Fatih
Encyclopedia
Fatih is a municipality (belediye) and district in Istanbul
, Turkey
that encompasses most of the peninsula coinciding with historic Constantinople
. In 2009, the district of Eminönü
, formerly a separate municipality located at the tip of the peninsula
, was merged into Fatih. Fatih borders the Golden Horn
to the north and the Sea of Marmara
to the south, while the Western border is demarked by the Theodosian
wall
. The mayor is Mustafa Demir (AKP
).
Historic Byzantine districts encompassed by present-day Fatih include: Exokiónion, Aurelianae, Xerólophos, ta Eleuthérou
, Helenianae, ta Dalmatoú, Sígma, Psamátheia
, ta Katakalón, Paradeísion, ta Olympíou, ta Kýrou, Peghé, Rhéghion, ta Elebíchou, Leomákellon, ta Dexiokrátous, Petríon or Pétra, Phanàrion
, Exi Mármara (Altimermer), Philopátion, Deúteron and Vlachernaí
.
emperor Fatih Sultan Mehmed (Mehmed the Conqueror), and means "Conqueror" in Turkish
, originally from Arabic
. The Fatih Mosque
built by Mehmed II is in this district, while his resting place is next to the mosque
and is much visited. It was on the ruins of the Church of the Holy Apostles
, destroyed by earthquakes and years of war, that the Fatih Mosque was built, and around the mosque a large prayer school.
Immediately after the conquest, groups of Islamic scholars transformed the major churches of Hagia Sophia
and the Pantocrator (today the Zeyrek Mosque
) into mosques, but the Fatih Mosque and its surrounding complex was the first purpose-built Islamic seminary within the city walls. The building of the mosque complex ensured that the area continued to thrive beyond the conquest; markets grew up to support the thousands of workers involved in the building and to supply them with materials, and then to service the students in the seminary. The area quickly became a Turkish neighbourhood with a particularly pious character due to the seminary. Some of this piety has endured until today.
Following the conquest, the Edirnekapı (meaning Edirne
Gate) gate in the city walls became the major exit to Thrace
, and this rejuvenated the neighbourhoods overlooking the Golden Horn. The Fatih Mosque was on the road to Edirnekapı and the Fatih district became the most populous area of the city in the early Ottoman period and in the 16th century more mosques and markets were built in this area, including: Iskender Pasha Mosque, once famous as a centre for the Naqshbandi
order in Turkey); Hirka-i-Sharif Mosque, which houses the cloak of the Prophet Muhammad
(The Mosque
is in common use but the cloak is only on show during the month of Ramadan
; the Jerrahi
Tekke
; The Sunbul Efendi
Tekke and the Ramazan Efendi Tekke both in the Kocamustafapaşa district and the Vefa Kilise Mosque
, originally a Byzantine church. The last four were named after the founders of various Sufi orders, and Sheikh Ebü’l Vefa in particular was of major importance in the city and was very fond of Fatih. Many other mosques, schools, baths and fountains in the area were built by military leaders and officials in the Ottoman court.
From the 18th century onwards Istanbul started to grow outside the walls, and then began the transformation of Fatih into the mass of concrete apartment buildings that we have today. This process has been accelerated over the years by fires which destroyed whole neighbourhoods of wooden houses, and a major earthquake in 1766, which destroyed the Fatih Mosque and many of the surrounding buildings, (which were subsequently rebuilt). Fires continued to ravage the old city, and the wide roads that run through the area today are a legacy of all that burning. There are few wooden buildings left in Fatih today, although right up until the 1960s the area was covered with narrow streets of wooden buildings. Nowadays, the district is largely made up of narrow streets with tightly-packed 5- or 6-floor apartment buildings.
, Fındıkzade, Çapa
, and Vatan Caddesi that are more cosmopolitan than the extreme conservative image which the district has in the eyes of many people (because of the religious community of the Çarşamba quarter within the district.) With Eminönü
, which was officially an area of the Fatih district until 1928, and with its historical Byzantine
walls, conquered by Mehmed II, Fatih is the "real" Istanbul of the old times, before the recent enlargement of the city that began in the 19th century.
