The name Anatolia derives from the Greek anatolē (lit. (sun)rise), adapted into Turkish as anadolu (lit. full of motherliness). The Anatolian peninsula is the westernmost extremity of Asia, bordered by the Black Sea to the north, the Caucasus to the northeast, the Aegean Sea to the west, the Mediterranean to the south, Greater Syria (Upper Mesopotamia) to the southeast, and Transcaucasia and the Iranian plateau to the east. Also known as Asia Minor, the Anatolian peninsula has been the home of numerous civili…