Erdek (formerly Artàke, Greek: Αρτάκη) is a town and district of Balıkesir Province in the Marmara region of Turkey. The population was 34000 in 2010. Located on the north coast of Gulf of Erdek at the south of the Sea of Marmara, Erdek is known as a holiday destination that is popular among domestic tourists. The area has a rugged geology and topography and evergreen wooded areas. There are also large olive groves. The mayor is Hüseyin Sarı (CHP).
The town was inhabited chiefly after the abandonment of nearby Cyzicus in the early Middle Ages. Briefly, in the late 7th century, it hosted a Cypriot refugee population including the island's archbishop, and was known as Nova Justiniana. During the Ottoman period, Erdek was the center of a kaza in the Sanjak of Karasi.
Erdek is twinned with:
When I stand, I fall
A Glimpse of life, wakes me
Still I linger, linger in failure
As it stands
Life is a failure
A Fragile offering
Crippling me with human sound
I betrayed myself...again
Again I sigh
Nothing here...
I feel betrayed
And yet I betray myself
As I take hold and breed joy