Laleli (meaning 'with tulips' in Turkish) is a neighbourhood of

Fatih Fatih () is a municipality and district of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 15 km2, and its population is 368,227 (2022). It is home to almost all of the provincial authorities (including the mayor's office, police headquarters, metro ...

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

, Turkey, lying between Beyazıt and

Aksaray Aksaray () is a city in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey. It is the seat of Aksaray Province and Aksaray District.

. It is known for its large textile wholesaling business and is home to the Literature and Science Faculties of

Istanbul University Istanbul University, also known as University of Istanbul (), is a Public university, public research university located in Istanbul, Turkey. Founded by Mehmed II on May 30, 1453, a day after Fall of Constantinople, the conquest of Constantinop ...

, designed by

Sedad Hakkı Eldem Sedad Hakkı Eldem (31 August 1908 – 7 September 1988) was a Turkish architect known as a proponent of nationalized modern architecture in Turkey. Biography Sedad Hakkı Eldem was born in Istanbul in 1908. He graduated from the Academy of Fin ...

and

Emin Onat Emin may refer to: As a name *Emin (given name) *Emin (surname) Places * Emin County, county in Xinjiang, China * Emin Minaret, the tallest minaret in China * Emin Valley, on the borders of China and Kazakhstan * Emin or Emil River, in Emin Val ...

in the 1940s. It is served by a stop on the T1 tram line which runs along Ordu Caddesi. The most prominent historic monument in Laleli is the

Laleli Mosque The Laleli Mosque () is an 18th-century Ottoman imperial mosque located in Laleli, Fatih, Istanbul, Turkey. History The mosque was commissioned by Sultan Mustafa III to serve as his imperial or sultanic mosque. Although it was tradition am ...

, a work of architect Mehmed Tahir Ağa that was originally constructed in the 1760s. It was built for Sultan Mustafa III whose tomb it contains. An attractive sebil or water dispensary stands on the street side of the complex surrounding the mosque. The mosque stands above a large basement that is now filled with clothes shops. Across the road from the mosque is the Koca Ragıp Paşa complex, also designed by Mehmed Tahir Ağa in 1762. It was undergoing restoration for much of the 2010s. Lurking in the back streets is the much older

Bodrum Mosque Bodrum Mosque (, or ''Mesih Paşa Camii'' named after its converter) in Istanbul, Turkey, is a former Eastern Orthodox church converted into a mosque by the Ottomans. The church was known under the Greek name of Myrelaion (). Location The beauti ...

(AKA Mesih Paşa Cami), which started life as a 10th-century Byzantine church attached to the Myreiaion Palace. Beside it is an underground cistern, probably of similar date. Both stand on the site of a lost Rotunda dating back to the fifth century which is believed to have been the second largest such circular Roman temple after the Pantheon in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

itself. Also in Laleli is the Big Stone Han (''Büyük Taş Hanı'' in Turkish) which was probably part of the Laleli Mosque complex and contains the remains of another cistern. Now a hotel, the Tayyare (Harikzedegen) apartment block, was the first building made from reinforced concrete in

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

. It was designed by architec
Kemaleddin Bey
to house those displaced by a fire in

in 1918. Laleli is home to the so-called “

suitcase trade A suitcase is a form of baggage. It is a rectangular container with a handle and is typically used to carry one's clothes and other belongings while traveling. The first suitcases appeared in the late 19th century due to the increased popular ...

,” where buyers from across the

former Soviet Union The post-Soviet states, also referred to as the former Soviet Union or the former Soviet republics, are the independent sovereign states that emerged/re-emerged from the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Prior to their independence, they ...

procure goods to sell in bazaars and boutiques back home. The trade is one of the strongest links between Istanbul and the former Soviet world, with cultural ties growing alongside the economic relationship. The largest market for the Laleli trade is

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, followed by

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

and

Uzbekistan , image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg , image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg , symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem , national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...

References

Quarters of Fatih {{istanbul-geo-stub