Ballıkayalar

North of Ballıkaya the land rises quickly over a short distance: within 1.3 km north of the centre of the settlement, the elevation increases by approximately 190 m (SRTM). Local sources refer to the band of rock on these slopes as the Ballıkayalar and report that the village’s official name comes from these rocks (Özerol, blog).

Origin of the name

According to local sources, the rocks are called Ballıkaya (“honey rock”) because honey was found in this band of rock (Özerol, blog). Another source, on the Şah İbrahim Velî ocak (a hereditary sacred lineage), links the name instead to the beekeeping of Şah Velî, who is said to have lived in the 17th century (Yıldız 2012, p. 130). Neither account has been confirmed by documents.

Protection status

According to a report in the local press on 28 December 2015, the Nature Conservation Branch of the Malatya Provincial Directorate of Environment and Urbanisation carried out a technical survey to determine whether the rocky area in and around Ballıkaya should be placed under protection as a protected area (SİT alanı). The report states that the area was found to be a habitat of wild goats (Malatya Haber, 28.12.2015).

We have not yet found an official document showing whether a protection decision was taken at the end of the survey. We are researching this through the records of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Ministry of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change.

Photographs

Photographs of the rocks, with permission and full details, are collected in the Photo Archive. The first are seasonal photographs sent by Hüseyin – Sakine Öztürk.

What is missing

• The exact boundaries of the band of rock on a map
• A scientific source on the geological structure of the rocks

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