4K Visit the Istanbul Tulip Festival in April 2023 ((Istanbul Lale Festivali)

Where did tulips originate? You might be surprised to know that the answer to the question “where do Tulips come from?” isn’t Holland. Wild tulips grew throughout Turkey and Central Asia and early cultivation began in Iran around the 10th Century. Commercial Turkish tulip cultivation began during the Ottoman Empire and the popularity of the flowers increased particularly during the reign of Sultan Ahmet III in the 18th Century. Under the Sultan, there were many tulip festivals and beautiful imperial tulip gardens. Tulip motifs were widely used on carpets, tiles, weapons, ceramics, mosques and fabrics that can still be seen around Istanbul and the rest of Turkey. This age known as Lale Devri (the Tulip Era) was actually the wealthiest period of the Ottoman Empire.