Suriye Pasajı (''Syria Arcade'' in
Turkish
Turkish may refer to:
* Something related to Turkey
** Turkish language
*** Turkish alphabet
** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
*** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey
*** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire
* The w ...
), or Cité de Syrie in
French
French may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France
** French people, a nation and ethnic group
** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices
Arts and media
* The French (band), ...
, is a historical six-storey
shopping arcade
An arcade is a succession of contiguous arches, with each arch supported by a colonnade of columns or piers. Exterior arcades are designed to provide a sheltered walkway for pedestrians; they include many loggias, but here arches are not an esse ...
located in
Ä°stanbul, Turkey
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 ...
, in the Asmalımescit subdistrict of
BeyoÄŸlu
BeyoÄŸlu (; ) is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Istanbul Province, Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 9 km2, and its population is 225,920 (2022). It is on the European side of Istanbul, Turkey, separated from the o ...
. The arcade is situated on
Ä°stiklal Avenue
Ä°stiklal Avenue () is a 1.4 kilometre (0.87 mi) pedestrian street in the historic BeyoÄŸlu (Pera) district in Istanbul, Turkey. It is one of the most famous avenues in the city. It acquired its modern name after the declaration of the Repub ...
166 (formerly 348).
The ground floor of the arcade hosts a wide array of businesses, meanwhile upper floors are being mostly used for residential accommodation.
It was built in 1908.
History
Construction of the building started in 1901 and financed by
Syrian
Syrians () are the majority inhabitants of Syria, indigenous to the Levant, most of whom have Arabic, especially its Levantine and Mesopotamian dialects, as a mother tongue. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend ...
Hasan Halbuni Pasha and the president of the Istanbul
Chamber of Commerce
A chamber of commerce, or board of trade, is a form of business network. For example, a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to a ...
, Mehmet Abbud Pasha. The project was designed by
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
architect Demetre Th. Bassiladis in
neoclassical style
Neoclassicism, also spelled Neo-classicism, emerged as a Western cultural movement in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiquity. Neoclassici ...
and arcade was completed in 1908. In 1911, the Santral Sineması (Cine Central) was opened inside the building.
For more than 100 years, Suriye Pasajı has hosted and continues to host individuals, families, offices and businesses belonging to many different cultures. Headquarters of Stamboul, a French language newspaper that was printed between 1875 and 1964, was situated in this arcade. The head offices of Minorities in Turkey, minority newspapers such as Apoyevmatini written in Greek language, Greek and Armenian language, Armenian Marmara (newspaper), Nor Marmara were also located in this building until the early 2010s.
There is an Antique shop, antique and second-hand shop in the basement of the building. Leather crafting, Leather and fur shops, coffee and tea houses, a night club and restaurants are other examples of modern businesses in the building.
Ada Kitabevi is a bookshop that also hosts a cafe inside.
Art exhibitions are also being held in arcade's atelier.
There are concerns about cafes and restaurants of the arcade that illegally occupy corridors of the building.
References
{{coord missing, Turkey
Architecture in Turkey
Buildings and structures in BeyoÄŸlu
Shopping arcades in Turkey