The Birthplace of the Empire That Changed History: Cumalıkızık

Cumalıkızık, located at the foothills of Uludağ, is one of the five kızık villages that were established when the Ottoman Empire conquered Bursa in 1326 and managed to survive until the present day. The first ones to greet the sky from the balconies that salute the sun welcomed the birth of the empire that changed history. Welcome to Cumalıkızık, a village listed in the UNESCO World Heritage.

How to Get to Cumalıkızık?

The village is only 11 km away from the center of Bursa, and the journey takes about 25-30 minutes. For those who want to reach Cumalıkızık by public transportation, there are buses operated by Bursa Metropolitan Municipality that depart from the center of Bursa at certain intervals. You can visit the website of Burulaş, owned by Bursa Metropolitan Municipality, to get detailed information about public transportation and access up-to-date information. Once you determine your transportation route and face Uludağ, lean back and enjoy the journey through history.

The History of Cumalıkızık

The Ottoman people, who named the villages with the suffixes "değirmenli" (mill), "fidye" (ransom), and "cumalı" (Friday) that carry meanings related to the villages, gave the name "kızık" to the region squeezed between the steep slopes and valleys in the north of Uludağ. When we investigate the origin of the name Cumalıkızık, we come across two different stories. According to the first story, the village was named Cumalıkızık because it was the gathering place for Friday prayers for the villagers in other kızık villages. In the second story, it is mentioned that Osman Bey named the village Cumalıkızık because the day of its establishment was a Friday. Regardless of the story, Cumalıkızık has managed to be one of the five surviving kızık villages such as Değirmenlikızık, Fidyekızık, Hamamlıkızık, and Derekızık. Unfortunately, Bayındırkızık, Dallıkızık, Bodurkızık, Ortakızık, Camilikızık, Kiremitçikızık, Kızıkşıhlar, and Kızıkçeşme did not survive. This village, which dates back to the 14th century, has managed to preserve the cultural traditions, cuisine, and examples of civil architecture of the Ottoman Empire until today.

Events and Festivals

The Raspberry Festival, which has been organized since 2015 and is one of the prominent concepts of Cumalıkızık, changed its name to the International Cumalıkızık Festival in recent years. This event, held every June, hosts different artists, dance groups, and entertainment activities throughout the event. The villagers exhibit their traditional products, natural and homemade products, at the booths set up in the village square.

Cumalıkızık in Popular Culture

While talking about the history of Cumalıkızık, we mentioned Cin Aralığı. Besides its historical significance, taking photographs in this street is one of the tourist activities. Therefore, Cumalıkızık also holds an important place in popular culture. In addition to Cin Aralığı, Cumalıkızık is known for the TV series Kınalı Kar, which once achieved high ratings on television channels. People who come here want to see and explore the shooting locations of the series, in addition to the entire history. You can visit Kınalı Kar Bulanlar Konak to examine one of the filming areas. Kınalı Kar Bulanlar Konak currently serves as a hotel and restaurant. Another must-visit place in Cumalıkızık is Mavi Boncuk. Currently operating as a cafe and restaurant, it attracts attention with its name and visual appearance. If you want to plan a weekend trip to Cumalıkızık, allocating about 2-3 hours is sufficient. If you also want to have breakfast in Cumalıkızık, we recommend adding another hour. Cumalıkızık is a destination for day trips, but if you still want to stay, there are many hotels both in the village and in Bursa.

Author: Batın Türk