İznik, Ancient district in Bursa Province, Turkey.
İznik is a historic town at the eastern end of Lake İznik in Bursa Province, nestled between hills to the north and south. The area contains ancient Roman walls with gates, along with mosques and other structures from different periods of the town's past.
The town was established as Nicaea under Roman rule and later became an important Byzantine settlement, with defensive walls from the 3rd century still partly standing today. It played a key role in Christian history as a place where important church councils took place.
The town has long been a center for ceramic arts, with artisans creating decorated tiles and vessels using techniques passed down through generations. You can find workshops throughout the town where craftspeople continue this tradition today.
The town lies southeast of Istanbul and is connected by roads to nearby Bursa. The best time to explore is during warmer months when pathways around the lake are easy to walk and sights are fully accessible.
The Hagia Sophia of İznik, originally a 6th-century church, was later converted into a mosque and hosted an important church council in 787. This building shows the many transformations the town experienced across the centuries.
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