Kadiköy
Encyclopedia
Kadıköy was an ancient maritime town of Bithynia, in Asia Minor, almost directly opposite Byzantium, south of Scutari . It is now a district of the city of Istanbul named Kadıköy...

) is a large, populous, and cosmopolitan district of İstanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

 on the Asian
Asia Minor
Asia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...

 side of the Sea of Marmara
Sea of Marmara
The Sea of Marmara , also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea, and in the context of classical antiquity as the Propontis , is the inland sea that connects the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea, thus separating Turkey's Asian and European parts. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Black...

, facing the historic city centre on the Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

an side of the Bosporus
Bosporus
The Bosphorus or Bosporus , also known as the Istanbul Strait , is a strait that forms part of the boundary between Europe and Asia. It is one of the Turkish Straits, along with the Dardanelles...

. Kadıköy it is also the name of the most prominent neighbourhood of the district, a residential and commercial area that, with its numerous bars, cinemas and bookshops, is the cultural centre of the Anatolian side. Kadıköy became a district in 1928 when it seceded from Üsküdar
Üsküdar
Üsküdar is a large and densely populated municipality of Istanbul, Turkey, on the Anatolian shore of the Bosphorus. It is bordered on the north by Beykoz, on the east by Ümraniye, on the southeast by Ataşehir, on the south by Kadıköy, and on the west by the Bosphorus, with the areas of Beşiktaş,...

 district. The neighbourhoods of İçerenköy
Içerenköy
İçerenköy is a neighbourhood located in the borough of Ataşehir on the Asian side of İstanbul, Turkey.İçerenköy is home to the Swiss Hospital , the 5 star hotels Greenpark and Mariott , and the secondary school Hasan Leyli Secondary School , which is the largest of its kind in Ataşehir.Its...

, Bostancı
Bostanci
Bostancı is a neighbourhood of Kadıköy, located on the Anatolian side of Istanbul, Turkey. The neighbourhood fronts the Sea of Marmara and is not far from the Princes' Islands. From the Bostancı shore, five islands; Kınalıada, Burgazada, Heybeliada, Büyükada, and Sivriada can be seen...

 and Suadiye were also separated from the district of Kartal
Kartal
Kartal is a district of Istanbul, Turkey located on the Asian side of the city, on the coast of the Marmara Sea between Maltepe and Pendik. The mayor is Altınok Öz . Despite being far from the city centre, Kartal is heavily populated now. . Total land area is 147,000 m² which includes some...

 in the same year, and eventually joined the newly formed district of Kadıköy. Its neighbouring districts are Üsküdar
Üsküdar
Üsküdar is a large and densely populated municipality of Istanbul, Turkey, on the Anatolian shore of the Bosphorus. It is bordered on the north by Beykoz, on the east by Ümraniye, on the southeast by Ataşehir, on the south by Kadıköy, and on the west by the Bosphorus, with the areas of Beşiktaş,...

 to the northwest, Ümraniye
Ümraniye
Ümraniye is a very large working class district of Istanbul, Turkey with a population of over 250,000. It became district in 1987 by secession from Üsküdar. Also; Ömerli, Koçullu, Sırapınar and Hüseyinli villages were separated from Beykoz district in same year. Finally, Nişantepe quarter passed...

 to the northeast, Maltepe to the southeast, and Kartal
Kartal
Kartal is a district of Istanbul, Turkey located on the Asian side of the city, on the coast of the Marmara Sea between Maltepe and Pendik. The mayor is Altınok Öz . Despite being far from the city centre, Kartal is heavily populated now. . Total land area is 147,000 m² which includes some...

 beyond Maltepe. The population of Kadıköy district, according to the 2007 census, is 509,282.

History


Kadıköy is an older settlement than those on the Asian side of the city of İstanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

. Relics dating to 5500-3500 BC (Chalcolithic period) have been found at the Fikirtepe Mound, and articles of stone, bone, ceramic, jewelry and bronze show that there has been a continuous settlement since prehistoric times. A port settlement dating from the Phoenicians has also been discovered. Chalcedon
Chalcedon
Chalcedon , sometimes transliterated as Chalkedon) was an ancient maritime town of Bithynia, in Asia Minor, almost directly opposite Byzantium, south of Scutari . It is now a district of the city of Istanbul named Kadıköy...

 was the first settlement which the Greeks
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....

 from Megara
Megara
Megara is an ancient city in Attica, Greece. It lies in the northern section of the Isthmus of Corinth opposite the island of Salamis, which belonged to Megara in archaic times, before being taken by Athens. Megara was one of the four districts of Attica, embodied in the four mythic sons of King...

