The mysterious valley of Kayseri, which is unknown and needs to be explored, is a remarkable place with its fairy chimneys and natural beauty. The valley is located on the road route connecting Kayseri to the southern cities, passing over the Taurus Mountains. There is Güzelöz in the north of Soğanlı Valley, Keşlik in the east, Kale and Akköyler in the southeast, Ürgüp in the northeast and Niğde in the west.
The ancient name of Soğanlı Valley, a village in the Yeşilhisar district of Kayseri, is Soandos. The Soganli Valley is first mentioned in the Geography of the Greek scholar Strabo. According to Vasilev, the Arabic of Soandos is Sundus. While Ruge refers to the other names of Saondos as "Suenda" or "Skandos", Ramsay has doubts that Suenda is the same place as Soanda. Ramsay also mentioned that Soganli was an episcopal center with its houses, churches and tombs carved from the rocks, and that Saondos was connected to the Makios Metropolis.
Soğanlı has been one of the important centers in Cappadocia since the fourth century and continued its importance in the 7th and 8th centuries. During the reign of the Eastern Roman Empire, the settled people carved the rocks; They built houses, churches, warehouses, meeting areas, and were engaged in agriculture, animal husbandry and viticulture. During this period, the Romans also used the foothills of the Soganli Valley as rock tombs. While Charles Texier was visiting the region, “At the top of the mountain comes the “kulumebariya” where the Romans cremated their ashes.” He said and talked about the existence of aqueducts that could not reach the present day.
The first Turkish settlements in the Soğanlı Valley were realized when Battal Gazi took the region from the Byzantines. The Soğanlı Valley, which is comfortable and easy to protect as a settlement, could take shelter in the Doğanlı and Derinkuyu underground cities located near the region in case of danger.
Soganli Valley attracts attention with its rock churches today. It is known that there were about 200 churches and monasteries in the valley in 850 years. Today, there are 50 churches with murals. However, it is possible to visit only 10 of them. It is used as a dovecote by the people of the region, whose doors and windows are covered by knitting. The wall paintings of the Domed, Yılanlı (Monster), Karabaş, Saklı, Geyikli and Tahtalı (Azize Barbara) churches in the Soğanlı Valley have an important place in the Middle Byzantine Period Painting Art.
Soganli Valley is also famous for the beautiful handmade rag dolls made by the local people. Authentic rag dolls, which dominate the entire region and spread throughout Cappadocia, exist in the Soğanlı region and spread all over the world.
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