Religion in Istanbul

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Istanbul text with Abrahamic religions' symbols.

Religion in Istanbul covers the issue of religion in the city of

religious conservatives".[1]

According to the 2000 census, there were 2691 active

Balat neighbourhood, which used to have a sizeable Jewish population, the Fener neighbourhood with a large Greek population, and some neighbourhoods in Nişantaşı and Pera, which had sizeable Levantine populations. In some quarters, such as Ortaköy or Kuzguncuk
, an Armenian church sits next to a synagogue, and on the other side of the road a Greek Orthodox church is found beside a mosque.

Istanbul was the final seat of the

Turkish Orthodox Church, the Armenian Patriarchate, and the Turkish Chief Rabbi (Hahambasi). Istanbul was formerly also the seat of the Bulgarian Exarchate
, before its autocephaly was recognized by other Orthodox churches.

Islam

See also: List of mosques in Istanbul
Sultan Ahmed Mosque
in Istanbul.

The urban landscape of Istanbul is shaped by many communities. The most populous major religion is

Sultan Ahmed Mosque
(1616) which is also known as the "Blue Mosque" for the blue tiles which adorn its interior.

Istanbul was the seat of the

caliphs who followed him are today preserved in the Topkapı Palace, the Eyüp Sultan Mosque
and in several other prominent mosques of Istanbul.

The conquest of the Byzantine capital of

Sheikh ul-Islam
(shaykh, or leader of Islam), which had ultimate jurisdiction over all the courts in the empire and consequently exercised authority over the interpretation and application of sharia. Legal opinions pronounced by the Sheikh were considered definitive interpretations.

Christianity

See also: Christianity in Turkey
Chora Church
Orthodox Church in Constantinople around 1875, by Fabius Brest
Church of St. Anthony of Padua, Istanbul built in Istanbul during Ottoman Empire.
Bulgarian St. Stephen Church built in Istanbul during Ottoman Empire.
Syriac Catholic Church in Istanbul.

Turkish Orthodox Church and the Armenian Patriarchate. The city was formerly also the seat of the Bulgarian Exarchate
, before its autocephaly was recognized by other Orthodox churches.

Following the

Ecumenical Patriarchate
for the affairs of all Orthodox Christians, the Armenian Patriarchate for the affairs of the Armenian (and for some time also the Syriac) Christians, and later the Chief Rabbi for the affairs of the Jews.

As

middleman minorities, Greeks (Phanariots) and Armenians in Istanbul they were overrepresented in commerce.[5][6] The wealthy, Constantinople-based Amira class, a social elite whose members included the Duzians (Directors of the Imperial Mint), the Balyans (Chief Imperial Architects) and the Dadians (Superintendent of the Gunpowder Mills and manager of industrial factories).[7][8] It was the wealth of the extensive Phanariots merchant class that provided the material basis for the intellectual revival that was the prominent feature of Greek life in the half century and more leading to the outbreak of the Greek War of Independence in 1821.[9]

Into the 19th century, the Christians of Istanbul tended to be either

Istanbul Pogrom of 1955 which caused the deaths of 15 Greeks and the injury of 32 others, greatly increased emigration from Istanbul to Greece. In 1964, all Greeks without Turkish citizenship residing in Turkey (around 12,000[11]) were deported. Today, most of Turkey's remaining Greek and Armenian minorities live in or near Istanbul. The number of the Armenians in Istanbul today amount to approximately 40,000 or 70,000,[12][13] while the Greek community amounted to slightly more than 3,000 at the beginning of the 21st century. As of 2019, an estimated 18,000 of the country's 25,000 Assyrians live in Istanbul.[14]

Beside the mostly Catholic

Bosphorus Germans. A number of places reflect past movements of different communities into Istanbul, most notably Arnavutköy (Albanian village), Polonezköy
(Polish village) and Yenibosna (New Bosnia).

There were more than 40,000 Catholic Italians in Istanbul at the turn of the 20th century, a figure which not only included the descendants of the local Genoese and Venetian merchants who lived there since the Byzantine and early Ottoman periods, but also the numerous Italian workers and artisans who came to the city from Italy during the 19th century.

