Hevsel Bahçeleri, Agricultural land in Bağıvar Mahallesi, Diyarbakır, Turkey
Hevsel Bahçeleri is a large area of agricultural land in the Bağıvar Mahallesi district of Diyarbakır, Turkey, lying between the city's historic walls and the Tigris River. The fields are crossed by small irrigation channels and planted with fruit trees, vegetables, and grain crops across the fertile floodplain.
The fields have been farmed without interruption for thousands of years, making them one of the oldest continuously cultivated areas in this part of Mesopotamia. In 2015, they were added to the UNESCO World Heritage list together with the city walls of Diyarbakır, recognizing their exceptional continuity as a cultural landscape.
The gardens sit just below the old city walls of Diyarbakır and have been part of daily life for generations. Local farmers still work the fields, growing figs, pomegranates, and vegetables and selling their produce at nearby markets.
The fields are accessible on foot from the old city through the historic Mardin Gate and are best visited during planting or harvest seasons when activity in the land is at its peak. Sturdy footwear is recommended since the paths between fields can be uneven or muddy.
The name 'Hevsel' likely comes from an Arabic word meaning 'lower part', referring to the fields sitting below the city walls near the riverbank. More than 180 bird species have been recorded here, including migratory birds that stop to rest during long seasonal journeys.
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