Ankara, Aug 20 (IANS): The Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) released its happiness rankings for Turkey's cities with Sinop in the Black Sea region topping the list at 77.66 per cent among the country's 81 major cities.

The list was released on Monday. Sinop is followed by Afyonkarahisar of the Aegean region, with a happiness rate of 76.43 per cent, according to TurkStat.

Anatolia city Bayburt ranks third with 75.91 per cent, while Kirikkale in central Anatolia comes in fourth with a happiness rate of 75.48 per cent.

Kutahya City in the Aegean region has a happiness rate of 73.76 per cent, while Cankiri in central Anatolia records a rate of 73.5 per cent.

The Black Sea city Duzce shows a happiness rate of 72.77 per cent, while Usak in the Aegean region follows closely with 72.34 per cent.

Siirt, in southeastern Anatolia, reports a happiness rate of 71.65 per cent, while Sirnak, also in the southeast, has a rate of 71.36 per cent.

The data highlights the central Black Sea region as the happiest in Turkey, with the Aegean region also showing high levels of happiness.

Both central and southeast Anatolia regions also display significant contentment.