Ottoman lira issued in the form of 5 and 10 para stamps affixed to card. Ottoman lira The Ottoman lira was the currency of Ottoman Empire between 1844 and 29 October 1923 . It replaced the kuruş as the principal unit of currency, with the kuruş continuing to circulate as a subdivision of the lira, with 100 kuruş = 1 lira. The para also continued to be used, with 40 para = 1 kuruş. Until the 1930s, the Arabic script was used on Turkish coins and banknotes, with پاره for para, غروش for kuruş and ليرا for lira (تورك ليراسي for "Turkish
Minorities in Turkey Jews expelled from Spain were welcomed to the Ottoman Empire (including regions part of modern Turkey) in the late 15th century. Despite emigration during the 20th century, modern-day Turkey continues to have a small Jewish population. There is a small Karaite Jewish population numbering around 100. Karaite Jews are not considered Jews by the Turkish Hakhambashi. The exact number of Alawites in Turkey is unknown, but there were 185 000 Alawites in 1970. As Muslims, they are not recorded separately from Sunnis in ID registration. In the 1965 census (the last Turkish census where informants were asked their mother tongue),