WHY IS THE USE OF "EAU DE COLOGNE" SO POPULAR IN TURKEY

If you had the chance to visit Turkey for any propose or for investment in Turkey, you will notice that Turkish people happen to use the Eau De Cologne very widely.

It is an important part of every Turkish house. It’s tradition to offer Cologne during guest visits, on bus trips, and in restaurants. It helps to eliminate the germs that the outdoor conditions leave on hands. Eau de Cologne is one of the essential scents of Turkish culture.  So, let’s know the story of the Eau De Cologne.

 Who Did Invent This Pleasing Scent?           

It is well-known that “Eau de Cologne” was made in 1690 by a peddler whose name was “Jean Paul Ferris” living in Cologne, Germany. But we don’t have any information about who invented Eau de Cologne before this date. Cologne was used for medical purposes for a while pretty than a cosmetic product. Besides its medical purposes, cologne was also used for cleaning purposes in the 18th century.

 When Did The Eau De Cologne Appear In Turkey?

Cologne initially appeared in The Ottoman Empire during the first years of the reign of “Abdul Hamid II”. “Ahmet Faruki”, a member of Egyptian family, opened the first Ottoman cosmetic shop in “Sultan Hamamı, Eminönü” becoming the founder of the cosmetic industry of the Ottoman Empire. With the funding of “Sultan Abdülhamid II”, “Faruki” had the power to compete with foreign shops. This scent produced as "Kölnisch Wasser" in Germany, introduced into Ottoman territories as "Köln Suyu" which means "Water of Cologne", and then its French translation "Eau de Cologne", but Turkish people preferred to use the name of “kolonya” for this product. “Sultan Abdülhamid II” showed great attention in the eau de cologne and encouraged “Faruki” to make new cologne types that were unique to Turkish culture. https://www.propertyinvest-tr.com/en/blog-detail/1882/why-is-the-use-of-eau-de-cologne-so-popular-in-turkey

“Ahmet Faruki” developed new types of eau de cologne with lavender, jasmine and rose and these new colognes became very common in the Ottoman Empire. These new types defeated eau de cologne coming from Europe, then “Faruki” exported Turkish colognes to Europe.

By 1920, “Eyüp Sabri Tuncer” started fabricating cologne on a small shop in Ankara where he would provide customers with free sample bottles. “Tuncer” remains as one of the most important brands in the “kolonya” sector till this day.

Cologne became one of the most essential traditions in Turkey. Today, different regions have different cologne types - but the most popular is lemon kolonya- such as, citrus flower of “Antalya”, tea cologne of “Rize”, tobacco cologne of “Düzce”, apple cologne of “Amasya”, olive flower cologne of “Ayvalık”.