Baščaršija 2006.jpg
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Baščaršija ( Cyrillic: Башчаршија; ) is
Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other languages'') is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajevo ...
's old bazaar and the historical and cultural center of the city. Baščaršija was built in the 15th century when Isa-Beg Ishaković founded the city. Baščaršija is located on the north bank of the river
Miljacka ), Šeher-Ćehaja Bridge, Careva ćuprija, Latin Bridge (aka Principov most), Ćumurija Bridge, Drvenija Bridge, Čobanija Bridge, Festina lente bridge, Skenderija Bridge (aka Ajfelov most), Suada and Olga bridge (aka Vrbanja most) , custom ...
, in the municipality of Stari Grad. On Baščaršija there are several important historic buildings, such as the
Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque (, ) is a mosque in the city of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Built in the 16th century, it is the largest historical mosque in Bosnia and Herzegovina and one of the most representative Ottoman structures in the Balkan ...
and sahat-kula. Today Baščaršija is the major tourist attraction of
Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other languages'') is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajevo ...
. Baščaršija local community (mjesna zajednica) is home to 1,790 residents.


Etymology

The word Baščaršija derives from the
Turkish language Turkish ( , ), also referred to as Turkish of Turkey (''Türkiye Türkçesi''), is the most widely spoken of the Turkic languages, with around 80 to 90 million speakers. It is the national language of Turkey and Northern Cyprus. Significant sma ...
. The word "baš" which is "baş" in Turkish literally means "head", but in some contexts also means "primary", "main", "capital". "Čaršija" which is "çarşı" in Turkish means "bazaar" or "market". Although the suffix 'ja' (modern Turkish: '(y)a') means 'to' in Turkish, implying that the full name of the district literally translates to 'to the main bazaar', it is more likely that the ending -ija is a
Bosnianism Bosnians (Bosnian language: / ; / , / ) are people identified with the country of Bosnia and Herzegovina or with the region of Bosnia. As a common demonym, the term ''Bosnians'' refers to all inhabitants/citizens of the country, regardless ...
, as many Turkish loanwords have the same ending to conform to Bosnian grammatical rules. In the
nominative case In grammar, the nominative case (abbreviated ), subjective case, straight case or upright case is one of the grammatical cases of a noun or other part of speech, which generally marks the subject of a verb or (in Latin and formal variants of Engl ...
, the place has always been referred to in Turkish as "Başçarşı" only, without "ya".


