Master Thesis Defense: Murat Kıvanç Köroğlu
Greek Citizens In The Ottoman Lands As Artisans (Esnâf) And Shopkeepers Between 1830 And 1861
Murat Kıvanç Köroğlu
History, MA Thesis, 2015
Thesis Jury
Hakan Erdem(Thesis Supervisor), Akşin Somel, Kahraman Şakul, Selim Karakışla(Substitute Jury)
Date &Time: August,4th 2015 – 14:00
Place: FASS 2054
Abstract
That an independent Greek state was formed caused a couple of problems to the Ottomans.
First of all they were concerned with how to differentiate the subjects of Greece and of the
Ottomans. This was of crucial importance vis-à-vis the application of domestic and international
laws. Ottomans still applied their traditional differentiation of muslim subjects and zimmî
subjects. There was, in addition, a third category; subjects of third countries who were called
müste’men and who were granted special amnesty for their business in and safe conduct of the
Ottoman lands. This amnesty was bestowed by local kadis for a specific period of time. Then
the question arose what law might be applicable to those who, citizens of Greece, remained in
or returned to the Ottoman lands after a long period of conflict and of carnage. They were
formerly Ottoman subjects, but following the war of independence they moved from one place
to another and their citizenship became somewhat debated (Ottomans named them in official
documents nüfus-u müştebihe, some of them might have acquired officially the Greek
citizenship as well, or because they stayed for a long time in the areas which were allocated to
Greece in 1830, Ottoman authorities thought that they switched their political allegiance and
decided to regard the newly independent Greece as their home country.
This thesis indicates the problem of citizenship of the Greek population and how the Ottoman
administration tries to deal with the question.