Bartın Women's Market

Bartın Women’s Market is a traditional folk market unique to the province of Bartın in Türkiye, also known locally as “Galla Pazarı” or “Garıla Pazarı,” where only women participate as producers and vendors. Market functions as a direct marketplace where female producers from Bartın’s urban center and surrounding villages sell products they have made with their own labor.

The history of the Bartın Women’s Market is rooted in the integration of women’s labor into local trade and commerce. The market’s origins extend back to the 17th and 18th centuries, when Bartın began to develop as a commercial center during the Ottoman period. In the 17th century, Evliya Çelebi noted that a market was held in Bartın on Saturdays; similarly, Uluslu İbrahim Hamdi, in his 18th-century work Atlas, documented market activities in Bartın.

From the 19th century onward, women living in rural areas began traveling to Bartın’s urban center to sell goods produced in their homes or gardens, gradually shaping the market into its current form. During this period, as men left the region to work in male-dominated occupations such as shipbuilding and mining, women assumed responsibility for household livelihoods. This necessity compelled women to actively participate in the economy both as producers and sellers.

^{Bartın Galla Pazarı (}Republic of Türkiye Bartın Governorate⁾

The women who sell at the market are primarily producers from Bartın’s center and environment villages. Women are involved at every stage of the process, both as producers and vendors. This participation contributes to the economic empowerment of rural women and enhances their social visibility. Women assume not only an economic but also a social role at the market. It serves as a social space where women engage in exchange with their communities, share experiences, and foster solidarity.

The majority of products sold at the market are produced by women. These include seasonal vegetables and fruits, dairy products, eggs, honey, pekmez, jam, village bread, tarhana, erişte, and handmade crafts made from house. The market operates on a model of individual production rather than centralized procurement. The origins of the products are mostly villages and neighborhoods within 20 kilometers of Bartın’s urban center.

The Bartın Women’s Market has become a destination not only for the local population but also for tourists visiting the city. The market is held on specific days of the week in Bartın’s urban center and continues to serve as a vital source of income for female producers. In recent years, projects have been developed with support from local authorities and certain civil society organizations to preserve the market’s structure and support its female producers. This model, which promotes women’s economic empowerment, is regarded as one of the most significant examples in Türkiye.