Juliopolis (Iuliopolis) in Historical Sources
Written sources mention Juliopolis under various names. One of them, Gordioukome, shows that the settlement was dated before the Roman Empire period.
Cleon of Gordioukome transformed the village into a city and renamed it Juliopolis (Ἰουλιούπολις) in honor of Emperor Augustus (27 BC - 14 AD) with whom he fought against Marcus Antonius in the Battle of Actium (31 BC). Juliopolis was one of the five Bithynian cities mentioned by Galen (AD 129 - c. 200/216) where a grain called zeopyros, which is "inferior to wheat but superior to Thracian rye", was cultivated. Then the city became one of the dioceses of Galatia Prima. Church records also mention Juliopolis as one of the episcopal centers in the region from the 4th century AD.
