Tashkopryu Mosque

Tashkyopryu Mosque
Ташкьопрю джамия *Tashkyopryu Dzhamiya*
Tashkyopryu Mosque; Ташкьопрю джамия Tashkyopryu Dzhamiya
	Close view of the Tashkyopryu Mosque from its southern side, next to the entrance hall.
Basic information
Location	Plovdiv, Bulgaria
Geographic coordinates	42°05′09″N24°26′34″E / 42.0859°N 24.4429°E Coordinates: 42°05′09″N24°26′34″E / 42.0859°N 24.4429°E
Affiliation	Islam
Status	Inactive, ; Demands and efforts to make active
Architectural description
Architectural style	Ottoman-Turkish architecture
Completed	16th century
Specifications
Length	25m
Width	15m
Dome(s)	1
Dome dia. (outer)	10m
Minaret(s)	1 (collapsed in earthquake)

Last updated February 26, 2019

Tashkyopryu Mosque (Bulgarian: Ташкьопрю джамия Tashkyopryu Dzhamiya, Turkish: Taşköprü Camii) is a mosque in Plovdiv, Bulgaria , built by Ottoman Turks in 16th century during their 500-year rule in today's Bulgaria.^[1]^[2] It is currently the third mosque in Plovdiv which is in good condition after Dzhumaya Mosque and Imaret Mosque. It is currently inactive despite efforts and demands, mainly by Turks of Bulgaria, to give active status for it.

Bulgarian, is an Indo-European language and a member of the Southern branch of the Slavic language family.

Turkish, also referred to as Istanbul Turkish, is the most widely spoken of the Turkic languages, with around ten to fifteen million native speakers in Southeast Europe and sixty to sixty-five million native speakers in Western Asia. Outside Turkey, significant smaller groups of speakers exist in Germany, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Northern Cyprus, Greece, the Caucasus, and other parts of Europe and Central Asia. Cyprus has requested that the European Union add Turkish as an official language, even though Turkey is not a member state.

Plovdiv is the second-largest city in Bulgaria, with a city population of 345,213 as of 2017 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. It is an important economic, transport, cultural, and educational center. There is evidence of habitation in Plovdiv dating back to the 6th millennium BCE, when the first Neolithic settlements were established; it is said to be one of the oldest cities in Europe.

History

Tashkyopryu Mosque was built to answer the growing need of the Muslim community for worshiping places in developing Plovdiv (Filibe at that time), which was a Muslim dominated city with an 80% Turkish majority in the 16th century.^[2] The mosque was built at the western skirts of the city centre as a result of the start of Turks moving to city center from surrounding villages.

The mosque functioned properly until the First Balkan War. After the Balkan Wars, Tashkopryu Mosque kept its importance and activity until 1928, when an earthquake destroyed its minaret. To rebuild the minaret, a portion of the lot where the mosque was built was sold by the local religious authorities. However, the money collected was not enough to cover the expenses for rebuilding a minaret. As a result of this and the political atmosphere in Europe at that time, the mosque stayed closed until 1944 which marked the end era of World War II in Europe.

The First Balkan War, lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and comprised actions of the Balkan League against the Ottoman Empire. The combined armies of the Balkan states overcame the numerically inferior and strategically disadvantaged Ottoman armies and achieved rapid success.

Balkan Wars Two wars on Balkan Peninsula 1912-1913, leading to the Balkan Crisis of 1914 and start of WWI

The Balkan Wars consisted of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan Peninsula in 1912 and 1913. Four Balkan states defeated the Ottoman Empire in the first war. The main victor of the four, Bulgaria, fought and pushed back all four original combatants of the first war along with halting a surprise attack from Romania from the north in the second war. The Ottoman Empire lost the bulk of its territory in Europe. Austria-Hungary, although not a combatant, became relatively weaker as a much enlarged Serbia pushed for union of the South Slavic peoples. The war set the stage for the Balkan crisis of 1914 and thus served as a "prelude to the First World War".

Minaret, from Arabic: منارة‎ manarah, also known as Goldaste, is a type of tower typically found built into or adjacent to mosques. Minarets serve multiple purposes. While they provide a visual focal point, they are generally used for the Muslim call to prayer (Adhan). The basic form of a minaret includes a base, shaft, a cap and head. They are generally a tall spire with a conical or onion-shaped crown. They can either be free-standing or taller than the associated support structure. The architecture, function, and role of the minaret vary by region and time period.

After the war, when the communist state, People's Republic of Bulgaria was founded in 1946, one of the first actions of government was to confiscate almost all of the Muslim worshiping places used mainly by the Turks, which composed and still composes the biggest indigenous ethnic minority in Bulgaria, including the Tashkyopryu Mosque.^[3]

The People's Republic of Bulgaria was the official name of Bulgaria, when it was a socialist republic.

