A GEOGRAPHICAL OVERVIEW OF THE TOPONYMIC FEATURES OF VILLAGE SETTLEMENTS IN ARTVIN PROVINCE

Having suitable climate and location features, Anatolia has hosted many civilizations since the past. Each civilization has left various traces that reflect its own characteristics to be passed on to future generations. One of these traces is the place names. Place names are located at the intersection of history, culture and geography and contain traces of them. In this context, examining the place names can give an idea about many features of that region. In this study, the names of villages in the province of Artvin were handled in this respect and the factors that caused its emergence were evaluated from a geographical perspective. Thus, it is aimed to complete a whole piece that constitutes the Anatolian cultural mosaic. In the research, in which qualitative research methods were used, the studies made by historians and various dictionaries were used to obtain data, and information was obtained from local residents through field studies. It has also benefited from the records about where the Turkey Statistical Institute (TÜİK) and the Ministry of Interior of the village name. The data obtained were classified in the light of toponym science and analyzed by content analysis method. The names of the villages in Artvin province were changed in 1925 and 1960 due to their foreign origin. Because the old names of the villages are Turkish, as well as Georgian, Laz and Armenian ones. While some of these changes were carried out for valid reasons and with appropriate methods, some of them unfortunately came up with naming that was incompatible with the characteristics of the settlement and therefore the local residents could not internalize much. However, it is noteworthy that geographical elements are quite determinant in both old and new naming.