The Armenian Üsküdar amid a conditional plurality

Abstract

This dissertation is devoted to exploring Armenian Üsküdar (an Anatolian side municipality of Istanbul) and its surroundings within the lenses of “conviviality” as conceptualized by Freitag (2014). Armenian neighborhoods in Üsküdar had all its relevance within the Ottoman rule in Constantinople, and throughout the Republican period, gradually dissolved to the extent that the notion of Üsküdar Armenians make little to no sense today. In this dissertation, the Armenian neighborhoods with its public spaces: streets, theatres, music halls, taverns; and community spaces: churches and schools will be reconstructed. It will demonstrate how Armenian Üsküdar spatially integrated into the larger geography. Although divided by orchards, large roads and cemeteries, this study will also illustrate how Üsküdar Armenian neighborhoods seem to have been compact, as if isolated from the rest. The spatial, political and social parameters that contributed to the Armenian’s dominant position will be contextualized in the three neighborhoods: Yeni Mahalle, Selamsız and İcadiye. Moreover, I will demonstrate how the center of gravity in the Armenian Üsküdar had shifted initially from Yeni Mahalle to Selamsız, and then in the late 19th century to İcadiye. By doing so, this study traces spatial imprints of the transformation of the power structure within the Armenian community, a major shift of the power from traditional aristocratic elite with ties to the Ottoman government, solidifying in Selamsız; to the modern elite gradually but powerfully flourishing in İcadiye.