Bafra is a district of Samsun Province of Turkey. It is a settlement located from the Black Sea, in the fertile delta of the Kızılırmak River. The Bafra Plain is famous in Turkey for its rich soil and high quality tobacco growing conditions. The city is well known in Turkey for its ice cream, cigarettes, tobacco and agricultural produce. In 2020, the district reported a population of 143,366. The city is located 52 km northwest of Samsun and is connected by State road D.010. History The name of the municipality is thought to have come from the Phoenician name "bafira" or "bavra". Other beliefs about the etymology of the region come from the name "Ba-Hura" (Great River) given to Kizilirmak which generates the delta upon which the city is located. Historical records of human settlement in Bafra and the Kizilirmak delta date to as early as 5000 BC. Researchers working at the nearby İkiztepe ruins have found traces of human settlement belonging to the Chalcolithic period (5000-4000 BC). It has been determined that a continuous human settlement existed in the İkiztepe ruins between 4000 BC and 1700 BC. Additional evidence of settlement is found to have existed during the Bronze Age (3000-2000 BC) and Early Hittite (1900-1800 BC) period. Researchers found that an early capital existed in Hattusa, Anatolia and later moved to the Kizilirmak Valley. The region was known as Paphlagonia as of 670 BC. 6th century BC, Persians invaded the region in 546 BC and captured it from the Lydians. Graves from the Hellenistic period (330-30 BC) exist at İkiztepe. The region came under the rule of the Rome who renamed the area Gadilon and later Helega. After the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, the area became part of the Byzantine Empire. The region was a part of the Byzantine Empire until the Battle of Manzikert in 1071. After that battle, Bafra was captured by the Anatolian Seljuk Ruler Kaykaus I. After being conquered by the Seljuk Empire the region was repopulated by members of various Turkmen tribes. The invasion of the Mongol Empire began in 1243 and led to the collapse of Seljuk Empire and the establishment of scattered Turkish principalities. During this period, the Bafra Principality was briefly established. This political arrangement continued until 1460, when Bafra was again conquered and made part of the Ottoman Empire. Under the Ottoman Empire, the town of Bafra