 established on the Bosphorus, in 685 BC, a few years before they established Byzantium
Byzantium
Byzantium was an ancient Greek city, founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC and named after their king Byzas . The name Byzantium is a Latinization of the original name Byzantion...

 on the other side of the strait in 667 BC. Chalcedon became known as the 'city of the blind', the story being that Byzantium was founded following a prophecy that a great capital would be built 'opposite the city of the blind' (meaning that the people of Chalcedon must have been blind not to see the obvious value of the peninsula on the Golden Horn
Golden Horn
The Golden Horn is a historic inlet of the Bosphorus dividing the city of Istanbul and forming the natural harbor that has sheltered Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman and other ships for thousands of...

 as a natural defensive harbour). Chalcedon changed hands time and time again, as Persians
Achaemenid Empire
The Achaemenid Empire , sometimes known as First Persian Empire and/or Persian Empire, was founded in the 6th century BCE by Cyrus the Great who overthrew the Median confederation...

, Bithynia
Bithynia
Bithynia was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor, adjoining the Propontis, the Thracian Bosporus and the Euxine .-Description:...

ns, Romans
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....

, Byzantines
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...

, Arabs, Crusaders
Crusaders
The Crusaders are a New Zealand professional rugby union team based in Christchurch that competes in the Super Rugby competition. They are the most successful team in Super Rugby history with seven titles...

, and Turks
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...

 passed through the area, which was badly damaged during the riotous Fourth Crusade
Fourth Crusade
The Fourth Crusade was originally intended to conquer Muslim-controlled Jerusalem by means of an invasion through Egypt. Instead, in April 1204, the Crusaders of Western Europe invaded and conquered the Christian city of Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire...

 and came into Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

 hands in 1353, a full century before İstanbul (Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...

). Thus, Kadıköy has the oldest mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...

 in İstanbul, built almost a century before the conquest of Constantinople
Fall of Constantinople
The Fall of Constantinople was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire, which occurred after a siege by the Ottoman Empire, under the command of Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II, against the defending army commanded by Byzantine Emperor Constantine XI...

 in 1453.

At the time of the conquest, Chalcedon was a rural settlement outside the protection of the city. It was soon put under the jurisdiction of the İstanbul courts, hence the name Kadıköy, which means Village of the Judge. In the Ottoman period, Kadıköy became a popular market for agricultural goods and in time developed into a residential area for people who would commute to the city by boat. The population was the typical Ottoman İstanbul mix of Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...

ns, Greeks
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

, Jews and Turks
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...

. Kadıköy has several churches (Greek
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...

, Armenian
Armenian Apostolic Church
The Armenian Apostolic Church is the world's oldest National Church, is part of Oriental Orthodoxy, and is one of the most ancient Christian communities. Armenia was the first country to adopt Christianity as its official religion in 301 AD, in establishing this church...

, Serbian, Catholic, Protestant) and synagogue
Synagogue
A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...

s.

Transport

The major Haydarpaşa Terminal
Haydarpasa Terminal
The Haydarpaşa Terminal or Haydarpaşa Station is a major intercity rail station and transportation hub in Kadıköy, İstanbul. It is the busiest rail terminal in Turkey and the Middle East and one of the busiest in Eastern Europe. The terminal also has connections to İETT bus and ferry service. The...

 of the Turkish State Railways
Turkish State Railways
The State Railways of the Turkish Republic or TCDD is the government owned, national railway carrier in the Republic of Turkey, headquartered in Ankara...

 is located close to Kadıköy's center, serving east- and south-bound international, domestic and regional trains. Haydarpaşa Terminal was opened in 1908 as the terminus of the İstanbul-Baghdad
Baghdad Railway
The Baghdad Railway , was built from 1903 to 1940 to connect Berlin with the Ottoman Empire city of Baghdad with a line through modern-day Turkey, Syria, and Iraq....

 and İstanbul-Damascus-Medina railways. This, along with the nearby Harem Bus Terminal, has services to Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...

.

The centre of Kadıköy today is the transportation hub
Public transport in Istanbul
Public transport in Istanbul comprises a bus network, various rail systems, funiculars, and maritime services to serve the more than 13 million inhabitants of the city spread over an area of 5712 km².-History:...

 for people commuting between the Asian side of the city and the Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

an side across the Bosphorus. There is a large bus and minibus terminal next to the ferry docks. Ferries are the most dominantly visible form of transport in Kadıköy, and the central market area is adjacent to the ferry dock.

