Urfa, officially known as Şanlıurfa (pronounced [ʃanˈɫɯɾfa]; Arabic: الرُّهَا‎‎, romanized: alruha; Kurdish: Riha; Syriac: ܐܘܪܗܝ‎, romanized: Ūrhāi; Armenian: Ուռհա, romanized: Or'ha; and known in ancient times as Edessa), is a city with a population of over 2 million residents in southeastern Turkey, and the capital of Şanlıurfa Province. Urfa has a Turkish, Kurdish and Arab population. Urfa is situated on a plain about 80 km east of the Euphrates River. Its climate features extremely-hot, dry summers and cool, moist winters.

About 12 km (7 mi) northeast of the city is the famous Neolithic site of Göbekli Tepe, the world's oldest-known temple, which was founded in the 10th millennium BCE. The area was part of a network of the first human settlements where the agricultural revolution took place. Because of its association with Jewish, Christian, and Islamic history, and a legend according to which it was the hometown of Abraham, Urfa is nicknamed as the "City of Prophets."