The area has become more and more crowded from the 1960s onwards, and a large portion of the middle class residents moved to the Anatolian side and other parts of the city. Fatih today is largely a working class district, but being a previously wealthy area, is well-resourced, with a more thoroughly established community than the relatively poorer residents of the newly-built areas such as Bağcılar or Esenler to the west, which are almost entirely inhabited by post-1980s immigrants who came to the city in desperate circumstances. Fatih, at least, was built with some degree of central planning by the municipality.
Besides the Haliç University
and the Kadir Has University
, two different Faculty of Medicine campuses of Istanbul University
(Çapa Faculty of Medicine and Cerrahpaşa Faculty of Medicine) are in Fatih.
Moreover, since 1586, the Orthodox Christian Patriarchate of Constantinople has its headquarters in the relatively modest Church of St. George in the Fener
district of Fatih.
Fatih has many theatres, including the famous Reşat Nuri Sahnesi. The area is well-served with a number of schools, hospitals and public amenities in general. As Fatih is next to Eminönü, there is a smaller choice of shopping than in other areas, but there are still boutiques on the main thoroughfares, many of which still carry a fair number of trees. A number of Istanbul's longest-established hospitals are in Fatih, including the Istanbul University teaching hospitals of Çapa and Cerrahpaşa, the Haseki Public Hospital, the Samatya Public Hospital, and the Vakıf Gureba Public Hospital. A tramway runs from the docks at Sirkeci
, through Sultanahmet, and finally to Aksaray
, which is a part of Fatih.
Also, the headquarters of some of the main units of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, including the Fire Authority of the city, are based in Fatih.
Fatih has many historical and modern libraries, including the Edirnekapı Halk Kütüphanesi, Fener Rum Patrikhanesi Kütüphanesi (the Library of the Patriarchate), Hekimoğlu Ali Paşa Halk Kütüphanesi, İstanbul University Cerrahpaşa Tıp Fakültesi Kütüphanesi, İstanbul Üniversitesi Kardiyoloji Ensitütüsü Kütüphanesi, İstanbul Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi Hulusi Behçet Kitaplığı, İstanbul Büyükşehir Belediyesi Kadın Eserleri Kütüphanesi, Millet Kütüphanesi, Mizah Kütüphanesi, Murat Molla Halk Kütüphanesi, Ragıppaşa Kütüphanesi, and Yusufpaşa Halk Kütüphanesi.
On the other hand, today Fatih is known as one of the most conservative areas of Istanbul because of the religious residents of the Çarşamba quarter which is essentially a very minor part of this historical district. Çarşamba is famous with bearded men in heavy coats, the traditional baggy 'shalwar' trousers and Islamic turban; while women dressed in full black gowns are a common sight as this area is popular with members of the Naqshbandi
Sufi order affiliated to a Sheikh
. Conservative parties always do well in this area.
Eminönü
part of Fatih has many historical mosque
s and buildings, many of Istanbul's best-known landmarks. Recent development has improved Eminönü greatly and many of its winding streets which can at first seem imposing, have been developed and improved, while Eminönü has started to repair the many mosques.
. There are also a number of important architectural structures in the Fatih district, including the Valens Aqueduct
across the Atatürk Bulvarı, the fortress on the city walls at Yedikule
, the Byzantine Palace of Porphyrogenitus, the Roman column of Marcian
, the Fethiye Cami
(the former Byzantine church of Christ Pammakaristos), the Kariye Camii (the former Byzantine church of the Chora), Gül Camii
(another former Byzantine church), Fenari Isa Camisi
(a complex of two Byzantine churches), the Greek Patriarchate with the Church of St. George in the Fener
district, the Yavuz Selim Camii, and the Fatih Mosque
itself.
The tombs of some of the famous sultan
s, including Mehmed II
'the Conqueror' (Fatih Sultan Mehmed) and Selim I
'the Grim' (Yavuz Sultan Selim) as well as other leading statesmen of the Ottoman Empire
, including Gazi Osman Pasha
are in Fatih.
