İdil

İdil

İdil is a district of Şırnak province.

There is the Church of Virgin Mary in the city. It is the second city in Anatolia, after Hatay, where Christianity has been practiced. The city's proximity to Cizre, Midyat, Nusaybin, the Syrian and Iraqi borders and its topographical features have played an important role in its history.

The district has a continental climate and is rich in vegetation. The district is 60 km from Mardin and 24 km from the Syrian border gate. Its area is 1,224 km² and it is the district with the most villages in Turkey.

The economy of the district is based on agriculture and animal husbandry. The main agricultural products grown are barley, wheat, watermelon, melon, lentil, chickpea and grapes. The district became famous for its vineyards and wine-making during the periods when the Assyrians lived there.[citation needed]

The demographic structure of Idil, a district with a majority Assyrian population, changed after the 1970s when Muslim villages and nomadic families settled in the district center, while Assyrian citizens migrated abroad and to big cities. There are still a very small number of Assyrian families living in Idil.[citation needed] It has a historical appearance with newly restored stone houses. It is 14 km from Şırnak Airport, which was completed in 2013. Şırnak University's Faculty of Agriculture campus and İdil Vocational High School are located in the district.

It was annexed to the Ottoman Empire together with Midyat District during Yavuz Sultan Selim's Egyptian Expedition. Dated May 18, 1990