10 Facts About Bornova

Bornova is a metropolitan district of Izmir in Izmir Province in Turkey.

Bornova is home to Ege University's main campus and for many in Turkey, Bornova's name is synonymous with the university's hospital, one of the largest and the foremost medical centers in western Turkey for decades.

Municipality of Bornova was established in 1881 and the town became a district center in 1957.

Indeed, Bornova used to be a summer residence for many foreign consuls and wealthy businessmen fleeing the stagnantly hot weather in central Izmir to seek the cooler breeze of the slopes of Mount Yamanlar, the departure point of Bornova in its beginnings.

Bornova made sports history in Turkey when the first football match ever held in the Ottoman Empire was played in Bornova in 1890 between British sailors on shore leave against young men of Izmir.

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Bornova greatly expanded in the last decades from its nest under Mount Yamanlar, where the historic and popular Turkish quarter of Erzene was juxtaposed by Levantine settlements, and today almost fully covers its surrounding Bornova plain, formerly renowned for its fertility.

Bornova center is served by a railway connection since 1867, initially by a branch line of Izmir-Kasaba railway completed during the same decade.

Bornova is currently the eastern terminus of Izmir's subway rapid transit line whose extension continues, and access to and from the city center, as well as between various localities of Izmir is relatively easy with either public or private transports.

The one museum located within Bornova is Ege University's large Natural History Museum, integrated into the university structure and it is the second largest in Turkey in its field after that MTA in Ankara.

The Pinarbasi Racing Circuit for go-kart and motorcycle racing is situated in Pinarbasi, Bornova, which is Turkey's second longest, covering an area of 25 hectares, 7 swimming pools, 8 tennis courts, 2 indoor sports halls, 4 soccer fields and 54 basketball fields compose Bornova's sports infrastructure.