Politics

The centre-left Republican People's Party
Republican People's Party (Turkey)
The Republican People's Party is a centre-left Kemalist political party in Turkey. It is the oldest political party of Turkey and is currently Main Opposition in the Grand National Assembly. The Republican People's Party describes itself as "a modern social-democratic party, which is faithful to...

 (CHP) is usually successful in Kadıköy in both local and national elections, in contrast to Kadıköy's neighbouring district, the conservative Üsküdar
Üsküdar
Üsküdar is a large and densely populated municipality of Istanbul, Turkey, on the Anatolian shore of the Bosphorus. It is bordered on the north by Beykoz, on the east by Ümraniye, on the southeast by Ataşehir, on the south by Kadıköy, and on the west by the Bosphorus, with the areas of Beşiktaş,...

. Since the mid-1990s the mayor has been Selami Öztürk of the CHP
Republican People's Party (Turkey)
The Republican People's Party is a centre-left Kemalist political party in Turkey. It is the oldest political party of Turkey and is currently Main Opposition in the Grand National Assembly. The Republican People's Party describes itself as "a modern social-democratic party, which is faithful to...

. Öztürk is often credited with the recent growth in the number of shopping and leisure areas around Kadıköy, especially since the pedestrianisation of Bahariye Street, which many say has become the Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...

n equivalent of İstiklal Avenue
Istiklal Avenue
İstiklal Avenue or Istiklal Street is one of the most famous avenues in Istanbul, Turkey, visited by nearly 3 million people in a single day over the course of weekends...

 in Beyoğlu
Beyoglu
Beyoğlu is a district located on the European side of İstanbul, Turkey, separated from the old city by the Golden Horn...

 on the Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

an side, including its nostalgic trams.

Education

Marmara University
Marmara University
Marmara University is a public university in Turkey. Situated in Istanbul, Marmara University has succeeded in becoming the second largest university in the whole country...

 has most of its buildings in Kadıköy, including the large and elegant Haydarpaşa Campus, while the largest private university in İstanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

, Yeditepe University
Yeditepe University
Yeditepe University is a foundation university situated in Istanbul, Turkey. Founded in 1996, Yeditepe University now claims to be the largest of the 27 foundation universities in Turkey....

, is located on the hill named "Kayışdağı" at the easternmost edge of the borough.

Another private institution for higher education, the Doğuş University
Dogus University
Doğuş University , is a private university located Acıbadem, Kadıköy, İstanbul. It stands on the lower side of Acıbadem Hill.-History:...

, is situated in the Acıbadem neighborhood of Kadiköy.

There are also several high schools such as Kadıköy Anadolu Lisesi
Kadiköy Anadolu Lisesi
Kadıköy Anadolu Lisesi, also commonly known as Kadıköy Maarif College, abbreviated Kadıköy Maarif or KAL, is one of the oldest, most prestigious Anatolian High Schools and internationally renowned high schools of Turkey; located in Moda, Istanbul. The education languages are Turkish and English...

 and Göztepe İhsan Kurşunoğlu Anadolu Lisesi
Göztepe Ihsan Kursunoglu Anadolu Lisesi
Göztepe İhsan Kurşunoğlu Anadolu Lisesi is a high school in the Göztepe neighbourhood of Kadıköy, Istanbul, Turkey. It was originally Göztepe Middle School following which it became a high school with the name of İhsan Kurşunoğlu...

.

Shopping

Kadıköy is a busy shopping district, with a wide variety of atmospheres and architectural styles. The streets are varied, some being narrow alleyways and others, such as Bahariye Caddesi, being pedestrian zones. Turkey's biggest food market is there, starting next to the Osman Ağa Mosque, and has an immense turnover of fresh foods and other products from all around Turkey, including a wide range of fresh fish and seafood, olive oil soap, and so on. There are also modern shopping centres, most notably the large Tepe Nautilus
Tepe Nautilus
Tepe Nautilus, opened in September 2001, is a shopping mall in Turkey. Built by Tepe Group, it is situated in the Acıbadem quarter of Kadıköy district in the Asian part of Istanbul....

 Shopping Mall behind the center of Kadıköy, and pavements crowded with street vendors selling socks, pirated copies of popular novels, and other products. In the streets behind the main post office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...

