Ardahan Province in the context of "Artvin Province"

Lake Çıldır (Turkish: Çıldır Gölü; Georgian: ჩრდილი, ჩრდილის ტბა, Črdilis tba, meaning "lake of shadows", Armenian: Ծովակ Հիւսիսոյ, Tsovak Hyusiso, meaning "small sea of the north", Armenian: Պաղկացի լիճ, Paghkatsi lich, meaning "cold lake"), is a large freshwater lake in the provinces of Ardahan and Kars in northeastern Turkey. It is located close to the borders with Georgia and Armenia. Lake Çıldır is located at an elevation of approximately 1,959 m (6,427 ft) and is surrounded by a mountainous region. It has an area of 123 km (47 sq mi) and a maximum depth of about 42 m (138 ft). Water from the lake is used for irrigation. The lake freezes over in the winter.

The area around the lake is primarily used for livestock farming, with little vegetation present and absence of agriculture due to harsh conditions.

Ardahan (Georgian: არტაანი, romanized: art'aani; Kurdish: Erdêxan, Armenian: Արդահան, romanized: Ardahan; Russian: Ардаган) is a city in northeastern Turkey, near the Georgian border. It is the seat of Ardahan Province and Ardahan District. Its population is 22,927 (2021).

Erzurum Province (Turkish: Erzurum ili) is a province and metropolitan municipality in the Eastern Anatolia Region of Turkey. Its area is 25,006 km, and its population is 749,754 (2022). The capital of the province is the city of Erzurum. It is the fourth largest province in all of Turkey. It is bordered by the provinces of Kars and Ağrı to the east, Muş and Bingöl to the south, Erzincan and Bayburt to the west, Rize and Artvin to the north and Ardahan to the northeast. The governor of the province is Mustafa Çiftçi, appointed in August 2023. The province has a Turkish majority.

Kars Province (Turkish: Kars ili; Azerbaijani: Qars Rayonu; Kurdish: Parêzgeha Qersê; Armenian: Կարսի նահանգ) is a province of Turkey, located in the northeastern part of the country. It shares part of its closed border with Armenia. Its area is 10,193 km, and its population is 274,829 (2022). The provincial capital is the city of Kars. The provinces of Ardahan and Iğdır were part of Kars Province until 1992.

The Kars oblast was a province (oblast) of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire between 1878 and 1917. Its capital was the city of Kars, which later became part of Turkey. The oblast bordered the Ottoman Empire to the west, the Batum Oblast (in 1883–1903 part of the Kutaisi Governorate) to the north, the Tiflis Governorate to the northeast, and the Erivan Governorate to the east. The Kars oblast included parts of the contemporary provinces of Kars, Ardahan, and Erzurum Province of Turkey, and the Amasia Community of the Shirak Province of Armenia.

Javakheti (Georgian: ჯავახეთი [d͡ʒäväχe̞t̪ʰi]) or Javakhk (Armenian: Ջավախք, Javakhk) is a historical province in southern Georgia, corresponding to the modern municipalities of Akhalkalaki, Aspindza (partly), Ninotsminda, and partly to the Turkey's Ardahan Province. Historically, Javakheti's borders were defined by the Kura River (Mtkvari) to the west, and the Shavsheti, Samsari and Nialiskuri mountains to the north, south and east, respectively. The principal economic activities in this region are subsistence agriculture, particularly potatoes and raising livestock.

In 1995, the Akhalkalaki and Ninotsminda districts, comprising the historical territory of Javakheti, were merged with the neighboring land of Samtskhe to form a new administrative region, Samtskhe–Javakheti. As of January 2020, the total population of Samtskhe–Javakheti is 152,100 individuals. Armenians comprise the majority of Javakheti's population. According to the 2014 Georgian census, 93% (41,870) of the inhabitants in Akhalkalaki Municipality and 95% (23,262) in Ninotsminda Municipality were Armenians, with only tiny numbers of ethnic Georgians and Caucasus Greeks remaining.

Erusheti (Georgian: ერუშეთი) was a medieval Georgian fiefdom, currently part of the Ardahan Province in northeastern Turkey, close to the border with Georgia. The district was centered in the eponymous settlement, at the present-day village Oğuzyolu, which, according to the medieval historical tradition, was one of the earliest centres of Christianity in Georgia. Ruins of Christian churches are found throughout the region. In modern Georgia, the name "Erusheti" is preserved as a designation of a mountainous range along the border with Turkey.

Göle (Armenian: Կող, romanized: Kogh; Georgian: კოლა, romanized: k'ola; Kurdish: Mêrdînik) is a small city in Ardahan Province of Turkey. The city was formerly known as Merdenik, Merdinik or Ardahan-ı Küçük ("Little Ardahan" in Ottoman Turkish). It is the seat of Göle District. Its population is 5,775 (2021).