Sakarya

The Sakarya is Turkey's sixth-longest river. The river's overall length is 512 miles. It passes through Phrygia, a location known in antiquity as Phrygia. In classical antiquity, it was regarded as one of the major rivers of Asia Minor (Anatolia), and it is mentioned in the Iliad and Theogony.

The river's source is the Bayat Yaylası, which is located northeast of Afyon. The river is joined by the Porsuk Çayı (Porsuk Creek) near the town of Polatlı and runs through the Adapazarı Ovası (Adapazar Plains) before reaching the Black Sea. The Sakarya has four dams from downstream to upstream: Akçay, Yenice, Gökçekaya, and Saryar.

The Sakarya Valley was part of the border between the Byzantine Empire and the home of the Söğüt tribe in the 13th century. By 1280, Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII had built a series of fortifications along the river to dominate the area, but a flood in 1302 shifted the channel of the river, rendering the walls ineffective. The Söğüt tribe crossed the river and went on to form the Ottoman Empire.

Length: 512 miles