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
that encompasses most of the peninsula coinciding with historic Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
. In 2009, the district of Eminönü
Eminönü
Eminönü is a former district of Istanbul in Turkey, now a neighbourhood of Fatih district. This is the heart of the walled city of Constantine, the focus of a history of incredible richness. Eminönü covers the point on which the Byzantine capital was built. The Galata Bridge crosses the Golden Horn...
, formerly a separate municipality located at the tip of the peninsula
Peninsula
A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....
, was merged into Fatih. Fatih borders the Golden Horn
Golden Horn
The Golden Horn is a historic inlet of the Bosphorus dividing the city of Istanbul and forming the natural harbor that has sheltered Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman and other ships for thousands of...
to the north and the Sea of Marmara
Sea of Marmara
The Sea of Marmara , also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea, and in the context of classical antiquity as the Propontis , is the inland sea that connects the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea, thus separating Turkey's Asian and European parts. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Black...
to the south, while the Western border is demarked by the Theodosian
Theodosius II
Theodosius II , commonly surnamed Theodosius the Younger, or Theodosius the Calligrapher, was Byzantine Emperor from 408 to 450. He is mostly known for promulgating the Theodosian law code, and for the construction of the Theodosian Walls of Constantinople...
wall
Walls of Constantinople
The Walls of Constantinople are a series of defensive stone walls that have surrounded and protected the city of Constantinople since its founding as the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire by Constantine the Great...
. The mayor is Mustafa Demir (AKP
Justice and Development Party (Turkey)
The Justice and Development Party , abbreviated JDP in English and AK PARTİ or AKP in Turkish, is a centre-right political party in Turkey. The party is the largest in Turkey, with 327 members of parliament...
).
Byzantine Era
Eleutherion
The Harbour of Eleutherios , later known as the Harbour of Theodosius was one of the ports of ancient Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire, located beneath the modern Yenikapi neighbourhood of Istanbul, Turkey)....
, Helenianae, ta Dalmatoú, Sígma, Psamátheia
Samatya
Samatya is a neighborhood of the Fatih district of Istanbul. It is located along the Marmara Sea, and borders to the west on the neighborhood of Yedikule . The name originates from the Greek word Ψαμάθιον Samatya is a neighborhood of the Fatih district of Istanbul. It is located along the Marmara...
, ta Katakalón, Paradeísion, ta Olympíou, ta Kýrou, Peghé, Rhéghion, ta Elebíchou, Leomákellon, ta Dexiokrátous, Petríon or Pétra, Phanàrion
Fener
Fener is a neighborhood midway up the Golden Horn within the district of Fatih in Istanbul , Turkey. The streets in the area are full of historic wooden houses, churches, and synagogues dating from Byzantine and Ottoman eras. The area's name is a Turkish transliteration of the original Greek φανάρι...
, Exi Mármara (Altimermer), Philopátion, Deúteron and Vlachernaí
Blachernae
Blachernae was a suburb in the northwestern section of Constantinople, the capital city of the Byzantine Empire. It was the site of a spring and a number of prominent churches were built there, most notably the great Church of St. Mary of Blachernae , built by Empress Pulcheria in circa 450,...
.
Ottoman period
The name "Fatih" comes from the OttomanOttoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
emperor Fatih Sultan Mehmed (Mehmed the Conqueror), and means "Conqueror" in Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
, originally from Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
. The Fatih Mosque
Fatih Mosque
The Fatih Mosque or Conqueror's Mosque in English) is an Ottoman imperial mosque located in the Fatih district of Istanbul, Turkey. It was one of the largest examples of Turkish-Islamic architecture in Istanbul and represented an important stage in the development of classic Turkish...
built by Mehmed II is in this district, while his resting place is next to the mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
and is much visited. It was on the ruins of the Church of the Holy Apostles
Church of the Holy Apostles
The Church of the Holy Apostles , also known as the Imperial Polyandreion, was a Christian church built in Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, in 550. It was second only to the Church of the Holy Wisdom among the great churches of the capital...
, destroyed by earthquakes and years of war, that the Fatih Mosque was built, and around the mosque a large prayer school.
