Asia Minor (Asia the Less, as distinguished from Asia in the widest extent) is the name usually given to the western peninsular projection of Asia, forming part of Turkey in Asia. The name is not very ancient; originally the Greeks seem by Asia to have meant only the western part of Asia Minor, but with their geographical knowledge, the scope of the name Asia gradually widened. The late Greek name for Asia Minor is Anatolia (q.v.)—Anatolé, 'the East,' whence is formed the Turkish
Anadôli. Asia Minor includes the peninsula; the eastern boundary, somewhat artificial, being a line from the Gulf of Skanderoon to the Upper Euphrates, and thence to a point east of Trebizond. The area of the peninsula exceeds 220,000 sq. m. It constitutes the western prolongation of the high tableland of Armenia, with its border mountain-ranges. The interior consists of a great plateau, or rather series of plateaus, rising in gradation from 3500 to 4000 feet, with bare steppes, salt plains, marshes and lakes; the structure is volcanic, and there are several conical mountains, one of which, the Ergish-dagh (Argæus), with two craters, attains a height of 11,830 feet, towering above the plain of Kaisarieh, which has itself an elevation of between 2000 and 3000 feet. The plateau is bordered on the north by a long train of parallel mountains, 4000 to 6000 feet high, and cut up into groups by cross valleys. These mountains sink abruptly down on the north side to a narrow strip of coast; their slopes towards the interior are gentler and bare of wood. Similar is the character of the border ranges on the south, the ancient Taurus, only that they are more continuous and higher, being, to the north of the Bay of Skanderoon, 10,000 to 12,000 feet, and farther to the west, 8000 to 9000 feet. The west border is intersected by numerous valleys opening upon the Archipelago, to the northern part of which Mounts Ida and Olympus belong. Between the highlands and the sea lie the fertile coast-lands of the Levant. Of the rivers the largest is the Kizil Irmak (Halys), which, like the Yeshil Irmak (Iris), and the Sakaria (Sangarius), flows into the Black Sea; the Sarabat (Hermus) and Meinder (Mæander) flow into the Ægean. See ASIA.
The climate has on the whole a south-European character; but a distinction must be made of four regions. The central plateau, nearly destitute of wood and water, has a hot climate in summer, and a cold in winter; the south coast has mild winters and scorching summers; while on the coast of the Ægean there is the mildest of climates and a magnificent vegetation. On the north side the climate is not so mild, but the vegetation is most luxuriant.
In point of natural history, Asia Minor forms the transition from the continental character of the East to the maritime character of the West. The forest-trees and cultivated plants of Europe are seen mingled with the forms characteristic of Persia and Syria. The central plateau, which is barren, has the character of an Asiatic steppe, more adapted for the flocks and herds of nomadic tribes than for agriculture; while the coasts, rich in all European products, fine fruits, olives, wine, and silk, have quite the character of the south of Europe, which on the warmer and drier south coast shades into that of Africa.
The inhabitants, some 7,000,000 in number, consist of the most various races. The dominant race are the Osmanli Turks, who number about 1,200,000, and are spread over the whole country; allied to these are the Turkomans and Yuruks, speaking a dialect of the same language. The latter are found chiefly on the tableland, leading a nomadic life; there are also hordes of nomadic Kurds. Among the mountains east of Trebizond are the robber tribes of the Lazæ.
The Greeks and Armenians are the most progressive elements in the population, and have most of the trade; while the Greeks monopolise the professions, the ownership of the land is largely passing into the hands of Greeks, Armenians, and Jews. Administratively the country falls into eight vilayets or governments, with their capitals in Brusa, Smyrna, Konieh (Iconium), Adana, Sivas, Angora, Trebizond, and Kastamuni respectively.
In ancient times the divisions were Pontus, Paphlagonia, Bithynia, in the north; Mysia, Lydia, Caria, in the west; Pisidia with Pamphylia, and Cappadocia, in the south; and Galatia with Lycania, and Phrygia, in the centre. The Turkish islands of the Archipelago belong, most of them, to Asia Minor.
Here, especially in Ionia, was the early seat of Grecian civilisation, and here were the countries of Phrygia, Lycia, Caria, Paphlagonia, Bithynia, Lydia, Pamphylia, Isauria, Cilicia, Galatia, Cappadocia, &c., with Troy, Ephesus, Smyrna, and many other great and famous cities. Here, from the obscure era of Semiramis (about 2000 years B.C.), to the time of Osman (about 1300 A.D.), the greatest conquerors of the world contended for supremacy; and here took place the wars of the Medes and Persians with the Scythians; of the Greeks with the Persians; of the Romans with Mithridates and the Parthians; of the Arabs, Seljuks, Mongols, and Osmanli Turks with the weak Byzantine empire. Here Alexander the Great and the Romans successively contended for the mastery of the civilised world. But, notwithstanding all these wars, the country still continued to enjoy some measure of prosperity till it fell into the hands of the Turks, under whose military despotism its ancient civilisation has been sadly brought to ruin. Recently, considerable portions of Armenia have been absorbed by Russia. In 1878 Great Britain made a secret engagement to guarantee against Russian aggression the Asiatic dominions of the Porte.
See Kinglake's Æöthen (1844), and works by W. J. Hamilton (1840), Burnaby (1877), Mrs Stevenson (1881), Cochran (1887), and W. M. Ramsay (1890); and the map at ROMAN EMPIRE, Vol. VIII. p. 792.