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Turkey, or Türkiye, covers an expansive 785,000 square kilometers and has a diverse population of approximately 86 million people, composed mainly of ethnic Turks. The Turkish Republic emerged from the ashes of World War I and the fall of the Ottoman Empire, driven by nationalistic movements led by figures like Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Under Atatürk, Turkey underwent radical social and political changes, embracing secularism while maintaining a generally authoritarian political atmosphere for decades.