‘Cittaslow’ movement, which was initiated in Italy in 1999 with the aim of expanding the ‘Slow Food’ movement to urban areas, is a combination of the Italian word ‘citta’ and the English word ‘slow’, meaning ‘slow city’. It advocates for living at a pleasurable pace and improving the quality of life. It is predicted that this can be achieved through the preservation of the city’s unique structure, architecture, traditions, local dishes, and historical identity.

Şarköy, Tekirdağ. (Source)

Kastamonu’s Daday, Karabük’s Eflani, Aksaray’s Güzelyurt, Samsun’s Yakakent, Çanakkale’s Bayramiç, Eskişehir’s Sivrihisar, Tekirdağ’s Şarköy, and Bilecik’s Osmaneli are currently going through the process of candidacy, as they have applied to be included in the Cittaslow Turkey list and are being evaluated based on the criteria.

Seferihisar and Foça from İzmir, Akyaka and Köyceğiz from Muğla, Eğirdir and Yalvaç from Isparta, Göynük and Mudurnu from Bolu, have each two districts included in the list. The other cities included are as follows: Ahlat from Bitlis, Arapgir from Malatya, Finike from Antalya, Gerze from Sinop, Gökçeada from Çanakkale, Güdül from Ankara, Halfeti from Şanlıurfa, İznik from Bursa, Kemaliye from Erzincan, Perşembe from Ordu, Şavşat from Artvin, Uzundere from Erzurum, Vize from Kırklareli, and Yenipazar from Aydın.

In total, there are 22 districts from 17 different cities in Turkey that have been included in the ‘sakin şehir’ list.