Midyat: Ancient Town, Friendly Folks, and Beautiful 'Sila'

Midyat, about 40 minutes away from Mardin, is a pretty town with many beautiful traditional rose -colour sandstone mansions surrounded by high walls (known as 'Konagi' in Turkish). The history of the town dates back thousands of years and is a melting pot of various cultures, religious and ethnic groups.

Like all border regions in the world, the population of Midyat, as well as those of the towns and villages close by, has a very mixed population that live alongside one another in a somewhat contrived state of peace. For thousands of years, Arabs, Kurds, Turks and Syriac Christians (as well as Armenian Christians until they were driven out of the country in the early 20th century) are all parts of the social landscape. The region around Midyat also has one of the highest concentration of Syriac-Christian monasteries, some of which are still in use today.

A predominantly Kurdish town, Midyat prides itself with some of the most remarkable sandstone Konagi in the whole of southeast Anatolia, the most famous of which is the Midyat Hükümet Konağı, the set location of several Turkish TV series. The popular TV series 'Sila' (2006), for instance, was filmed on location in Midyat Hukumet Konagi: in the series, this beautiful house is the family home of Sila's husband Boran Aga, played by ex-model Mehmet Akif Alakurt.

The Konagi is a huge mansion surrounded by high walls on all sides, with just a small entrance leading to the street. Such architectures are characterised by the presence of a courtyard, beautiful stone stairs and delicate carvings, bright sunny rooms with high ceilings, and flat roof tops which afford marvellous views of the neighbourhoods and the surrounding countrysides.


After the success of 'Sila', the Hukumet Konagi has become a place of pilgrimage for fans of the TV series. Everyday, enthusiastic fans from as far away as Istanbul visit the house and take photos of themselves standing in front of the antique poster-bed in the airy master bedroom (the setting of Sila and Boran's bedroom in the TV series), the spacious living room, and the idyllic rooftop terrace with its sweeping view of the old town of Midyat. When I visited the house, other visitors were surprised that I knew about the TV series (apparently there aren't too many non-Turkish tourists visiting the house yet, let along someone who had actually watched the series and visit the site because of it).

In recent years, many old houses in Midyat have been restored and converted into exclusive hotels. Nowadays one can enjoy a romantic weekend in one of the tastefully decorated rooms for a little over 100TL per night, or sip tea in the hotel's selcuded courtyard garden for just a few TL.

Within walking distance of Midyat's old town are several (still in-use) Syriac Orthodox churches and monasteries. Although they are among the earliest residents in this part of the world, dating back thousands of years to the very beginning of Christianity, the population of Syriac Christians in Midyat and the province of Mardin have decreased significantly since the end of the 19th century. The massacres of Syriac-Christians in the early parts of the 20th century took a heavy toll on the population, while the longstanding armed conflicts between Kurdish guerrillas and Turkish army forced many Syriac-Christian residents of Midyat and the surrounding countryside to emigrate overseas. Once a predominantly Syriac-Christian town, it is estimated that only 120 Syriac-Christian families are still living in Midyat today.


How to get to Midyat: Midyat is easily reached by local dolmus from Mardin's dolmus station. Mini-bus from Mardin to Midyat's New Town takes about 40 minutes. Midyat's Old Town is about 15 minutes' walk from the New Town.

Places to go: From Midyat there are frequent mini-bus service to Hasankeyf and Batman.

Accommodations: Most hotels in Midyat and Mardin are fairly expensive, expect to pay about 100TL for a en-suite double room in a historic mansion with breakfast.

Things to buy: Midyat is famous for handcrafted silver wares and silver jewellery. Many Syriac Christians are silversmith or jewellers by trade. On the main streets in Midyat's Old Town, silver jewellery stores lined the streets and prices are reasonable.