Where to Visit in Mus
Mus is a city and the provincial capital of Mus Province in Turkey. Its population is mostly Kurds. Various explanations of the origin of Muş’s name exist. Its name is sometimes associated with the Armenian word mshush, meaning fog, explained by the fact that the town and the surrounding plain are frequently covered in fog in the mornings. The 17th-century explorer Evliya Çelebi relates a myth where a giant mouse created by Nemrud (Nimrod) destroys the city and its inhabitants, after which the city was named Mus (muš means “mouse” in Persian). Others have proposed a connection with the names of different ancient Anatolian peoples, the Mushki or the Mysians, or the toponyms Mushki and Mushuni mentioned in Assyrian and Hittite sources, respectively.
Population of the municipality of Mus numbers 72,774 according to a 2009 estimate. Kurds make up the majority of the population. The rest are Arabs and Crypto-Armenians.
The area of Muş has several ruined castles. Under the rule of the medieval Armenian dynasties monasteries and churches were built in localities near Mush such as the Arakelots Monastery, Surp Marineh Church, Mush, Surb Karapet Monastery most of which are now ruins.
Under the rule of the Muslim dynasties, other type of buildings were built as well. There are mosques from the Ottoman and pre-Ottoman period which show influences of Seljuk architecture. Mosques like the Alaeddin Bey (18th century), Haci Seref (17th century), and Ulu Mosque (14th century). Caravanserais like the “Yıldızlı Han” (13th century) destroyed in 1916, the now almost completely ruined “Arslanli Han” and also bathhouse and fountain of Alaeddin Bey and tombs of Muslim saints.
Mus Museums
