Türkmenbaşy District (Turkmen: Türkmenbaşy etraby) is a district in Balkan Province, Turkmenistan. The administrative center of the district is the town of Türkmenbaşy şäherçesi.
Its name is derived from the title "Türkmenbaşy" (head Turkmen) former President of Turkmenistan Saparmurat Niyazov created for himself.
Saparmurat Atayevich Niyazov (19 February 1940 – 21 December 2006) was a Turkmen politician and dictator who led Turkmenistan from 1985 until his death in 2006. He was the first secretary of the Communist Party of Turkmenistan from 1985 until 1991 and supported the 1991 Soviet coup attempt. He continued to rule Turkmenistan as the first president for 15 years after independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Turkmen media referred to him using the title His Excellency Saparmurat Türkmenbaşy, President of Turkmenistan and Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers. His self-given title Türkmenbaşy, meaning Head of the Turkmen, referred to his position as the founder and president of the Association of Turkmens of the World. In 1999, the Assembly of Turkmenistan declared Niyazov to become as President for life.
View the full Wikipedia page for Saparmurat NiyazovAn etrap, often translated as "district," is the second-level administrative division of Turkmenistan. In terms of hierarchy, an etrap is situated below a welaýat (province). An etrap may include several cities (in turkmen: "şäher" / pl. "şäherler"), towns ("şäherçe" / pl. "şäherçeler") and rural councils ("geňeşlik" / pl. "geňeşlikler") which include villages ("oba" / "pl. obalar"). An etrap is headed by an häkim (translated as "governor" in the case of a district, but translated as "mayor" in the case of a city, a town or a borough); they are appointed by the President of Turkmenistan (Constitution of Turkmenistan, Articles 80-81).
Some districts may not fit in the hierarchy expressed before, those are the following ones:
View the full Wikipedia page for Districts of Turkmenistan