Selamsız is a quarter inÜsküdar district on the Asian side ofIstanbul, Turkey. It corresponds more or less to the current officially recognized neighborhoods ofSelamiali andMuratreis. These neighborhoods are bounded on the north bySultantepe, on the north and northeast byİcadiye, on the east byAltunizade, on the south byValide-i Atik, and on the west byMimarsinan.
The nameselamsız means "without aselam" or "not giving a greeting; rude." The name comes from theSheikh Selami Ali,[1] who gave his name to amosque, adervish lodge, apublic bath, and apublic fountain in the quarter.[2] Selami Ali was called Selamsız because he was known for not looking at or greeting people when he was in public.[3]
Selamsız is one of the historicRomani (Turkish-Gypsy) settlements of Istanbul, along withSulukule,Çürüklük,Küçükbakkalköy,Tophane, Çayırboyu, and Lonca, and has been since the 1700s.[4][5][6] However, 5000 Romanis are reported to have been evicted from the area in 1996,[7] because they were living inshanty buildings which the municipality planned to demolish and rebuild according to standards. According to a Council of Europe report, in 2011 the Romani population of the quarter was about 1,400 in 310 households.[8]
The oldest Romani group are the Tekkekapolo and the Kağıtçılar (Papermaker), recorded since 1730-1735, later after 1923 the semi-nomadic Badırmalıdes, came in the quarter.[9]
Mostly Turkish Roma, are members of the Hindiler Tekkesi aQadiriyya-Tariqa, founded in 1738 by the Indian Muslim Sheykh Seyfullah Efendi El Hindi in Selamsız.[10]
Mosques in the area include Selami Ali Mosque (1965),[11] Kara Alaattin Mosque (also known as Kara Kadı (Black Judge) Mosque and Çingene Fırın (Gypsy Oven) Mosque; present building constructed after 1937),[12] Gonca Gül Mosque (2001),[13] Şuca Ahmet Pasha Mosque (1692),[14] Fevziye Hatun Mosque (1882),[15] AyazmaMescit (1982),[16] and Fatma Hatun Mescit (present building constructed after 1887).[17]
Dervish lodges in the area include Feyzullah Efendi Lodge (also known as the Hindiler (Indians) Lodge)[18] and Acıbadem Lodge (sometimes called the Selâmi Ali Efendi Lodge).[19]
The biggest cemetery in the neighborhood isBülbülderesi Cemetery. There are also tombs and small cemeteries scattered throughout the neighborhood, usually near mosques and dervish lodges, for instance, the tomb of Köstendili Ali Efendi[20] and the grave of Hadice Hanım (commonly called the tomb of "Selâmsız Baba"),[21] both near the Acıbadem Lodge.
Churches in the area include the İlya Profiti (ProphetElijah)Greek Orthodox Church (present building built 1831), the Surp Garabet (SaintJohn the Baptist)Armenian Church (first church on the site, 1590; present building built 1888), and the Surp Haç (Holy Cross) Armenian Church (built 1676, rebuilt 1880).[22][23]
High schools is the area include Cumhuriyet (Republic) High School,Üsküdar American Academy, Ahmet Keleşoğlu Anatolian High School, Bağlarbaşı Private High School, Istanbul Science High School, and Surp Haç (Holy Cross) Armenian Private High School.
Elementary and middle schools include Selami Ali Primary School, Bağlarbaşı Primary School, Hilmi Çelikoğlu Primary School, Kalfayan Armenian Private Primary School, Semerciyan Cemran Armenian Private Primary School, Üsküdar Private Primary School, and the Bağlarbaşı campus of Sev Private Primary School.
^Mustafa Tatcı, M. Cemâl Öztürk, and Taxhidin Bytyqi.Selâmî Ali Efendi: Hayatı, Tarîkat-Nâmesi ve Vakfiyyesi. İstanbul: Kaknüs, 2006. Pages 5152, 5253.
^Oprişan, Ana. "An Overview of theRomanlar in Turkey," inGypsies and the Problem of Identities: Contextual, Constructed and Contested, edited by Adrian Marsh and Elin Strand. Istanbul: Svenska forskningsinstitutet, 2006. Page 163.
^Brearley, Margaret. "The Persecution of Gypsies in Europe," inCrimes of Hate: Selected Readings, edited by Phyllis B. Gerstenfeld and Diana Ruth Grant. Sage, 2004. Page 359.
^Üsküdar Belediyesi.Çingene Fırını Camii (Karakadı Camii). URL:"Üsküdar Belediyesi". Archived fromthe original on 2011-07-22. Retrieved2009-11-30. Retrieved 30 November 2009.
^Üsküdar Belediyesi.Fatma Hatun Mescidi. URL:"Üsküdar Belediyesi". Archived fromthe original on 2011-07-22. Retrieved2009-11-30. Retrieved 30 November 2009.
^Üsküdar Belediyesi.Köstendilî Ali Alâaddin Efendi Türbesi. URL:"Üsküdar Belediyesi". Archived fromthe original on 2011-07-22. Retrieved2009-11-30. Retrieved 30 November 2009.
^Üsküdar Belediyesi.Kiliseler (Churches). URL:"Üsküdar Belediyesi". Archived fromthe original on 2011-10-06. Retrieved2009-11-22. Retrieved 22 November 2009.
^Tuğlacı, Pars.İstanbul Ermeni Kiliseleri / Armenian Churches of Istanbul / Istʻanpuli Hayotsʻ ekeghetsʻinerě. Istanbul: Pars, 1991.ISBN975-7423-00-9. Pages 121-129, 169-171, 194.
