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Istanbul
by Istanbul

Istanbul is the world's only city on two continents: A narrow sea strait, called the Bosphorus, divides the city in two, with the western half of it in Europe and the eastern half in Asia. Two long suspension bridges, namely the Bosphorus Bridge (1973) and the Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge (1988) link the two parts of the city, as well as connecting the two continents. In its long history, Istanbul (Constantinople) has served as the capital city of the Roman Empire (330-395) , the Byzantine Empire (395-1204 and 1261-1453), the Latin Empire (1204-1261) and the Ottoman Empire (1453-1922). In 1923, with the establishment of the Turkish Republic, Ankara became the country's new capital city, and the name "Constantinople" was officially changed to "Istanbul" in 1930.

Updated Apr 7, 2013