Urban borders and socio-spatial dynamics in 16th century Istanbul :|the Koca Mustafa Pasha district

Abstract

This thesis deals with the concept of the urban border in the context of the early modern Ottoman capital city of Constantinople. First defining the terms like city and nahiye, the research moves on to its case study, Koca Mustafa Paşa nahiyesi, which is a border district. To understand what a border district means in a better sense, first the physical borders, city’s land walls, Theodosian walls, and its adjoint monuments of Yedikule Citadel and Golden Gate are examined with their inhabitants like captives, and to highlight its industrial characteristic, the butchers and tanners, etc. Later the study continues to inside the walls and the district by evaluating its social makeup through sources like the Survey of Istanbul 1455, 1546 tarihli Istanbul Vakıfları Tahrir Defteri, and 1600 tarihli Istanbul Vakıfları Tahrir Defteri (the pious endowment registers) with the help of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). This thesis finally concludes with one particular group of people who were active at this part of the city, the Khalwati order and its dervishes.