Immediately after the conquest, groups of Islamic scholars transformed the major churches of Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia is a former Orthodox patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, and now a museum in Istanbul, Turkey...
and the Pantocrator (today the Zeyrek Mosque
Zeyrek Mosque
- External links :*...
) into mosques, but the Fatih Mosque and its surrounding complex was the first purpose-built Islamic seminary within the city walls. The building of the mosque complex ensured that the area continued to thrive beyond the conquest; markets grew up to support the thousands of workers involved in the building and to supply them with materials, and then to service the students in the seminary. The area quickly became a Turkish neighbourhood with a particularly pious character due to the seminary. Some of this piety has endured until today.
Following the conquest, the Edirnekapı (meaning Edirne
Edirne
Edirne is a city in Eastern Thrace, the northwestern part of Turkey, close to the borders with Greece and Bulgaria. Edirne served as the capital city of the Ottoman Empire from 1365 to 1453, before Constantinople became the empire's new capital. At present, Edirne is the capital of the Edirne...
Gate) gate in the city walls became the major exit to Thrace
Thrace
Thrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east...
, and this rejuvenated the neighbourhoods overlooking the Golden Horn. The Fatih Mosque was on the road to Edirnekapı and the Fatih district became the most populous area of the city in the early Ottoman period and in the 16th century more mosques and markets were built in this area, including: Iskender Pasha Mosque, once famous as a centre for the Naqshbandi
Naqshbandi
Naqshbandi is one of the major Sufi spiritual orders of Sufi Islam. It is considered to be a "Potent" order.The Naqshbandi order is over 1,300 years old, and is active today...
order in Turkey); Hirka-i-Sharif Mosque, which houses the cloak of the Prophet Muhammad
Muhammad
Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
(The Mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
is in common use but the cloak is only on show during the month of Ramadan
Ramadan
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, which lasts 29 or 30 days. It is the Islamic month of fasting, in which participating Muslims refrain from eating, drinking, smoking and sex during daylight hours and is intended to teach Muslims about patience, spirituality, humility and...
; the Jerrahi
Jerrahi
The Jerrahi are a Sufi tariqah derived from the Halveti order. Their founder was Muhammad Nureddin al-Jerrahi, who died in Istanbul and is buried at the site of his tekke in Karagumruk - Istanbul...
Tekke
Zawiyya
The word zawiyya can refer to a sufi brotherhood or the shrine of a saint. Zawiyyas used to be very common in especially North Africa and Iran.-References:...
; The Sunbul Efendi
Koca Mustafa Pasha Mosque
Koca Mustafa Pasha Mosque is a former Eastern Orthodox church converted into a mosque by the Ottomans, located in Istanbul, Turkey. The church, as the adjoining monastery, was dedicated to Saint Andrew of Crete, and was named Saint Andrew in Krisei or by-the-Judgment...
Tekke and the Ramazan Efendi Tekke both in the Kocamustafapaşa district and the Vefa Kilise Mosque
Vefa Kilise Mosque
Vefa Kilise Mosque is a former Eastern Orthodox church converted into a mosque by the Ottomans. The church was possibly dedicated to Hagios Theodoros , but this dedication is far from certain...
, originally a Byzantine church. The last four were named after the founders of various Sufi orders, and Sheikh Ebü’l Vefa in particular was of major importance in the city and was very fond of Fatih. Many other mosques, schools, baths and fountains in the area were built by military leaders and officials in the Ottoman court.
From the 18th century onwards Istanbul started to grow outside the walls, and then began the transformation of Fatih into the mass of concrete apartment buildings that we have today. This process has been accelerated over the years by fires which destroyed whole neighbourhoods of wooden houses, and a major earthquake in 1766, which destroyed the Fatih Mosque and many of the surrounding buildings, (which were subsequently rebuilt). Fires continued to ravage the old city, and the wide roads that run through the area today are a legacy of all that burning. There are few wooden buildings left in Fatih today, although right up until the 1960s the area was covered with narrow streets of wooden buildings. Nowadays, the district is largely made up of narrow streets with tightly-packed 5- or 6-floor apartment buildings.