History

Before the arrival of the Ottomans in the largest settlement on Sarajevo field was the village square Tornik, which was located at the crossroad of the roads where today is the Ali Pasha's Mosque. Baščaršija was built in 1462 when Isa-Beg Isaković built the Ishaković han, in addition to its many shops. Around the main entrance, the Bazerdžani
čaršija A bazaar () or souk (; also transliterated as souq) is a marketplace consisting of multiple small stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, North Africa and India. However, temporary open markets elsewhere, such as in the W ...
was formed. The čaršija Kazaz is situated to the west, and to the north sit both the čaršija Sedlar and Sarača. The most significant buildings constructed during this period were mosques. Baščaršija's famous mosque was built by Havedža Durak in 1528, and
Gazi Husrev-beg Gazi Husrev-beg ( ota, غازى خسرو بك, ''Gāzī Ḫusrev Beğ''; Modern Turkish: ''Gazi Hüsrev Bey''; 1480–1541) was an Ottoman Bosnian sanjak-bey (governor) of the Sanjak of Bosnia in 1521–1525, 1526–1534, and 1536–1541. He ...
built his mosque in 1530.
Gazi Husrev-beg Gazi Husrev-beg ( ota, غازى خسرو بك, ''Gāzī Ḫusrev Beğ''; Modern Turkish: ''Gazi Hüsrev Bey''; 1480–1541) was an Ottoman Bosnian sanjak-bey (governor) of the Sanjak of Bosnia in 1521–1525, 1526–1534, and 1536–1541. He ...
raises a Gazi Husrev-begova Medresa, a library, a haniqah, the Gazi Husrev-beg Hamam, the Gazi Husrev-beg bezistan, the
Morića Han Morića Han is a han (a roadside inn) originally built in 1551 in Sarajevo, Ottoman Empire (now Bosnia and Herzegovina). After a fire in 1697 it was reconstructed in its current form. Morića Han is one of the buildings which were financed by and ...
, sahat-kula and other tourist attractions in Baščaršija. Gazi Husrev-Beg was buried in the harem of his mosque, beside the harem is the
Türbe ''Türbe'' is the Turkish word for "tomb". In Istanbul it is often used to refer to the mausolea of the Ottoman sultans and other nobles and notables. The word is derived from the Arabic ''turbah'' (meaning ''"soil/ground/earth"''), which ...
of his freed slave and the first mutevelija of his vakuf, Murat-beg Tardić. Along with Islamic places of worship erected at that time, Baščaršija is also the location of the Old Orthodox Church, built sometimes during 16th century and first mentioned in Ottoman sources from 1539, and also the first
Sephardi Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), pt, Judeus sefa ...
temple, called Old Synagogue which is built between 1581-87. Just next to the Old Synagogue ( bs, Stari Hram = Old Temple) some time later was built New Synagogue ( bs, Novi Hram = New Temple). Today the Jewish community uses the more recently erected synagogue just across the Miljacka river, while both Old and New synagogue buildings are used as Jewish cultural centers. The New Synagogue was donated by the Jewish community to the city of Sarajevo and serves as a gallery called Novi Hram. The Old Synagogue building was turned into the Jewish Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and is considered to be one of the finest exhibition spaces in the former Yugoslavia. During the 16th century a number of commercial facilities was built, such as
bezistan A bedesten (variants: bezistan, bezisten, bedestan) is a type of covered market or market hall which was historically found in the cities of the Ottoman Empire. It was typically the central building of the commercial district of an Ottoman town or ...
s, hans, and caravanserais. Sarajevo was an important center of trade in the
Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
and had three bezistans (today the Gazi Husrev-begov bezistan and Brusa bezistan are still standing). There were colonies of Venetian and
Ragusan Ragusan may refer to: * citizen of the Republic of Ragusa hr, Sloboda se ne prodaje za sve zlato svijeta it, La libertà non si vende nemmeno per tutto l'oro del mondo"Liberty is not sold for all the gold in the world" , population_estimate ...
traders, and Baščaršija had approximately 12,000 commercial and craft shops. After the earthquake in 1640 and several fires in 1644 and 1656, Sarajevo was 1697 burned and devastated by the troops of Prince Eugene of Savoy. Travel writer
Evliya Çelebi Derviş Mehmed Zillî (25 March 1611 – 1682), known as Evliya Çelebi ( ota, اوليا چلبى), was an Ottoman explorer who travelled through the territory of the Ottoman Empire and neighboring lands over a period of forty years, recording ...
wrote: ::''"The čaršija has in everything, one thousand and eighty stores that are a model of beauty. The čaršija is very attractive and built according to plan."'' The city of Sarajevo didn't expand significantly until the 19th century. With the Austro-Hungarian occupation in 1878, foreign architects wanted to re-build Sarajevo into a modern European city. A fire contributed to this process, destroying parts of the Stari Grad. With the liberation of Sarajevo in 1945 after the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
, a committee decided that the market should be gradually demolished, believing that it had no role in a modern city. However, the plans were cancelled, and the buildings were left standing.


Important buildings

* Havadža Durak Mosque, better known as Baščaršija Mosque * Emperor's Mosque *
Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque (, ) is a mosque in the city of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Built in the 16th century, it is the largest historical mosque in Bosnia and Herzegovina and one of the most representative Ottoman structures in the Balkan ...
*
Morića Han Morića Han is a han (a roadside inn) originally built in 1551 in Sarajevo, Ottoman Empire (now Bosnia and Herzegovina). After a fire in 1697 it was reconstructed in its current form. Morića Han is one of the buildings which were financed by and ...
* Old Church *Old Synagogue (Stari Hram or Old Temple), home of the Jewish Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina *New Synagogue (Novi Hram or New Temple), home of the ''Novi Hram Gallery'' * Vijećnica File:Sarajevo Bascarsija 2011-11-08 (3).jpg, Feeding pigeons at Baščaršija File:Sarajevo Saraci 2011-11-08 (4).jpg, Sarači street in Sarajevo File:Sarajevo Begova-Dzamija 2011-11-08 (2).jpg, Gazi Husrev-beg's Mosque File:Baščaršija.jpg, The entrance to the Baščaršija district, the old town of Sarajevo. File:Baščaršija l'hiver.jpg, Baščaršija under the snow File:Tenues traditionnelles bosniaques vendues dans le quartier de Baščaršija.jpg, Traditional Bosnian clothing sold in the Baščaršija district


See also

* Baščaršija Nights * Stari Grad, Sarajevo


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bascarsija Bazaars Squares in Bosnia and Herzegovina Neighbourhoods in Grad Sarajevo Populated places in Stari Grad, Sarajevo