Ovacık, Tunceli Explained

Type:	village
Ovacık
Province:	Tunceli
District:	Ovacık
Coordinates:	39.3586°N 39.2164°W
Population Total:	3018
Population As Of:	2021
Leader Party:	CHP
Leader Title:	Mayor
Leader Name:	Mustafa Sarıgül

Ovacık (Turkish, Ottoman (1500-1928);: پلور|translit=Pulur,^[1]) is a municipality (belde) and seat of the Ovacık District in Tunceli Province, Turkey.^[2] It is populated by Kurds of the Abasan tribe and had a population of 3,018 in 2021.^{[3] [4]}

Etymology

Its name is derived from a small plain between the Munzur and Mercan mountains (ova meaning plain).^[5]

Politics

It was the only town to elect a communist mayor in 2014 Turkish local elections, Fatih Mehmet Maçoğlu, member of the Communist Party of Turkey. He made public transport free of charge and in 2017 he opened a municipal agricultural cooperative that produced chickpeas, beans, and honey and according to Maçoğlu gave work to 250 people.^[6] In the Municipal elections of 2019 Mustafa Sarıgül from the CHP was elected mayor.^[7]

Notes and References

1. Tahir Sezen, Osmanlı Yer Adları (Alfabetik Sırayla), T.C. Başbakanlık Devlet Arşivleri Genel Müdürlüğü, Yayın Nu 21, Ankara, p. 414.
2. Web site: Türkiye Mülki İdare Bölümleri Envanteri . 19 December 2022 . T.C. İçişleri Bakanlığı . tr.
3. Web site: Address-based population registration system (ADNKS) results dated 31 December 2021 . 30 January 2023 . . tr . XLS.
4. Book: Bayrak, Mehmet . Kürdoloji belgeleri: açık - gizli, resmi - gayrıresmi . ÖZGE Yayınları . 1994 . 275 . tr.
5. Tuzlac . Ertan . Doùan . Ahmet . Turkish folk medicinal plants, IX: Ovacik (Tunceli) . Marmara Pharmaceutical Journal . 2010 . 14 . 136–143 . 10.12991/201014449.
6. News: The Unlikely New Hero of Turkey's Opposition. Nawa. Fariba. The New Yorker. 2018-04-21. 2019-05-25. en. 0028-792X.
7. Web site: Tunceli Ovacık Seçim Sonuçları - 31 Mart 2019 Yerel Seçimleri. www.sabah.com.tr. 2019-05-25.