Mazzini was the second President).[15] The Società Operaia Italiana di Mutuo Soccorso is still active and is located in its original site, on a side street of İstiklal Avenue. The number of Istanbul's Italians decreased after the end of the Ottoman Empire for several reasons. The Turkish Republic no longer recognized the trade privileges that were given to the descendants of the Genoese and Venetian merchants, and foreigners were no longer allowed to work in Turkey in a wide number of sectors, including many artisanships, in which numerous Istanbulite Italians used to work. The Varlık Vergisi (Wealth Tax) of the World War II years, which imposed higher tariffs on non-Muslims and foreigners in Turkey, also played an important role in the migration of Istanbul's Italians to Italy—who still live in the city, but in far fewer numbers when compared with the early 20th century. The influence of the Italian community of Istanbul, however, is still visible in the architecture of many quarters, particularly Galata, Beyoğlu and Nişantaşı
.

The

Mor Ephrem Syriac Orthodox church, opened on 8 October 2023, is the first church built since the foundation of the Republic of Turkey.[16]

Judaism

See also:
Jews in Istanbul and List of synagogues in Turkey § Istanbul
Hemdat Israel Synagogue in Istanbul.

The

Camondo family was highly influential in the Ottoman banking sector. The famous Camondo Stairs on the Bankalar Caddesi (Banks Street) in Karaköy (Galata
) was built by them. More than 20,000 Sephardic Jews still remain in Istanbul today.

Ashkenazi Synagogue) is one of the most famous synagogues in Istanbul and stands out with its interesting architecture. A wave of Ashkenazi Jews came to Istanbul during the 1930s and 1940s following the rise of Nazism in Germany
which persecuted the Ashkenazi Jews of central and eastern Europe.

Today, a total of 20 active synagogues are to be found in the city, the most important of them being the Neve Shalom Synagogue inaugurated in 1951, in the Beyoğlu quarter. The Turkish Grand Rabbi in Istanbul (currently Ishak Haleva) presides over community affairs.

A decrease in the population of the city's Jewish community occurred after the independence of the

Moshe Shertok had all studied in the leading Turkish schools of Istanbul in their youth, namely Galatasaray High School and Istanbul University. As of 2022, the Jewish population in Turkey is around 14,500,[19]
with the majority of them living in either Istanbul or İzmir.

References and notes

  1. ^ "23 Haziran 2019 Sandık Analizi ve Seçmen Kümeleri" (PDF). KONDA.
  2. ^ DHA, Daily Sabah with (2019-01-10). "Assyrians community thrives again in southeastern Turkey". Daily Sabah. Retrieved 2020-05-20.
  3. ISBN 9781438106397
    .
  4. ISBN 9781444333619
    .
  5. ISBN 978-0-19-927356-0
    .
  6. ^ "Phanariote". Encyclopædia Britannica. United States: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc. 2016. Online Edition.
  7. ^ Barsoumian, Hagop (1982), "The Dual Role of the Armenian Amira Class within the Ottoman Government and the Armenian Millet (1750–1850)", in Braude, Benjamin; Lewis, Bernard (eds.), Christians and Jews in the Ottoman Empire: The Functioning of a Plural Society, vol. I, New York: Holmes & Meier
  8. ISBN 0-312-10168-6
  9. ^ "History of Greece, Ottoman Empire, The merchant middle class". Encyclopædia Britannica. United States: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc. 2008. Online Edition.
  10. ISBN 978-0-520-08239-7
    .
  11. ^ The European Union and Border Conflicts: The EU and Cultural Change in Greek-Turkish Relations
  12. ^ Turay, Anna. "Tarihte Ermeniler". Bolsohays: Istanbul Armenians. Archived from the original on 6 December 2006. Retrieved 2007-01-04.
  13. ^ AZAD-HYE. "Azad-Hye Middle East Armenian Portal (Turkish Armenians hope for new era)". www.azad-hye.net. Archived from the original on 2014-07-28. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  14. ^ DHA, Daily Sabah with (2019-01-10). "Assyrians community thrives again in southeastern Turkey". Daily Sabah. Archived from the original on 2019-01-10. Retrieved 2020-05-20.
  15. ^ Turchia Oggi: Società Operaia Italiana di Mutuo Soccorso
  16. ^ AA, Daily Sabah with (2023-10-04). "Türkiye's 1st Orthodox church built in post-republic era set to open". Daily Sabah. Retrieved 2023-10-05.
  17. ISBN 978-90-04-12530-8
    .
  18. ISBN 978-0-253-35690-1
    .
  19. ^ Staff, Toi (8 September 2018). "Ahead of Rosh Hashanah, figures show 14.7 million Jews around the globe". Times of Israel.
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