Atatürk Forest Farm and Zoo
| Atatürk Forest Farm and Zoo | |
|---|---|
| Atatürk Orman Çiftliği ve Hayvanat Bahçesi | |
| Type | Forest farm, zoo |
| Location | Ankara, Turkey |
| Coordinates | 39°56′25″N 32°47′45″E / 39.94015°N 32.79582°ECoordinates: 39°56′25″N 32°47′45″E / 39.94015°N 32.79582°E |
| Created | 1925 (Forest farm) 1933 (Zoo) |
| Website | www |
Atatürk Forest Farm and Zoo (Turkish: Atatürk Orman Çiftliği ve Hayvanat Bahçesi, in short AOÇ) is an expansive recreational farming area, which houses a zoo, several small agricultural farms, greenhouses, restaurants, a dairy farm and a brewery in Ankara, Turkey. The farm and the zoo are under the administration of the Ministry of Agriculture and Village Affairs.
The Ankara Forest Farm was established in 1925 by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of the Turkish Republic, as a private farm. After 1926, management of the farm was offered to Spiritual Christians from Russia living in north Kars Province noted for animal breeding ([Malakan horse], Malakan cow), who refused repatriation to Soviet Union, and declined to move to Ankara, because the most zealous believed they must live close to Mt. Ararat for the Second Coming of Christ. In 1937, Atatürk donated the farm to the Turkish state. At the farm is an exact replica of the house, where Atatürk was born in 1881 in Selânik, Ottoman Empire.
Visitors to the farm can sample the products of the farm such as old-fashioned beer, fresh dairy products, ice cream, and meat rolls and kebabs made on charcoal, at a traditional restaurant (Merkez Lokantası, Central Restaurant) and other areas of catering around the farm.
The Ankara Zoo (Turkish: Ankara Hayvanat Bahçesi) is a 32-hectare (79-acre) zoological garden founded in 1933 (39°56′45″N 32°47′28″E / 39.9459699°N 32.791099°E). It houses some big cats, various birds, monkeys, apes, ungulates, snakes, and an aquarium. The zoo also breeds and sells Angora cats.
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Wikipedia