Fatih today
At present, Fatih contains areas including AksarayAksaray
Aksaray is a city in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey and the capital district of Aksaray Province. According to 2009 census, population of the province is 376 907 of which 171,423 live in the city of Aksaray. The district covers an area of , and the average elevation is , with the highest...
, Fındıkzade, Çapa
CAPA
CAPA, Capa or capa may refer to:People* Robert Capa, photographer, brother of Cornell Capa* Cornell Capa, photographer, brother of Robert Capa* Capa is sometimes used as a nickname for José Raúl Capablanca, the Cuban chess world champion...
, and Vatan Caddesi that are more cosmopolitan than the extreme conservative image which the district has in the eyes of many people (because of the religious community of the Çarşamba quarter within the district.) With Eminönü
Eminönü
Eminönü is a former district of Istanbul in Turkey, now a neighbourhood of Fatih district. This is the heart of the walled city of Constantine, the focus of a history of incredible richness. Eminönü covers the point on which the Byzantine capital was built. The Galata Bridge crosses the Golden Horn...
, which was officially an area of the Fatih district until 1928, and with its historical Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
walls, conquered by Mehmed II, Fatih is the "real" Istanbul of the old times, before the recent enlargement of the city that began in the 19th century.
The area has become more and more crowded from the 1960s onwards, and a large portion of the middle class residents moved to the Anatolian side and other parts of the city. Fatih today is largely a working class district, but being a previously wealthy area, is well-resourced, with a more thoroughly established community than the relatively poorer residents of the newly-built areas such as Bağcılar or Esenler to the west, which are almost entirely inhabited by post-1980s immigrants who came to the city in desperate circumstances. Fatih, at least, was built with some degree of central planning by the municipality.
Besides the Haliç University
Haliç University
Haliç University is a foundation university, which was founded in 1998 by the Children Leukemia Foundation, which obtained much love and respect both in Turkey and over the world as a result of the remarkable works it has carried out successfully for 25 years....
and the Kadir Has University
Kadir Has University
Kadir Has University ' or as mostly preferred by its students ', was founded in 1997, in Istanbul. A private university, it has seven faculties, Engineering, Sciences and Humanities, Economics and Administrative Sciences, Communication, Law and Fine Arts, as well as its several vocational schools,...
, two different Faculty of Medicine campuses of Istanbul University
Istanbul University
Istanbul University is a Turkish university located in Istanbul. The main campus is adjacent to Beyazıt Square.- Synopsis :A madrasa, a religious school, was established sometime in the 15th century after the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople. An institution of higher education named the...
(Çapa Faculty of Medicine and Cerrahpaşa Faculty of Medicine) are in Fatih.
Moreover, since 1586, the Orthodox Christian Patriarchate of Constantinople has its headquarters in the relatively modest Church of St. George in the Fener
Fener
Fener is a neighborhood midway up the Golden Horn within the district of Fatih in Istanbul , Turkey. The streets in the area are full of historic wooden houses, churches, and synagogues dating from Byzantine and Ottoman eras. The area's name is a Turkish transliteration of the original Greek φανάρι...
district of Fatih.
Fatih has many theatres, including the famous Reşat Nuri Sahnesi. The area is well-served with a number of schools, hospitals and public amenities in general. As Fatih is next to Eminönü, there is a smaller choice of shopping than in other areas, but there are still boutiques on the main thoroughfares, many of which still carry a fair number of trees. A number of Istanbul's longest-established hospitals are in Fatih, including the Istanbul University teaching hospitals of Çapa and Cerrahpaşa, the Haseki Public Hospital, the Samatya Public Hospital, and the Vakıf Gureba Public Hospital. A tramway runs from the docks at Sirkeci
Sirkeci
Sirkeci is an area in the Eminönü neighborhood of the Fatih district of the city of Istanbul, Turkey. It has evolved as the place name of the area in Eminönü surrounding Sirkeci Station, the Southeastern long distance passenger train terminus in Europe for the Orient Express.The neighborhood...
, through Sultanahmet, and finally to Aksaray
Aksaray
Aksaray is a city in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey and the capital district of Aksaray Province. According to 2009 census, population of the province is 376 907 of which 171,423 live in the city of Aksaray. The district covers an area of , and the average elevation is , with the highest...
