Strange Places: The Underground Cities of Turkey

Hidden Worlds Beneath Cappadocia

Beneath the unusual landscapes of central Turkey lies one of the most mysterious architectural achievements in human history: vast underground cities carved deep into the soft volcanic rock of the Cappadocia region. These hidden settlements were designed not as simple caves but as entire functioning communities capable of sheltering thousands of people underground.

For centuries these subterranean worlds remained largely unknown to outsiders. Today archaeologists have identified more than 200 underground complexes in the region, many still unexplored. They represent one of the most unusual forms of urban planning ever created.

The City Beneath the City

The most famous of these underground settlements is Derinkuyu. This massive complex descends about 85 meters below the surface and contains multiple levels of tunnels, rooms, and shafts. At its peak it may have sheltered up to 20,000 people along with their livestock and food supplies. 0

Derinkuyu was far more than a hiding place. It included living quarters, stables, storage rooms, kitchens, wine and oil presses, schools, and even chapels. Large circular stone doors could seal tunnels from the inside, protecting inhabitants from invaders. Each level could be isolated if enemies managed to enter the city. 1

Remarkable engineering: A 55-meter ventilation shaft supplied fresh air to the deepest levels, allowing people to survive underground for extended periods without returning to the surface. 2

Why Were These Cities Built?

Historians believe the earliest tunnels were created by the Phrygians around the 8th–7th centuries BCE. Over time, later civilizations expanded them into multi-level underground cities. 3

During the Byzantine era, Christian communities used these underground complexes as refuges during periods of invasion and conflict. When danger approached, entire villages could disappear underground within minutes, bringing animals, food, and water with them.

The layout was carefully designed for survival: narrow tunnels forced invaders to move single-file, while hidden ventilation shafts and wells kept inhabitants alive during long sieges.

Rediscovery in the Modern Era

Despite their enormous size, many of these underground cities remained hidden for centuries. Derinkuyu itself was rediscovered in 1963 when a local resident renovating his house found a mysterious passage behind a wall. Further excavation revealed an entire subterranean city stretching beneath the town.

Since then, archaeologists have uncovered additional underground settlements such as Kaymaklı and Özkonak, many connected by long tunnels. Some entrances were concealed beneath homes, meaning that ordinary villages on the surface were literally built on top of vast hidden cities. 4

A Landscape of Hidden Worlds

Cappadocia’s unique geology made these underground cities possible. The region is composed of soft volcanic rock known as tuff, which can be carved easily but remains structurally stable. Over thousands of years people sculpted homes, churches, and entire cities both above and below the ground.

Today, these underground labyrinths attract travelers and archaeologists alike. Only a portion of them has been explored, leaving the possibility that even larger hidden complexes may still lie beneath the hills of central Turkey.

Why They Still Fascinate Us

The underground cities of Turkey challenge our ideas of what ancient civilizations were capable of building. Their scale, planning, and engineering suggest remarkable organization and survival strategies developed long before modern technology.

Walking through their narrow stone tunnels today feels like stepping into a secret world — one where entire communities once lived, prayed, stored food, and waited for danger to pass far below the surface of the earth.

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