Beşiktaş

Beşiktaş

Beşiktaş is a district and municipality of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 18 km2, and its population is 175,190 (2022). It is located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and Şişli, on the west by Kağıthane and Şişli, on the south by Beyoğlu, and on the east by the Bosphorus. Directly across the Bosphorus is the district of Üsküdar. The district includes a number of important sites along the European shore of the Bosphorus, from Dolmabahçe Palace in the south to the Bebek area in the north. It is also home to many inland (and relatively expensive, upper-middle class) neighborhoods such as Levent and Etiler. Some of its other well-known neighborhoods include Yıldız, Kuruçeşme, Ortaköy, and Arnavutköy. Beşiktaş' historic commercial center is the Beşiktaş quarter and Çarşı (literally, "marketplace"), which adjoins the small Abbasağa Park. Running in the north–south direction, Barbaros Boulevard is a major feeder road for the inner-city motorway Highway 1 and the Bosphorus Bridge, terminating at the important public transport hub of Zincirlikuyu. Büyükdere Avenue also runs through the district. Although it is a relatively small district of Istanbul, both in terms of population and area, Beşiktaş is one of the city's most important areas due to its business and shopping areas, historic sites, universities, scenic views of the Bosphorus strait, and feeder roads for the Bosphorus and Fatih Sultan Mehmet bridges passing through it. The district is also the leading financial center of Turkey.In a 2013 ranking of Turkish districts, Beşiktaş placed first overall due to its high quality of life, prosperity, and cultural level. Beşiktaş is also the highest ranking Turkish district in terms of the Human Development Index, with an HDI of 0.864, while also ranking first in the individual indexes for income and education. The municipality is taking part in the Cities4Europe campaign and has qualified as a "European 12 Star City".