Bartın Province, located in the Western Black Sea Region, is bordered by the Black Sea to the north with its 59-kilometre coastline, by Kastamonu to the east, Karabük to the east and south, and Zonguldak to the west. Bartın is surrounded from the east, west and north by mountains whose elevations do not exceed 2,000 metres. Although these mountains are not very high, they are quite steep, becoming rugged and rocky toward the coastline. The highest point is Keçikıran Hill, at 1,619 metres. Aladağ, Kocadağ, Karadağ, Kayaardı, Karasu and Arıt Mountains are among the most important mountains in the region. The city centre is encircled by Aladağ to the west, the Karasu Mountains to the north and the Arıt Mountains to the east. The terrain, deeply dissected by the Bartın River and its tributaries, has a highly rugged appearance. Narrow and deep valleys are found in the areas where the river widens and between the steep slopes of the mountains. Flat plains become more common toward the city centres.

The most important river of Bartın is the Bartın River, known as Parthenios in antiquity, from which the city takes its name. Kocaçay and Kocanaz Stream, the two main branches of the Bartın River, meet at Gazhane Cape in the centre of Bartın and reach the Black Sea at Boğaz. Kocanaz Stream rises in the south and flows northward through Kozcağız, while the 107-kilometre-long Kocaçay is formed by the Göksu and Eldeş Streams, also known as Ulus Stream, which come from Kastamonu and pass through Ulus, as well as by the streams that join them. Kışla Stream, which joins Kozlu Stream formed by Arıt and Mevren Streams, along with Akpınar and Karaçay Streams, are among the watercourses that feed Kocaçay. Kapısuyu and Tekkeönü Streams, as well as Ovaçayı and İnönü Streams, which irrigate Ulus-Uluyayla, are other important watercourses of the province.

Bartın has a surface area of 2,143 square kilometres and an elevation of 25 metres above sea level. The total population of the province is 206,663.

The economy of the province is based on agriculture, animal husbandry and forestry. The agricultural products grown in the region include wheat, barley, corn, oats, beans, sunflower, onion, potato, alfalfa and vetch. Greenhouse cultivation has also developed in recent years. Forests cover 46 percent of Bartın’s total land area of 2,140 square kilometres. The forests of the province have long been one of the main sectors of the local economy. Historical records show that timber production began in 1402, when the Ottoman Empire attempted to establish the Gallipoli shipyard; that the galleys and galleons of the Ottoman navy were built in the shipyards of Bartın, Amasra and Kurucaşile; and that in 1914 timber was shipped from Bartın to the port of Alexandria in Egypt to be used in the fortification works of the Suez Canal. In areas up to 600 metres in elevation, the forests consist of laurel, oak, beech, strawberry tree and juniper; between 600 and 1,000 metres, they consist of oak, beech and hornbeam; and at elevations of 1,000 to 1,500 metres and above, they consist of beech, chestnut and pine trees. These forests are managed by two separate forestry directorates located in Bartın city centre and Ulus district.

The source of the name that evolved from “Parthenia” into Bartın is “Parthenios”. Parthenios, the ancient name of the Bartın River, is known in Greek mythology as one of the hundreds of gods who were the children of Oceanus, the Father of the Gods, and as the “God of Waters”. The name of the city of Parthenia, founded on the banks of the Bartın River, which was called Parthenios in antiquity, gradually evolved into Bartın.

Although there is no definite information about the history of Bartın, it is generally accepted that the first inhabitants of the region were the Kaskians, also known as the Gasgas, in the 14th century BC, and the Hittites in the 13th century BC. Later, the Bithynians, who settled in the Bolu region, and the Paphlagonians, who ruled in the Kastamonu region, extended their borders as far as Parthenios. Thus, the lands of Bartın remained within the borders of these two spheres of influence. At the end of the 12th century BC, Bartın in the Bithynia region came under the control of the Phrygians, while Amasra in the Paphlagonia region came under the control of the Phoenicians. The Phoenicians established the first Sidonian colonies in Amasra, known as Sesamos, Ereğli, known as Heraklia, Sinop, known as Sinope, and Tekkeönü, known as Kromna. Bartın and its surroundings later came under the rule of the Cimmerians at the end of the 7th century BC, the Lydians in the 6th century BC and the Persians in 547 BC.

