“Studies in The History of Istanbul Jewry , 1453-1923: A Journet Through Civilizations ” by Minna Rozen

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A cross-cultural and cross-temporal journey in the city of Istanbul and its Jewish community from the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople (1453) to the establishment of the Turkish Republic (1923).

“This book presents ten chapters in the history of the Jewish community of Istanbul from the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople (1453) to the establishment of the Turkish Republic (1923). While delving into specific subjects such as the Romaniot presence in the city, the Karaite society, family life throughout the generations, material culture and its meaning, social life, urban history, economic life, and relations with the Ottoman regime, a common thread binds all of them. Each of the chapters, individually and together, constitutes a journey between different cultures and religions. The history of Istanbul’s Jews carries the imprint of Greek Orthodoxy and Catholicism, as well as Islam. It moves in cycles between the Byzantine and Ottoman realms, between Catholic Europe and the Muslim Ottoman Empire, and finally, between the Ottoman Jewish culture and a modern Europe in the throes of secularization. Over 50 images are included to illustrate the multi-cultural aspect of the history presented here. The collection of essays in this volume present high quality scholarship, but equally they provide a fascinating insight to general readers with an interest in Constantinople-Istanbul-Qosta, as well as readers interested in Jewish urban history, the transmission of culture, and multiculturalism.”

Prof. Minna Rozen teaches Jewish History and Philosophy of History at the University of Haifa. She specializes in the history of the early modern and modern Mediterranean and has published extensively in this field.  Prof. Rozen has initiated and conducted a number of documentation and digitization projects of Jewish archives, cemeteries and synagogues in Turkey, Greece and Bulgaria, and she is currently working on the establishment of an online, searchable database of digital archives of Jewish tombstones from Turkey.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents
Front Matter (“Contents”, “List of Illustrations”, “Introduction”, “Aknowledgments”), p. i Citation | PDF (646 KB) 
1. The Jews of Istanbul in the Ottoman Era (1453-1923) from a Romaniot Perspective, p. 7 https://doi.org/10.1484/M.DIASPORA-EB.5.108884 Citation | PDF (850 KB) 
2. Classical Echoes in Ottoman Istanbul, p. 51 https://doi.org/10.1484/M.DIASPORA-EB.5.108885 Citation | PDF (1146 KB) 
3. The Trust of Lady Khrisula of Istanbul: Urban Reality and Dynastic Continuity, p. 87 https://doi.org/10.1484/M.DIASPORA-EB.5.108886 Citation | PDF (1193 KB) 
4. Actions of Influential Jews in the Sultan’s Court of Seventeenth-Century Istanbul on Behalf of Jerusalem Jewry, p. 145 https://doi.org/10.1484/M.DIASPORA-EB.5.108887 Citation | PDF (938 KB) 
5. Metropolis and Necropolis: The Cultivation of Social Status among the Jews of Istanbul in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries, p. 217 https://doi.org/10.1484/M.DIASPORA-EB.5.108888 Citation | PDF (1413 KB) 
6. The Social Role of Book-Printing among Istanbul Jews in the Sixteenth through Eighteenth Centuries, p. 255 https://doi.org/10.1484/M.DIASPORA-EB.5.108889 Citation | PDF (859 KB) 
7. Boatmen’s and Fishermen’s Guilds in Eighteenth- through Nineteenth-Century Istanbul, p. 283 https://doi.org/10.1484/M.DIASPORA-EB.5.108890 Citation | PDF (822 KB) 
8. A Pound of Flesh: The Meat Trade and Social Conflict in Jewish Istanbul, 1700-1923, p. 321 https://doi.org/10.1484/M.DIASPORA-EB.5.108891 Citation | PDF (812 KB) 
9. The Hamidian Era through a Jewish Lens: A Study of the Rabbinical Court Records of Istanbul, p. 361 https://doi.org/10.1484/M.DIASPORA-EB.5.108892 Citation | PDF (821 KB) 
10. The Family at War: Istanbul Jewry, 1914-1923, p. 409 https://doi.org/10.1484/M.DIASPORA-EB.5.108893 Citation | PDF (727 KB) 
Bibliography, p. 433 https://doi.org/10.1484/M.DIASPORA-EB.5.108894 Citation | PDF (742 KB) 
Appendix A: Comments on the Illustrations and Credits, p. 461 https://doi.org/10.1484/M.DIASPORA-EB.5.108895 Citation | PDF (628 KB) 
Appendix B: Colored Plates, p. 471 https://doi.org/10.1484/M.DIASPORA-EB.5.108896 Citation | PDF (854 KB) 
Back Matter (“Index”), p. 481 Citation | PDF (741 KB) 

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