Kars

Kars , city (1990 pop. 79,496), capital of Kars prov., E Turkey, in Armenia, on the Kars River. Its manufactures include textiles, carpets, and food products. An old fortified city, well situated in the mountains, Kars was the capital of an Armenian state in the 9th and 10th cent. It was destroyed by Timur in 1386 and was captured and rebuilt by the Ottoman Turks in the 16th cent. In 1828, 1855, and 1877 the city was occupied by Russia and together with the surrounding region was ceded to Russia by the Congress of Berlin in 1878. By a peace treaty (1921) between the nationalist Turkish government of Kemal Atatürk and the USSR, Kars and Ardahan were returned to Turkey. Kars has an 11th-century Armenian church.

Kars, Turkey Named after the Kars River, although kar means ‘snow’; quite appropriate since winter brings heavy snowfalls. Founded by the Armenians, it flourished as the capital of an Armenian principality during the 9th and 10th centuries. It has changed hands many times, being incorporated into the Ottoman Empire in 1514 and being annexed by Russia in 1878; the modern town was built largely by the Russians. It was passed back to Turkey in 1920 when a Turkish Nationalist army captured it.