| There are over one hundred annual festivals held across Turkey. The most important religious ones are Seker Bayrami (Festival of Sugar) which is a three day national festival marking the end of the Moslem holy month of Ramadam when gifts of Turkish delight are exchanged: Kurban Bayrami commemorates the near sacrifice of Isaac by his father Abraham when God spared the child, allowing a lamb to be sacrificed instead. Those who can afford it sacrifice an animal in memory of this event and reserve a portion of the meat for the needy.
Other festivals include the strawberry festival in Bartin and international wine festival in Urgup in June; the apricot festival in Malatya in July; Chef's Festival in Bolu in Mengen held during August when foreign travel writers and press are treated to samples of Turkish gastronomical delights.
The 23rd April is a national holiday in Turkey because it is national sovereignty day which commemorates the establishment of the first national parliament in Turkey in 1920; a tulip festival is held in Istanbul towards the end of April, and at the beginning of May the Ephesus festival of culture and art is held in Selcuk near Izmir.
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