In 334 BC, Alexander the Great, King of Macedonia, ended Persian rule and took control of the region. He left the administration of Bartın and Ulus to General Eumenes, while the administration of Amasra and Tekkeönü was given to the Phrygian Satrap. However, between 302 and 286 BC, the administration of Amasra changed hands and came under the rule of Queen Amastris. The city, which had been known as Sesamos since the 12th century BC, took the name of the queen after her 16-year reign. During this period, it became the capital of the Symoikismos Union of City-States, which consisted of Kromna, now Tekkeönü; Tios, now Filyos-Hisarönü; and Kyteros, now Gideros. In 286 BC, Queen Amastris was killed by her sons, who caused the ship she had boarded to sink. The city then came under the administration of Eumenes again. Following the wars in the region, Amasra and the surrounding area came under the rule of the Kingdom of Pontus in 279 BC. In 70 BC, the Romans entered Anatolia, ended the rule of the Kingdom of Pontus and gained control of the region. During the Roman period, Bithynia and the Paphlagonian part of Pontus began to be administered as the Roman province of Bithynia and Pontus, and Amasra became the capital of the Pontus section of this province.

Bartın and its surroundings remained under Roman rule until AD 395. Following the division of the Roman Empire into Eastern and Western parts, the region became part of the Byzantine Empire and remained under Byzantine rule for many years.

Bartın and its surroundings were subjected to intense raids by the Pechenegs and Cumans under the command of Khazar ruler Sahip Khan around the 390s BC, by the Arabs under the command of Abd al-Malik around AD 798, by the Seljuks around AD 800 and by the Russians around AD 865. In 1084, Emir Karatigin, one of the commanders of Süleyman Bey, son of Kutalmış, captured Sinop, Çankırı, Kastamonu and Zonguldak and established a Turkish emirate in the region, which also included Bartın, Ulus, Eflani, Safranbolu and Devrek. However, the death of Süleyman Bey in 1086 and the First Crusade, which began in 1096, created serious difficulties for the Turks who had settled in northwestern Anatolia. Following an agreement between the Crusader allies and Byzantium, the entire Black Sea coast from Istanbul to Samsun, especially Amasra, Sinop and Ereğli, came under Byzantine rule once again. After Byzantine rule, Bartın and its surroundings came under the control of the Anatolian Seljuks at the end of the 11th century. After 200 years of Seljuk rule, the region came under the rule of the Candaroğulları Principality, which dominated the Kastamonu region in 1326, and was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire from 1392 onward. After the Battle of Ankara in 1402, the city temporarily came under the control of the İsfendiyaroğlu Principality, but in 1461 it once again came under Ottoman rule.

During the Ottoman period, between 1460 and 1692, Bartın was located within the borders of the Bolu Sanjak, which was affiliated with the Beylerbeylik of Anatolia. After the abolition of the Bolu Sanjak, Bartın was governed by voyvodas between 1692 and 1811. In 1811, it was attached to the re-established Bolu Sanjak under the Kastamonu Vilayet.

During this period, Bartın became the marketplace of the region with its commercial potential and was known as Oniki Divan. It became a district in 1867. Bartın was attached to the Zonguldak Mutasarrifate in 1920 and became a district of Zonguldak after Zonguldak gained provincial status in 1924. In 1991, Bartın itself gained the status of a province.

Among the historical structures in Bartın that have survived to the present day are the ruins of the entrance gate of the Roman-period theatre in Amasra, whose cavea and skene have collapsed; the Roman-period necropolis; the wall remains of the bouleuterion; some wall fragments belonging to the acropolis walls; Roman-period underground galleries; sections of the Roman-period marketplace; the Roman-period quay and breakwater; the hermitage cave in Büyüktepe; the remains of a Byzantine-period church on Tavşan Island; the remains of the castle in Tekkeönü Village; the Byzantine-period Amasra Castle; Genoese castle ruins in Güzelcehisar, Şarköy and Fırınlı villages within the borders of the central district; and Ottoman-period structures such as Fatih Mosque, İçkale Masjid, Halil Bey Mosque, also known as Yukarı Mosque, built in 1872; İbrahimpaşa Mosque, also known as Orta Mosque; Şadırvan Mosque, also known as Aşağı Mosque, built between 1903 and 1905; and Şimşirli Baba Mosque. Other notable structures include the Ebu Derda Tomb, said to belong to Abu al-Darda, one of the Companions of the Prophet Muhammad; Aya Nikola Church, also known as St. Nicholas Church, built in 1319; and the Amasra Küçüktepe Martyrium.

In addition, Bartın is home to Taşhan, built between 1832 and 1835; Dervişoğlu Inn, built in 1897; the remains of Ottoman baths; the City Bath, built in 1447; Kemer Bridge, built in 1872; Orduyeri, also known as Kışla Bridge, built in 1887; Kemere Bridge from the Byzantine period; Kemerdere Bridge from the Roman period; and examples of houses and mansions reflecting Ottoman civil architecture.