ASIA MINOR (Asia the Less, as dis tinguished from Asia in the widest ex tent) is the name usually given to the western peninsular projection of Asia, forming part of Turkey in Asia. The late Greek name for Asia Minor is Ana tolia—Anatole, "the East," whence is formed the Turkish AV adoi. Asia Minor includes the peninsula; the east ern boundary, somewhat artificial, being a line from the Gulf of Skanderoon to the upper Euphrates and thence to a point E. of Trebizond. The area of the peninsula exceeds 220,000 square miles. It constitutes the western prolongation of the high table-land of Armenia with its border mountain-ranges. The in terior consists of a great plateau, or rather series of plateaus, rising in grad uation from 3,500 to 4,000 feet, with bare steppes, salt plains, marshes and lakes; the structure is volcanic, and there are several conical mountains, one of which, the Ergish-dagh (Argwus),with two craters, attains a height of 11,830 feet, towering above the plain of Kai sarieh, which has itself an elevation of between 2,000 and 3,000 feet. The plateau is bordered on the N. by a long train of parallel mountains, 4,000 to 6,000 feet high, and cut up into groups by cross valleys. These mountains sink abruptly down on the N. side to a narrow strip of coast; their slopes toward the interior are gentler and bare of wood. Similar is the character of the border ranges on the S., the ancient Taurus, only that they are more continuous and higher, being, to the N. of the Bay of Skanderoon, 10,000 to 12,000 feet, and, farther to the W., 8,000 to 9,000 feet. The W. border is intersected by numerous valleys opening upon the archipelago, to the northern part of which Mounts Ida and Olympus belong. Between the highlands and the sea lie the fertile coast-lands of the Levant. Of the rivers the largest is the Kizil Irmak (Halys), which, like the Yeshil Irmak (Iris), and the Sakaria (Sangarius), flows into the Black Sea ; the Sarabat (Hermus) and Meinder (Mwander) flow into the ,zEgean.
In point of natural history, Asia Minor forms the transition from the continental character of the East to the maritime character of the West. The forest trees and cultivated plants of Europe are seen mingled with the forms characteristic of Persia and Syria. The central plateau,
which is barren, has the character of an Asiatic steppe, more adapted for the flocks and herds of nomadic tribes than for agriculture; while the coasts, rich in all European products, fine fruits, olives, wine, and silk, have quite the character of the S. of Europe, which on the warmer and drier S. coast shades into that of Africa.
The inhabitants, some 10,000,000 in number, consist of the most various races. The dominant race are the Os manli Turks, who number 7,000,000, and are spread over the whole country; allied to these are the Turkomans and Yuruks, speaking a dialect of the same language. There are also hordes of nomadic Kurds. Among the mountains E. of Trebizond are the robber tribes of the Lazes.
Under Turkish rule the administration of the country fell into eight vilayets or governments, with their capitals in Brusa, Smyrna, KonIeh (Iconium), Ada na, Sivas, Angora, Trebizond, and Kas tamuni respectively.
Here was the early seat of Grecian civilization, and here were the countries of Phrygia, Lycia, Caria, Paphlagonia, Bithynia, Lydia, Pamphylia, Isauria, Cilicia, Galatia, Cappadocia, etc., with Troy, Ephesus, Smyrna, and many other great and famous cities. Here, from the obscure era of Semiramis (about 2,000 years B. C.), to the time of Osman (about 1,300 A. D.), the greatest conquerors of the world contended for supremacy; and here took place the wars of the Medes and Persians with the • of the Greeks with the Persians; of the Romans with the Mithridates and the Parthians; of the Arabs, Seljuks, Mongols and Os manli Turks with the weak Byzantine Empire. Here Alexander the Great and the Romans successfully contended for the mastery of the civilized world. But, notwithstanding all these wars, the country still continued to enjoy some measure of prosperity till it fell into the hands of the Turks, under whose military despotism its ancient civilization was sadly brought to ruin. For conditions in Asia Minor which resulted from the World War, see ARMENIA; GREECE; TUR KEY; AZERBAIDJAN, REPUBLIC OF; and WORLD WAR.