Gönen, Balıkesir

Hikayemiz

Gönen is a district of Balıkesir Province of Turkey, in the southern part of Marmara Sea. The town is mostly known for its therapeutic hot springs, leather processing and rice production.LocationThe town is surrounded by Bandırma in the northeast, Biga and Yenice in the west, Marmara Sea and Gulf of Erdek and Balya in the south. Elevation is above sea level.Names and etymologyThe oldest known name of the town is Asepsus . This was also the name of the brook, that flows next to the city center and was crossed by the Roman Aesepus Bridge. Research shows that the subsequent name was Artemea, a derivation of the Greek goddess Artemis.After the Ottoman conquest the name Gönen was used. The etymological source of that name is still disputed. Widely accepted possibilities are: Non-Turkish possibilities: Ka-wana : A word meaning "Sheepland/Sheep Country" in Luwian Germenon : A word meaning "Hot Spring" Giunan : A word meaning "Greek", becoming "Giunen" and then "Gonen" in Turkish A small pond that dries in summer, small pond, placid water Humid, wet, well-watered. Also, some sources indicate that there was a nomadic tribe of the "Yörükan community" bearing the name "Gönen","Gönan" or "Gönenlü". The tribe was loosely based around Adana and Maraş.