Bergama

Bergama is a municipality and district of İzmir Province, Turkey. Its area is 1,544 km2, and its population is 105,754 (2022). By excluding İzmir's metropolitan area, it is one of the prominent districts of the province in terms of population and is largely urbanized at the rate of 53.6%. Bergama center is situated at a distance of to the north from the point of departure of the traditional center of İzmir (Konak Square in Konak, İzmir) and lies at a distance of inland from the nearest seacoast at the town of Dikili to its west. Bergama district area neighbors the areas of three districts of Balıkesir Province to its north, namely Ayvalık, Burhaniye and İvrindi, İzmir Province district of Kınık and Manisa Province district of Soma to its east, while to the south it is bordered by Yunusemre district of Manisa Province and two other İzmir Province districts along the coast that are Aliağa and Dikili from its south towards its west. The district area's physical features are determined by the alluvial plain of Bakırçay River.

==Name== The name Bergama, as well as its ancient predecessor Pergamon, are thought to be connected with the even more ancient Luwian language adjective "parrai" (Hittite language equivalent; "parku"), meaning "high" in the same vein as being the etymological root of a number of other ancient cities across Anatolia. The ancient and modern Greek language form of the name is . In Turkish language, it has been adapted to Bergama. The name of Pergamos derives from Perga (as keramos from kera=earth, clay), although a Turkish author Özhan Öztürk claims that Bergama means "high settlement/base" in Hittite language, while Argoma (modern Suluova) in Amasya means "border settlement" at the Hittite-Kaskian border.