A fast-growing city in the centre of Anatolia, Konya is a place in which the old blends with the new and the traditional coexists with the modern. It is world-famous as the burial place of Celaleddin Rumi, better known as Mevlana, whose tomb is a revered place of pilgrimage even today. It was Mevlana who dreamed up the idea of the whirling dervishes which means that Konya is also strongly associated with them as well.
Konya was called Kuwanna by the Hittites 4,000 years ago, and then Iconium (the city of icons) by the Greeks; the Turks seem to have combined the two to come up with Konya. Visited by St Paul and St Barnabas on their travels, Konya is recognized, as the birthplace of St Thecla, a female follower of St Paul. Its proximity to Çatalhöyük (once believed to be the oldest settlement in the world), and its role as the capital of the Seljuk Empire and as the site of Mevlana’s tomb ensure that tourists flock to Konya.
Probably, the first thing that springs to mind, when thinking about Konya is the tomb of Mevlana. Mevlana’s wonderful words, “Come, come whoever you are”, not only reflect his philosophy of universal love and tolerance, but also seem to summon people to come and visit his tomb, which is crowded at all times. The complex that houses the tomb is topped off with a superb turquoise-tiled dome. It includes a masjid (Muslim chapel) and a “semahane” where whirling dervish rituals used to take place. Used as a museum today, the complex also features chambers, where the dervished once lived. Right next door to the tomb is the Selimiye Mosque, which was commissioned by Sultan Selim II in 1567, while he was governor of Konya.
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