Beykoz & Paşabahçe / Μπέικος & Πασά–μπαχτσέ

Known as Dáphni (Δάφνη) in the Byzantine times, Beykoz is a neighborhood—now a district and municipality—that extends along more than half of the Bosphorus shore on the Anatolian side and reaches the Black Sea to the north. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, during the peak of its non-muslim population, it was mainly settled by the working class, many of whom worked at the nearby shoe factory. Then, the area now administered by the Beykoz Municipality was not as densely populated and instead gathered around a historic center of the neighborhood, surrounded by greenery and the forest that has since become the Beykoz Grove (Beykoz Korusu). In context of this neighborhood profile, "Beykoz" refers specifically to that historic center located near the sea where the İshak Ağa Fountain, designed by architect Sinan, has been standing since 1746.

İshak Ağa Fountain in a 1824 publication by Edward Raczyński. (Source: Wikimedia Commons, with the primary source held in the Polish National Library)

The view on a walk from Beykoz to Paşabahçe. (Photographed by Lara Öge in 2023)

Paşabahçe, by contrast, is a smaller neighborhood now incorporated into the Beykoz Municipality. It lies adjacent to the historic center of Beykoz but further down the Bosphorus shore. Due to their geographic proximity, literature often treats the two as a unified area. Similar to Beykoz, Paşabahçe was home to a notable working class population who moved to the area with the establishment of the neighborhood’s glass factory in 1935. Today, the factory is no longer in use but the neighborhood retains its working class texture, though with a predominantly Muslim population. 

Even though the Greek Orthodox parishes of Beykoz and Paşabahçe were distinct, neither had a particularly large population. Given the limited surviving information, this profile considers both neighborhoods together while highlighting their parish churches separately. 

The size of the Greek Orthodox population in the area can be inferred from a 1908 record indicating an increase to 110 families in Beykoz. However, this number includes nearby areas such as Yalıköy, Selviburnu, Ömüryeri, and Anadolu Kavağı, all within the administrative boundaries of the Beykoz Municipality but not necessarily part of the historic center. That this census record encompasses a wider region than just the center of the neighborhood is telling of the small Greek Orthodox population of the area compared to other parts of the city such as the historic peninsula. Another register from 1840 indicates that Muslims and Armeniens were in the majority, followed by the Greek Orthodox. Still, two parish churches were active in the late-nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and remained under the administration of the Metropolis of Chalcedon even after the population exchange between Greece and Turkey in 1923.

A Greek house in Beykoz, photographed by Ernest de Caranza in 1854. (Source: Salt Research)

Beykoz Hagia Paraskevi Greek Orthodox Church

Built in 1852, the church is named after Saint Paraskevi of Rome, a Christian martyr revered for her unwavering faith despite enduring severe punishment. A conflicting construction date of 1894 is mentioned in various sources, which might be a reconstruction rather than a first build. The Hagia Paraskevi Church was active for nearly a century until it served various other functions; it was used as a warehouse for the military between 1940 and 1943, and by the Turkish Grain Board from 1943 to April 1945 until it was given to a board of trustees. The structure is known to have undergone repairs in 1947. Today, Beykoz is predominantly home to a Muslim population, and the church rarely holds services, relying on visiting priests from other parts of the city.

Paşabahçe Hagios Kostantinos and Hagia Eleni Greek Orthodox Church  

Locally known as Merkez Rum Kilisesi (the “Central Greek Church”), a name reflecting its prominent position within the neighborhood, this inland church is not visible from the shoreline. It was built in 1894 on the site of an earlier church. A short distance downhill, closer to the waterfront and the heart of the neighborhood, is the Hagia Kiryaki Holy Spring, which shares its structure with the Mustafa III Han Fountain. A second holy spring in Paşabahçe is dedicated to Hagios Ioannis and is in ruins today.

Hagios Kostantinos and Hagia Eleni Greek Orthodox Church, photographed by Karakalem on

Wikimedia Commons (first image) and Yasin Köroğlu (second and third images).

(Source: Kültür Envanteri)

One of the Andonaki Mansions, photographed by M. Erem Çalıkoğlu. (Source: Salt Research)

The Andonaki Mansions

Situated along the waterfront near the pier, the two nearly identical structures known as the “Andonaki Rum Mansions” were originally owned by a Greek man named Andonaki, who left the city during the Turkish War of Independence (1919–1923). Details about the mansions’ subsequent use remain scarce, though one of them was listed for sale in 2022.

Surp Nigoğayos Armenian Church

There was a sizable Armenian population in Beykoz alongside the Greek Orthodox that an Armenian church was built in 1776. It was rebuilt during the tenure of Patriarch Isdepanos II and opened for worship in 1834. Soon after, the ceiling and tiles were damaged in an earthquake, but the church was only repaired again in 1946. Surp Nigoğayos is known for being the only church in Istanbul with a Holy Table made out of mother-of-pearl.

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References

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