The social and economic situation pf XIX. century

.This study is based on Temettuat registers, an Ottoman survey conducted in midnineteenth century as a preparation for an extensive tax reforms aimed at abolishing intermediaries in tax collection process. The aim of the study is to present the economic and social situation in the city of Niš based on the available data collected from the above-mentioned registers. The information obtained from the examination of Temettuat registers provides insight into the occupation of surveyed population, their real estate property, land in their position, animals they were holding, taxes they were paying and their overall income, among others. The main method applied in the study was to classify and sum the available data in order to create statistics related to different residential areas, religious or ethnic communities and occupation groups. As a result, interrelations between reach and poor, Muslim and Christian, land owners and landless population, were brought to light. In conclusion, we suggest that the population of the city can be divided into three main population groups. The upper social layer encompasses big landowners, higher state officials and wealthy Christian merchants. The middle layer contains artisans and agriculturers; the lower layer contains low income artisans and workers. Muslim artisans who were often joining military service to provide additional income belong to this group. While the city economy may seem well developed, the total obtained tax income is below the costs of wages for state officials which leads us to conclude that the significance of the city resides more in its position as the center of a province, than in its economic capacities. Key Words: Economic situation, animal husbandry, occupations, Ottoman State, SerbiaNis, Social life, Social structure, Agriculture, Temettuat Registers