, which is a part of Fatih.
Also, the headquarters of some of the main units of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, including the Fire Authority of the city, are based in Fatih.
Fatih has many historical and modern libraries, including the Edirnekapı Halk Kütüphanesi, Fener Rum Patrikhanesi Kütüphanesi (the Library of the Patriarchate), Hekimoğlu Ali Paşa Halk Kütüphanesi, İstanbul University Cerrahpaşa Tıp Fakültesi Kütüphanesi, İstanbul Üniversitesi Kardiyoloji Ensitütüsü Kütüphanesi, İstanbul Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi Hulusi Behçet Kitaplığı, İstanbul Büyükşehir Belediyesi Kadın Eserleri Kütüphanesi, Millet Kütüphanesi, Mizah Kütüphanesi, Murat Molla Halk Kütüphanesi, Ragıppaşa Kütüphanesi, and Yusufpaşa Halk Kütüphanesi.
On the other hand, today Fatih is known as one of the most conservative areas of Istanbul because of the religious residents of the Çarşamba quarter which is essentially a very minor part of this historical district. Çarşamba is famous with bearded men in heavy coats, the traditional baggy 'shalwar' trousers and Islamic turban; while women dressed in full black gowns are a common sight as this area is popular with members of the Naqshbandi
Naqshbandi
Naqshbandi is one of the major Sufi spiritual orders of Sufi Islam. It is considered to be a "Potent" order.The Naqshbandi order is over 1,300 years old, and is active today...
Sufi order affiliated to a Sheikh
Sheikh
Not to be confused with sikhSheikh — also spelled Sheik or Shaikh, or transliterated as Shaykh — is an honorific in the Arabic language that literally means "elder" and carries the meaning "leader and/or governor"...
. Conservative parties always do well in this area.
Some parts of Fatih
- Fatih - the central district around the mosque itself.
- Horhor - a steeply climbing street from Aksaray up to the main street of Fatih. Has some university buildings, and some well-known kebab restaurants.
- AksarayAksaray (Istanbul)-External links:*...
- Laleli
- Yenikapı - an important area of Fatih with its main ferry-boat port of Istanbul
- Fındıkzade
- Çarşamba
- Şehremini
- KaragümrükKaragumrukKaragümrük is a neighborhood in Fatih district of Istanbul, Turkey. The neighborhood also has a famous soccer team in Turkish Superleague Karagümrük Spor Kulübü. In 1958, the team qualified for the first division. However their professional performance did not last long and eventually they got...
- a working class neighbourhood famous for its hoodlums and the hoolingans of its lower-league football team. - Fistikagacı - lies roughly between Fatih proper and the crowded residential area of Koca Mustafa Paşa (near the Marmara shore), very popular with Istanbul UniversityIstanbul UniversityIstanbul University is a Turkish university located in Istanbul. The main campus is adjacent to Beyazıt Square.- Synopsis :A madrasa, a religious school, was established sometime in the 15th century after the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople. An institution of higher education named the...
students. - Vatan Caddesi - a major road of Fatih, out of the old city to the bus station at Esenler and on to the motorways to Europe. Home to Istanbul's Central Police HQ, (which also issues resident permits to foreigners.)
- BalatBalatBalat is the traditional Jewish quarter in the Fatih district of Istanbul. It is located on the European side of Istanbul, in the old city on the historic peninsula, on the western bank of the Golden Horn...
- Fatih's neighbourhood on the banks of the Golden Horn, with once grand but now narrow impoverished streets. Formerly a centre of Istanbul's Jewish population. It is listed by UNESCOUNESCOThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
as a World Heritage SiteWorld Heritage SiteA UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
. - FenerFenerFener is a neighborhood midway up the Golden Horn within the district of Fatih in Istanbul , Turkey. The streets in the area are full of historic wooden houses, churches, and synagogues dating from Byzantine and Ottoman eras. The area's name is a Turkish transliteration of the original Greek φανάρι...
