</ref>
*[[Nokul]]: is a type of [[puff pastry]]. Nokul is a type of pastry eaten in [[Turkey]] and [[Bulgaria]] with variations. Nokul is sometimes served hot as an appetizer instead of bread. It consists of a rolled sheet of yeast dough onto which [[feta]]-style white cheese, walnut or poppy seed is sprinkled over a thin coat of butter. The dough is then rolled, cut into individual portions, and baked.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://blog.milliyet.com.tr/Blog.aspx?BlogNo=73839|title=Cevizli lokum Bursa'nın|work=blog.milliyet.com.tr}}</ref>
*[[Turkish delight]] with Cream: Residents of Bafra use a special cream made from buffalo milk. This is only available during certain months of the year. 
*[[Dondurma]]: A special type of sticky, yellow vanilla ice cream is produced in Bafra and is regionally popular. The ice cream is pounded and produced in a fashion that takes several hours.{{Cn|date=April 2024}}

==Festivals==
*Karadede Fair: A fair with over 100 years of history that was established in Gökçeağaç Village. The festival is held annually in Bafra on the last Sunday of August. Thousands of people attend the fair enjoying concerts, various events and shows. The fair has a wide array of stands and food vendors.<ref name=bafrakultur>{{cite web |url=http://www.recepsen.com/bafrakultur.html |title=Bafra'da Sosyal ve Kültürel Hayat |trans-title=Social and Cultural Life in Bafra |language=tr |website=www.recepsen.com |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140828003726/http://www.recepsen.com/bafrakultur.html |archivedate=28 August 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
*Bafra Watermelon Festival: An annual celebration is held in Bafra to celebrate the welcoming of watermelon to Turkey. The festival includes concerts, folklore performances, exhibitions and conferences about watermelon. The festival ceased operation in 2014.{{Cn|date=April 2024}}
*Sele-Sepet top Kandil: A festival held on the 15th night of [[Ramadan (calendar month)|Ramadan month]].{{Cn|date=April 2024}}
*Kapikaya Festival: Nature and Sports Festival: A festival that lasts for 5 days on the Kapikaya Hill to the south of Bafra. The festival offers the opportunity to do various outdoor sports and aims to bring together national and international athletes over a shared love of nature.{{Cn|date=April 2024}}

==Weaving and crafts==
Regional crafts such as [[carpet]] and rug knitting have continued to hold an important place in the life of residents of Bafra. Rug weaving, [[wicker]] and zembell knitting and other handicrafts made by residents play a part in the region's economy and touristic appeal.<ref name=bafrakultur/>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Samsun}}
{{Districts of Turkey|provname=Samsun}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Bafra| ]]
[[Category:Populated places in Samsun Province]]
[[Category:Districts of Samsun Province]]
[[Category:Metropolitan district municipalities in Turkey]]