, there is a large number of well-known bookshops selling both new and second-hand books, craft-shops and picture-framers, and a number of shops selling music CDs and related ephemera such as film posters and t-shirts. Hard Rock and Heavy Metal music is sold in the arcade named Akmar Pasajı, where associated items are also sold. On Sundays this area becomes a large second-hand book and music street market. Being a crowded shopping district, Kadıköy has many buskers, shoe shine boys, glue sniffers and schoolchildren in the streets selling flowers, chewing gum and packets of tissues.

At the top of the shopping district there is an intersection, with a statue of a bull, called Altıyol (Six Ways), where a road leads to the civic buildings and a huge street market called Salı Pazarı (Tuesday Market). The working-class residential districts of Hasanpaşa and Fikirtepe are located behind the civic buildings.

Housing

There is a lot of residential property in the centre of Kadıköy, mostly somewhat dilapidated today, but there are still quiet suburban streets. The area is home to many students as well as a small number of foreign residents.

Attractions

Türkbalon is a helium balloon moored on Kadıköy Quay, taking passengers during season for a fee up to an altitude of 200 m, offering a panoramic view of the area and the historic centre of İstanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

 across the Bosphorus.

Entertainment and eating

Kadıköy has many narrow streets filled with cafés, bars and restaurants, as well as many cinemas. Süreyya Opera House
Süreyya Opera House
Süreyya Opera House, also called Süreyya Cultural Center , is an opera hall located in Kadıköy district of Istanbul, Turkey. The building is designed by architect Kegam Kavafyan by order of a Deputy for Istanbul Süreyya İlmen, it was originally established in 1927 as the first musical theatre on...

 is a recent redevelopment of the same named historic movie theater..

The market area is mostly closed to traffic and contains a wide variety of fast food restaurants serving toasted sandwiches, hamburgers and döner kebab
Döner kebab
Doner kebab is a dish made of roasted meat cooked on a vertical spit. It is also known regionally as gyro , shawarma, and al pastor . It consists of shaved lamb, goat, chicken, turkey, beef, or mixed meats roasted on a spit. Less common alternatives include fish and sausage...

. Many students go to this area to buy large sandwiches called 'maniac' or 'psychopath'. There are also traditional Turkish restaurants and patisseries, bridge schools, bars with live jazz, folk and rock music, as well as working class tea and backgammon houses.

Behind the center lies a large shopping and residential district winding uphill to the Bahariye Caddesi pedestrian zone. This area was transformed during the economic boom of the 1990s and many new bars were opened.

Kadıköy's entertainment is generally not of the affluent type. It has a more working class ambience; therefore, it is easier to find food of the like of kebab, kokoreç and fried mussels than haute cuisine, though Musa Dağdeviren's Çiya is found here.

Kadıköy does not have as much nightlife as Beyoğlu
Beyoglu
Beyoğlu is a district located on the European side of İstanbul, Turkey, separated from the old city by the Golden Horn...

 (where nightlife also continues much later into the night), nor does it have Nişantaşı's
Nisantasi
Nişantaşı is a quarter of Istanbul, Turkey, comprising neighbourhoods like Teşvikiye, Osmanbey, Maçka and Pangaltı. It includes the stores of world famous brands and has many popular cafés, pubs, restaurants and night clubs. It is a part of the Şişli district...

 style of shopping or the Bosphorus for nightlife. Instead, it is often considered a cheaper alternative but may still be regarded as vibrant.

Coastal areas

Along the coast, away from the centrum of Kadıköy, there are many expensive shops and the area becomes more upmarket in neighbourhoods such as Moda and Fenerbahçe
Fenerbahçe (Istanbul neighbourhood)
Fenerbahçe is the name of a neighbourhood in Kadıköy district, Istanbul, Turkey, located on the Asian side at the shore of the Sea of Marmara. The name means "lighthouse garden" in Turkish , referring to a historic lighthouse located at Fenerbahçe cape .The neighbourhood has given its name to...

, which are attractive, long-established residential areas. These both lie within the bounds of the borough of Kadıköy, and have many restaurants, cafés and bars by the sea. There is a path here along the sea-front from Kadıköy; the tram to Moda calls here.

Moda is an old, quiet, cosmopolitan İstanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

 neighbourhood, but is beginning to experience economic and aesthetic problems, with there being a lack of car parking and some run-down shops and other buildings. As elsewhere in İstanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

, many historic houses have been demolished and replaced with apartment buildings; however, Moda is generally considered one of the more pleasant residential districts in the city. There are numerous churches in Moda with active congregations, and well-known schools, such as the Lycée Saint-Joseph
St. Joseph High School (Istanbul)
St. Joseph High School is a private high school located in Istanbul, Turkey. It is a French school founded in 1870. Classes are taught in Turkish, French, and/or English.-External links:* / *...

 and Kadıköy Anadolu Lisesi
Kadiköy Anadolu Lisesi
Kadıköy Anadolu Lisesi, also commonly known as Kadıköy Maarif College, abbreviated Kadıköy Maarif or KAL, is one of the oldest, most prestigious Anatolian High Schools and internationally renowned high schools of Turkey; located in Moda, Istanbul. The education languages are Turkish and English...