- it is normally confused with Balat as they situated side by side. The Ecumenical Patriarchate is located here. It was formerly one of the major centres of Istanbul's Greek population, known as the PhanariotesPhanariotesPhanariots, Phanariotes, or Phanariote Greeks were members of those prominent Greek families residing in Phanar , the chief Greek quarter of Constantinople, where the Ecumenical Patriarchate is situated.For all their cosmopolitanism and often Western education, the Phanariots were...
. - SulukuleSulukuleSulukule is a historic settlement in the Fatih district of Istanbul, Turkey. It is within the area of Istanbul’s historic peninsula, adjacent to the western part of the city walls. The area has historically been occupied by Romani communities...
- an area inhabited by Gypsies, near Vatan Caddesi, famous for its buskers and belly dancers. - SamatyaSamatyaSamatya is a neighborhood of the Fatih district of Istanbul. It is located along the Marmara Sea, and borders to the west on the neighborhood of Yedikule . The name originates from the Greek word Ψαμάθιον Samatya is a neighborhood of the Fatih district of Istanbul. It is located along the Marmara...
- similar to Fener, Samatya is also a neighbourhood with a formerly large Greek community. One of the most picturesque fish markets of Istanbul is located here.
Eminönü
Eminönü
Eminönü is a former district of Istanbul in Turkey, now a neighbourhood of Fatih district. This is the heart of the walled city of Constantine, the focus of a history of incredible richness. Eminönü covers the point on which the Byzantine capital was built. The Galata Bridge crosses the Golden Horn...
part of Fatih has many historical mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
s and buildings, many of Istanbul's best-known landmarks. Recent development has improved Eminönü greatly and many of its winding streets which can at first seem imposing, have been developed and improved, while Eminönü has started to repair the many mosques.
- Sultanahmet - which contains Topkapı PalaceTopkapi PalaceThe Topkapı Palace is a large palace in Istanbul, Turkey, that was the primary residence of the Ottoman Sultans for approximately 400 years of their 624-year reign....
, Aya SofiaHagia SophiaHagia Sophia is a former Orthodox patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, and now a museum in Istanbul, Turkey...
, the Blue MosqueSultan Ahmed MosqueThe Sultan Ahmed Mosque is a historical mosque in Istanbul, the largest city in Turkey and the capital of the Ottoman Empire . The mosque is popularly known as the Blue Mosque for the blue tiles adorning the walls of its interior....
and Aya Irini among about a thousand other incredible pieces of architecture; - SüleymaniyeSuleiman MosqueThe Süleymaniye Mosque is an Ottoman imperial mosque located on the Third Hill of Istanbul, Turkey. It is the second largest mosque in the city, and one of the best-known sights of Istanbul.-History:...
- the huge mosque complex of Suleyman the Magnificent; - Yeni CamiYeni MosqueThe Yeni Camii, The New Mosque or Mosque of the Valide Sultan is an Ottoman imperial mosque located in the Eminönü district of Istanbul, Turkey. It is situated on the Golden Horn at the southern end of the Galata Bridge. It is one of the best-known sights of Istanbul.-History:The construction of...
(The new mosque) - the mosque that dominates the waterfront by the Galata Bridge; there is a wide open space in front where people feed the pigeons. - The Grand BazaarGrand Bazaar, IstanbulThe Grand Bazaar in Istanbul is one of the largest and oldest covered markets in the world, with more than 58 covered streets and over 4,000 shops which attract between 250,000 and half a million visitors daily.- History :...
- as much to look at as to shop in. - The Spice Bazaar - another Ottoman caravanserai, not as huge as the Grand Bazaar but right on the water, next to Yeni Camii;
- Sokollu Mehmet Pasha MosqueSokollu Mehmet Pasha Mosque-External links:*, at "Respect to Sinan" *...
- in Kadirga District (the Byzantine Sophianòn Limin in GreekGreek languageGreek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
).
