Non-Muslims in Ankara in the 17th century

This study, called The Non-Muslims in Ankara in the 17th Century, deals with non-Muslims residents of the city of Ankara, which was an important commercial center during the Ottoman classical period. In this sense, the study also covers the non-Muslims coming from Ottoman territories or those coming from Europe for commercial reasons as well as the Armenians, Greeks and Jews residents. Based on this, the roles of non-Muslims within the socio-economic structure of the city have been evaluated by examining their settlements, distribution of population, social relations, freedom of religion and worship, houses of worship, economic activities, domestic and foreign trade, tax rolls, family lives and crimes that were committed. The study, which has intended to shed a light on the Ottoman state in general and the socio-economic structure of the city of Ankara in particular, is an independent social history examination dealing with all aspects of the non-Muslim population in the city. The study, the main source of which is the Sharia Court Registers, has also utilized various archival resources as well as Mühimme and Cizye registers. In addition to the data provided by archival sources, the study has utilized the travel books of the period, copyrighted works, articles, theses and papers on Ankara and non-Muslims. Hosting various civilizations throughout history, the city stood out by being an industrial city in the Ottoman State as well. The purpose here is to determine the demographic status of the city's Christians and Jews as of the period subject to the study, by considering place names, person names and Cizye households in the Sharia Court Registers, the number of residents and their identities. In terms of the diversity of the resources used and the period discussed, this study aims to make an important contribution to the studies on non-Muslim people within the context of the Ottoman city of the classical period.