After decades under communist rule, following the foundation of current Republic of Bulgaria, the properties confiscated by the communist state started to be returned to their original owners in 1989 and 1990. That was when the Chief Muftiate of Bulgaria and Muftiate of Plovdiv, religious authorities in the country, first filed a lawsuit for the mosque to be returned as their property.^[4] The first case was denied by the Bulgarian government and the mosque was sold to investors who started using the building as a bar and restaurant, which created further fervent among the religious and ethnic minority in the country.^[3]

Current status

Following 2007 enlargement of the European Union which made Bulgaria a full EU member, the Muslim and Turkish community started working more intensely for their religious properties and rights to be returned. The bar was taken out of the mosque and now an alcohol-serving restaurant functions in Tashkopryu Mosque's garden. The mosque is still inactive but the push for it to be returned and to be active again is growing.^[4]

The 2007 enlargement of the European Union saw Bulgaria and Romania join the European Union (EU) on 1 January 2007. Together with the 2004 enlargement of the European Union, it is considered part of the fifth wave of enlargement of the European Union.

In 2013, an option for the Chief Muftiate to buy the building and the lot for around 600,000 euros was created. However, the Turkish and religious authorities referred to the price as meaninglessly expensive and they highlighted that the mosque and its lot is their rightful property as original owners before confiscation. It was further stated that using the mosque's lot as a restaurant was like an insult.

Correspondingly, following the first attempt to file a lawsuit and a second one in which the files were "disappeared",^[4] the muftiates and Turkish organizations of Bulgaria are getting ready to file the greatest lawsuit for the ownership of the mosque and "can eventually apply to European Court of Human Rights" with possible support from authorities from Turkey for its return to its rightful owners before the city of Plovdiv hosts the European Capital of Culture 2019 event.^[3]^[4]

2016 attack

The mosque and the Turkish "Orta Mezar Bath" just across the avenue were the targets of a night-time attempt on February 19, 2016, to instigate the historical buildings. The mosque had minor damage, possibly because of the presence of the restaurant, while the Turkish bath's dome and roof were almost completely destroyed by the fire. Those responsible for the attack were not found but the evidence pointed to the racist, fascist organizations of Bulgaria or/and to football hooligans. Bulgarian court was blamed for helping the racists by obfuscating the evidence and by not working enough to find those responsible. Turkish and Muslim organizations declared disappointment and fervent over the incident, and called for the renovation of the Turkish bath and return of the mosque once again.^[5]

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Islam in Bulgaria is a minority religion and the largest religion in the country after Christianity. According to the 2011 Census, the total number of Muslims in Bulgaria stood at 577,139, corresponding to 7.8% of the population. According to a 2017 estimate, Muslims make up 15% of the population. Ethnically, Muslims in Bulgaria are Turks, Bulgarians and Roma, living mainly in parts of northeastern Bulgaria and in the Rhodope Mountains.

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References

↑ "Filibe'de Osmanlı İzleri (Ottoman Turkish traces in Plovdiv)". World Bulletin (Turkish). 6 May 2014.
1 2 Machiel Kiel. "Filibe". Turkish Organization for Religious Affairs: 79–82.
1 2 3 "Ottoman mosque used as alcohol serving restaurant". World Bulletin. 19 April 2013. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
1 2 3 4 "Filibe'deki tarihi Taşköprü Camii, uzun süredir taverna, meyhane ve lokanta olarak kullanılıyor". Kırcaali Haber. 18 April 2013.
↑ "Tarihi Türk eseri kullanılamaz hâle geldi". Yeni Asya. 20 February 2016. Retrieved June 2016. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)

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[1] "Filibe'de Osmanlı İzleri (Ottoman Turkish traces in Plovdiv)". World Bulletin (Turkish). 6 May 2014.

[TDV-2] 1 2 Machiel Kiel. "Filibe". Turkish Organization for Religious Affairs: 79–82.

[World_Bulletin-3] 1 2 3 "Ottoman mosque used as alcohol serving restaurant". World Bulletin. 19 April 2013. Retrieved 3 July 2016.

[Kırcaali-4] 1 2 3 4 "Filibe'deki tarihi Taşköprü Camii, uzun süredir taverna, meyhane ve lokanta olarak kullanılıyor". Kırcaali Haber. 18 April 2013.

[5] "Tarihi Türk eseri kullanılamaz hâle geldi". Yeni Asya. 20 February 2016. Retrieved June 2016. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)