Keşan is the name of a district of Edirne Province, Turkey, and also the name of the largest town in the district. Keşan has a population of 54,314 (as of 2010) during the winter; in the summer this increases to 70,000 because of an influx of tourists. The mayor is Mehmet Özcan (CHP).
Keşan district has borders with İpsala and Uzunköprü from north, Malkara from east, Şarköy from southeast, Gelibolu and Aegean Sea from south and Enez from west.
Agriculture and commerce are the two most important sources of income in Keşan. Because of its proximity to Greece, there is a daily flow of tourists in and out of the district.
Humans have lived in Keşan continuously since the 30th century BC. The first inhabitants were Luvians and Thracians. It was ruled by the Kingdom of Thrace, the Persian Empire, the Kingdom of Macedonia, the Roman Empire, the Bulgarian Kingdom, and the Byzantine Empire before Ottoman domination in second half of 14th century. It was bounded to Province of Rumelia and Province of Kaptanpaşa as part of Gelibolu Sanjak. It was a nahiya center in Enez kaza at first, later was bounded to İpsala kaza. It was bounded to Eyalet of Edirne in 1830.
Keşan became a kaza center in Gelibolu Sanjak at Vilayet of Edirne. It was occupied by Russians in 1829 and in 1878, by Bulgarians between 1912 and 1913 and by Greeks between 1920 and 1922. It was captured and held by the Republic of Turkey in 19 November 1922. Keşan district reached its present borders after the separation of nahiya of Enez in 1953.
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