. There is a small, attractive theatre in Moda named Oyun Atölyesi, founded by the former (BBC soap opera) EastEnders
EastEnders
EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...

 actor Haluk Bilginer
Haluk Bilginer
Haluk Bilginer is a Turkish actor. In addition to his acting career in Turkey, he has also worked in the United Kingdom and remains best known for his role as Mehmet Osman in the television soap opera EastEnders during the 1980s. He has also starred in Hollywood movies as a minor actor...

.

Another smart new district is Acıbadem. This area has one of the best-known private hospitals in the city and a long avenue of smart cafés, restaurants and ice cream parlours.

Beyond this area, the huge stadium of Fenerbahçe Football Club
Sükrü Saracoglu Stadium
Fenerbahçe Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium is a football stadium in the Kadıköy district of Istanbul, Turkey, and is the home venue of Fenerbahçe S.K.. It was inaugurated in 1908 and renovated between 1999 and 2006...

 dominates the skyline. From here, the long shopping street named Bağdat Caddesi (Baghdad Avenue) heads east and there are many affluent neighbourhoods between the avenue and the coast. Until the 1950s these areas, such as Kalamış, Göztepe
Göztepe
Göztepe can refer to:*Göztepe, Istanbul, a neigbourhood in the Kadıköy district of Istanbul, Turkey*Göztepe, İzmir, a district of İzmir, Turkey*Göztepe A.Ş., a football club in İzmir...

, Caddebostan, Bağdad Avenue, Erenköy
Bagdat Avenue
Bağdat Avenue is a notable high street located on the Anatolian side of Istanbul, Turkey. The street runs approximately from east to west in the Maltepe and Kadıköy districts, almost parallel to the coastline of the Sea of Marmara...

, and Suadiye, were full of summer houses and mansions for the city's wealthy upper middle class. Since the Bosphorus Bridge
Bosphorus Bridge
The Bosphorus Bridge, also called the First Bosphorus Bridge is one of the two bridges in Istanbul, Turkey, spanning the Bosphorus strait and thus connecting Europe and Asia The bridge is located between Ortaköy and Beylerbeyi The Bosphorus Bridge, also called the First Bosphorus Bridge is...

 was built, it has become easier to commute from here to the Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

an side of İstanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

, and most of these summer houses have been demolished and replaced with modern apartment buildings; however, these districts many still be considered among the most beautiful residential areas of the city. The coast here has a long stretch of seaside parks and yacht marinas, and the streets behind the coast in areas such as Caddebostan are lined with numerous bars and cafés.

From Bostancı
Bostanci
Bostancı is a neighbourhood of Kadıköy, located on the Anatolian side of Istanbul, Turkey. The neighbourhood fronts the Sea of Marmara and is not far from the Princes' Islands. From the Bostancı shore, five islands; Kınalıada, Burgazada, Heybeliada, Büyükada, and Sivriada can be seen...

 onwards the economic level progressively lessens, so there are more retired and working-class residents here. There are no more villas, excepting some on the coast at Dragos, and the apartment buildings are narrower and less widely spaced. Bostancı
Bostanci
Bostancı is a neighbourhood of Kadıköy, located on the Anatolian side of Istanbul, Turkey. The neighbourhood fronts the Sea of Marmara and is not far from the Princes' Islands. From the Bostancı shore, five islands; Kınalıada, Burgazada, Heybeliada, Büyükada, and Sivriada can be seen...

 itself is a busy shopping district built around a railway station.

Inland areas

Inland from the coast there is a great deal of housing development: some of this has little infrastructure, while most is more expensive, especially in areas such as Kozyatağı and İçerenköy
Içerenköy
İçerenköy is a neighbourhood located in the borough of Ataşehir on the Asian side of İstanbul, Turkey.İçerenköy is home to the Swiss Hospital , the 5 star hotels Greenpark and Mariott , and the secondary school Hasan Leyli Secondary School , which is the largest of its kind in Ataşehir.Its...