Demographics
| Demographics of Fatih district by year | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | 1935 | 1940 | 1945 | 1950 | 1955 | 1960 | 1965 | 1970 | 1975 | 1980 | 1985 | 1990 | 1997 | 2000 | 2007 | 2010 |
| Population | 251.437 | 266.272 | 292.089 | 359.909 | 433.629 | 435.446 | 482.451 | 554.659 | 627.012 | 567.902 | 590.842 | 545.908 | 497.839 | 463.626 | 455.498 | 431.147 |
Things to see
Today, there are still remnants of the sea walls along the Golden Horn and along the Marmara shore, to give a sense of the shape of the old walled cityWalls of Constantinople
The Walls of Constantinople are a series of defensive stone walls that have surrounded and protected the city of Constantinople since its founding as the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire by Constantine the Great...
. There are also a number of important architectural structures in the Fatih district, including the Valens Aqueduct
Valens Aqueduct
The Valens Aqueduct is a Roman aqueduct which was the major water-providing system of the Eastern Roman capital of Constantinople...
across the Atatürk Bulvarı, the fortress on the city walls at Yedikule
Yedikule
Yedikule or Heptapyrgion can refer to:* the Yedikule Fortress in Istanbul, Turkey.* the Yedikule neighborhood in Istanbul, Turkey, where the fortress is located, part of the district of Fatih....
, the Byzantine Palace of Porphyrogenitus, the Roman column of Marcian
Column of Marcian
The Column of Marcian is a Roman honorific column erected in Constantinople in 455 dedicated to the Emperor Marcian. It is made of red-grey Egyptian granite, in two pieces. The basis is quadrilateral, formed by four slabs in white marble, decorated with Chi-Rhos inside medallions on three faces,...
, the Fethiye Cami
Pammakaristos Church
Pammakaristos Church, also known as the Church of Theotokos Pammakaristos , in 1591 converted into a mosque and known as Fethiye Mosque and today partly a museum, is one of the most famous Byzantine churches in Istanbul, Turkey...
(the former Byzantine church of Christ Pammakaristos), the Kariye Camii (the former Byzantine church of the Chora), Gül Camii
Gül Mosque
Gül Mosque is a former Eastern Orthodox church in Istanbul, Turkey converted into a mosque by the Ottomans.- Location :The building is located in Istanbul, in the district of Fatih, in the neighborhood of Ayakapı , along Vakif Mektebi Sokak...
(another former Byzantine church), Fenari Isa Camisi
Fenari Isa Mosque
Fenâri Îsâ Mosque , in Byzantine times known as the Lips Monastery , is a mosque in Istanbul, made of two former Eastern Orthodox churches.-Location:...
(a complex of two Byzantine churches), the Greek Patriarchate with the Church of St. George in the Fener
Fener
Fener is a neighborhood midway up the Golden Horn within the district of Fatih in Istanbul , Turkey. The streets in the area are full of historic wooden houses, churches, and synagogues dating from Byzantine and Ottoman eras. The area's name is a Turkish transliteration of the original Greek φανάρι...
district, the Yavuz Selim Camii, and the Fatih Mosque
Fatih Mosque
The Fatih Mosque or Conqueror's Mosque in English) is an Ottoman imperial mosque located in the Fatih district of Istanbul, Turkey. It was one of the largest examples of Turkish-Islamic architecture in Istanbul and represented an important stage in the development of classic Turkish...
itself.
The tombs of some of the famous sultan
Sultan
Sultan is a title with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic language abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", and "dictatorship", derived from the masdar سلطة , meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who...
s, including Mehmed II
Mehmed II
Mehmed II , was Sultan of the Ottoman Empire for a short time from 1444 to September 1446, and later from...
'the Conqueror' (Fatih Sultan Mehmed) and Selim I
Selim I
Selim I, Yavuz Sultân Selim Khan, Hâdim-ül Haramain-ish Sharifain , nicknamed Yavuz "the Stern" or "the Steadfast", but often rendered in English as "the Grim" , was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1512 to...
'the Grim' (Yavuz Sultan Selim) as well as other leading statesmen of the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, including Gazi Osman Pasha
Gazi Osman Pasha
Osman Nuri Pasha also Gazi Osman Pasha was an Ottoman Turkish field marshal and the hero of the Siege of Plevna in 1877. He was awarded the title 'Gazi' as a result of that siege....
are in Fatih.