Hasköy, Istanbul

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Hasköy (compound name made up of Has, meaning fine, select and Köy, village ) is a quarter (semt) on the northern bank of the Golden Horn in Beyoğlu, Istanbul, Turkey. It includes the officially defined neighborhoods (mahalleler) of Keçeci Piri, Piri Paşa, and Halıcıoğlu, and parts of Camiikebir and Sütlüce.

The words denote an "imperial village" and refer to the pavilions and gardens once there belonging to the Ottoman sultan and his court. (According to another story, the name is a corruption of Aya Paraskevi, the name of a Greek church there.[1])

In the late fifteenth century, Jews who were expelled from Spain and Portugal took refuge in the Ottoman Empire and settled in Hasköy, among other places. In the late sixteenth century, the Jewish community of Eminönü was displaced for the construction of the New Mosque (Yeni Cami) and moved to Hasköy. The neighborhood at one time also had many Armenian and Greek residents. It was known as Khasgiugh (Խասգյուղ) among its Armenian speakers, "Khas" reflecting the older pronunciation of "Has" in Turkish and "giugh" being the Armenian word for village. It was also a trading center, with dockyards and warehouses. The first Armenian theater company in Istanbul was opened there in 1858.[2]

Major sights of the neighborhood include the Aynalıkavak Palace and the Rahmi M. Koç Museum.

Places of worship in the neighborhood include Maalem Synagogue, Hesed Le Avraam Synagogue, the Karaite Synagogue, the former Mayor Synagogue, Aya Paraskevi (Saint Paraskevi) Greek Orthodox Church, Handan Agha Mosque, and Kırmızı Minare Mosque. From 1633 to 1975, there was also a Surp Stepanos (Saint Stephen) Armenian Church that had been established by Armenian immigrants from Eğin;[3] from 1852 to sometime in the 20th century, there was a Halıcıoğlu Armenian Protestant Church;[4] and from 1889 to 1975, there was a chapel attached to Hasköy's Kalfayan Orphanage, the Surp Asdvadzadzin (Saint Mary) Armenian Church.[5]

Cemeteries in the neighborhood include the Hasköy Muslim Cemetery, the Beyoğlu Greek Cemetery, the Beyoğlu Jewish Cemetery, the Turkish Karaite Congregation Cemetery, and the Hasköy Armenian Cemetery. On April 26, 2011, the Jewish cemetery located in Beyoglu was desecrated by vandals who smashed several headstones to pieces, as what seems to be an anti-Semitic act[6]


  1. ^ Hürel, p. 167.
  2. ^ Hürel, pp. 167-168.
  3. ^ Tuğlacı, pp. 85-87.
  4. ^ Tuğlacı, p. 322.
  5. ^ Tuğlacı, p. 81.
  6. ^ "Jewish cemetery desecrated in Turkey during Passover holiday". EJP. Retrieved 6 October 2012. 


  • Deleon, Jak. Ancient Districts on the Golden Horn: Balat, Hasköy, Fener, Ayvansaray. Istanbul, n.d. ISBN 975-95392-1-7.
  • (Turkish) Hürel, Haldun. Semtleri, Mahalleri, Caddeleri ve Sokakları A'dan Z'ye İstanbul'un Alfabetik Öyküsü (An Alphabetical Story of Istanbul's Neighborhoods, Districts, Avenues and Streets from A to Z). İstanbul, 2008. ISBN 978-975-999-290-3.
  • (Turkish) İstanbul Büyükşehir Belediyesi. İstanbul Şehir Rehberi (A Guidebook to the City of Istanbul). Retrieved 10 October 2009.
  • Tuğlacı, Pars. İstanbul Ermeni Kiliseleri = Armenian Churches of Istanbul = Istʻanpuli Hayotsʻ ekeghetsʻinerě. İstanbul, 1991. ISBN 975-7423-00-9.

Coordinates: 41°02′23″N 28°56′59″E﻿ / ﻿41.03972°N 28.94972°E﻿ / 41.03972; 28.94972