. These districts house many of İstanbul's
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

 upper-middle class residents. These neighbourhoods are mainly built around wide avenues and tree-lined streets, with four to six-storey apartment buildings that have sizable gardens and car-parking around them. Especially in Kozyatağı, there are old Ottoman houses nearly in every houses' garden (Each house or apartment has a big garden with parking lots and arbours while these gardens used to be the old house's). Kozyatağı, Suadiye and Kazasker used to be one of the most popular summer areas for wealthy İstanbul residents. Today, Kozyatağı has tree-lined streets, especially magnolia, linden and fruit trees such as medlar trees, plum trees, cherry, mulberry and quince trees, lots of large greenfields, parks, children parks. These areas, Suadiye, Bağdat Caddesi, Kalamış, Kozyatağı, Fenerbahçe have today, upper-middle or upper class residents. There are many schools, hospitals, shops and restaurants in these areas. There is also a large Carrefour
Carrefour
Carrefour S.A. is an international hypermarket chain headquartered in Levallois-Perret, France. It is one of the largest hypermarket chains in the world...

 and Bauhaus store on the E5 highway in this part of Kadıköy.

In the late 1990s, new luxury housing developments such as Ataşehir
Atasehir
Ataşehir is a modern suburban district of Istanbul, Turkey. It is located at the junction of the O-2 and O-4 motorways in the Anatolian part of Istanbul....

 began to be constructed in the previously undeveloped area north of the E5 highway. These have their own shops, private colleges, sports centres and other facilities.

Architecture

Kadıköy has many interesting houses from the Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

 period which are hidden in its side streets. Many of them have been turned into cafés, pubs and restaurants, particularly serving seafood. A few examples can be seen below:

Sport

The district is home to the Turkish football club Fenerbahçe SK's
Fenerbahçe SK
Fenerbahçe Spor Kulübü is a professional sports club based in Kadıköy, Istanbul, Turkey. The club derives its name from the Fenerbahçe neighbourhood of Istanbul. Fenerbahçe is one of the biggest and the best supported clubs in Turkey. They are nicknamed Sarı Kanaryalar )...

 home venue, the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium
Sükrü Saracoglu Stadium
Fenerbahçe Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium is a football stadium in the Kadıköy district of Istanbul, Turkey, and is the home venue of Fenerbahçe S.K.. It was inaugurated in 1908 and renovated between 1999 and 2006...

. Following important victories, all neighbourhoods of Kadıköy are crowded with celebrating people. The stadium hosted the 2009 UEFA Cup
UEFA Cup
The UEFA Europa League is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1971 for eligible European football clubs. It is the second most prestigious European club football contest after the UEFA Champions League...

 Final. The area also has a rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...

 team, Kadıköy Rugby
Kadiköy Rugby
Kadıköy Rugby was founded by the joint efforts of a group of fellow students from Uskudar Anadolu Lisesi and ex-İstanbul Ottomans rugby player Mert Ataray in early 2006. The establishment of the team quickly drew attention of the lively, hot blooded youth of Kadıköy district and soon settled itself...

, which was the first official rugby club in Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

.

The multi-purpose arena of Caferağa Sport Hall
Caferaga Sport Hall
Caferağa Sport Hall, is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in Kadıköy district of Istanbul, Turkey and opened in 1982. It is owned by the Municipality of Kadıköy District and operated by the Directorate of Youth and Sport of Istanbul Province....

, located in the center of Kadıköy's shopping district, is home to the basketball teams of Alpella (men team) and Fenerbahçe İstanbul (women team), volleyball teams (Fenerbahçe Men's Volleyball and Fenerbahçe Women's Volleyball).

Religion

Kadiköy has been always a place with population belonging to the three main religions, Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and .   : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...

, Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...

 and Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...

. There are still many examples of mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...

s, Greek
Greek Orthodox Church
The Greek Orthodox Church is the body of several churches within the larger communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity sharing a common cultural tradition whose liturgy is also traditionally conducted in Koine Greek, the original language of the New Testament...

 or Armenian churches, and synagogue
Synagogue
A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...

s. As with the rest of Istanbul, the community has many mosques.

Hemdat Israel Synagogue
Hemdat Israel Synagogue
Hemdat Israel Synagogue is a synagogue founded in 1899 and located in an area called Haydarpasa Kadikoy on the Asian side of Istanbul, Turkey. Visits and participation to prayers are possible after contacting the Chief Rabbinate.-External links:* *...

, situated in Yeldeğirmeni neighborhood close to Haydarpaşa Terminal, is one of the oldest Jewish houses of prayer in İstanbul.

External links

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