Cortijos | Kortejos of Izmir Salonika and Sarajevo Redux

Mavi Boncuk| 

“Historical origin of the Yavuthane or family houses, 'dirot' in Hebrew; that is, it is a series of structures called "daire TR/dwellingEN". It is possible to come across similar examples of these building sequences in many countries and cities where Jewish communities live. For example; In Crete, which was under the rule of the Republic of Venice from 1204 until the Ottoman conquest of the island, in the castles built in the south of the island in the 14th century, dirot, or flats, or in other words, one-room family houses were built for the accommodation of Jewish families. Similar examples exist for Istanbul as well. In the 16th century, during the Jewish migration from Thessaloniki to Istanbul, a dirot was also built in Istanbul. Cortijos are the functional products of the Jewish immigration phenomenon and Jewish practical intelligence. Its origin, on the other hand, goes back to Mesopotamia, especially in terms of the architectural features of the buildings.” Based on this information, Dr. Siren Bora  states that the Yahvuthane or the Jewish Houses are not unique to Izmir; He states that they also existed in Manisa, Istanbul, Thessaloniki and Crete in history.

See also: 

Birol Üzmez’in gözünden İzmir’in son avluları… 

" The fact that the tradition of family houses, which had an important place in the social life of Izmir for a long time, was completely forgotten over time and that our memories were drawn into the deep corridors both surprised and saddened me. Wherever you go in the world, you will not find such a tradition, such a cultural heritage. Today, the value of this wealth is unknown. It is a great chance that these structures have survived to the present day. We have a very valuable treasure. Today, Juderias in Spain have become the places where culture, art and tourism are experienced most intensely. I think İzmir can also take advantage of this chance.

The condition of these houses today is literally deplorable. During the Agora urban renewal demolitions, Sadık Bey Family House was demolished before my eyes. Do you know who we call Sadik Bey? He is the grandfather of Halit Ziya Uşaklıgil, the author of the book of the Aşk-ı Memnu series, which broke the rating records on television today. These important families built family houses in their own name, maybe out of necessity, maybe out of necessity. Because it is more economical to live here.

There are some happy events. For example, the Saray Hotel, which was once used as a Jewish house on Anafartalar Street, changed hands two years ago and was restored and turned into a modern hotel again. The new owner of the hotel has just learned about the historical past of the hotel and the hotel has become valuable. I know your old self very well, I stayed here six years ago. It's a fascinating place. There is Cevahirci Han on the same level. Under the ownership of Doctor Fikret Cevahirci, its former name was Paşayakov Judaism. It is a magnificent place, they have preserved it because they have their memories. A completely original Jewish house architecture. It stands firm. After the Jews left, the Romans settled first, then they could not do it. Shoemakers worked for a long time. When a shoemaker's site was built in Işıkkent, they also left this place, and now there are only a few textile workshops. There are three cortejos on Anafartalar Street that need to be protected. These give very important clues about traditional Jewish homes. Even the wallpapers inside the rooms are from the Jews. But these are derelict, neglected buildings. There are still three family houses in İkiçeşmelik where people live. Nothing has changed, life is always the same. There are abandoned places behind Kemeraltı.

Located historically in Izmir neighborhoods of Agora, Kemeraltı, İkiçeşmelik, Mezarlıkbaşı ve Karataş

 Turkish jews call it judeo, Turkish: Yahudhane / Aile evleri | Family home; Spanish: kortejo
After 500 years, Jewish family houses (kortejo) that indicates a life style specific to Izmir have become shelter for underprivileged Izmirian families. Kortejos where Jews without means who have migrated from Spain used to live in by supporting each other to adapt themselves to their new lives are now a new place for deprived families, unfortunate, lonely, and lost people. Most of them have similar stories. Young, old, women, men, children who have had significant difficulties in their lives are now living in the same courtyard and trying to survive. These people's lives have a common space, as well as a common destiny; it shows the possibilities of the future for us… "

BOSNAK ENVER RECOLLECTS.

"Our Karataş was once famous for such family houses.

There is Ömer Ağa Apartment in today's Karataş, here it was the first family house, its name is Ömer Ağa's Family House...Next to it, the house of the fisherman Haci Mustafa, the owner of the fish house, and then the house of the teacher Süha Bey, the glorious Rıza Bey Family House stood next to it, next to it was the Bonito factory. Let's move on, another family house comes before us, the famous Han de Kavrikas (sic. El Han de Las Kavras). 

Then a series of houses come on the beach, then Baker Ummet's house and you end up on the pier street. Another small family house at the beginning of the street, this time the family house of urgancı Hakkı Bey, on a plain that can be reached by stairs, later became comfortable. So we relied on Site cinema. Next to it was the Eshot building, and right next to it was the family home of fishermen and Gypsies. Then Rasih Öztürk's tobacco shop, again a small family house, finally the famous Hafız's Family House. This family house, which was the father-in-law of Arsalı Ahmet, was the biggest one. Then came the row houses of Atatürk's wife, Uşşakizade Latife Hanımlar, with fences and ivy. Thus, we would be based on the People's House, which is now the State Theatre. The tram used to pass by this whole row of family homes.

  Part 2  | Part 3 İzmir’de göçmenlere yuva olan Kortejolar

İzmir Girls' High School is one of the first educational institutions of the Republican era. The school building was built by the Governor of İzmir, Rahmi Bey, as the Committee of Union and Progress in 1917, and later used as a male teacher's school.  Greece targeted the building for a possible Smyrna Ionian University.

(Pictured) Sea view of the kortejo across the Karataş High School for Girls at the beginning of the 20th century.The long, large building on the front left is the old meter workshop, the current Iksev building.

3 Kortejo | Urganci Apartment images provided by Hale Koray 
(Author: Onlar Artık Burada Oturmuyor

"Minority Heterotopias: The Cortijos of Izmir" (2016) ARQ: Architectural Research Quarterly, 20.3, pps. 245-256.

Originally belonging to the Sephardi Jewish residents of İzmir during the Ottoman times, cortijos were one or two-storey buildings organised around a courtyard, with shared facilities such as toilets and kitchen. The Sephardi inhabitants of cortijos were among the poorest in their community and each family lived in a small single room opening out onto a courtyard. After the immigration of the majority of the Sephardis to Israel in the 1950s, these buildings started to be occupied by equally poor migrants from Eastern Anatolia. In time the demographics of the inhabitants changed even more, replacing families with single, aged and unemployed individuals. Despite changes in the resident profiles, the heterotopic features of cortijos were neither changed nor challenged and only oscillated between heterotopias of crisis and heterotopias of deviation. With a special focus on a documentary photography exhibit on cortijos, titled Kortejo/Aile Evleri, this article discusses their heterotopic features, both in relation to their history and to their current condition. The article concludes by highlighting the new-found public and municipal interest in these buildings after their aestheticisation through photographic images. This new interest suggests an appropriation of the cortijo into the needs and expectations of the consumer society.

 These deserted last examples of the family houses that gain their meanings with the underprivileged Jewish people who were living inside are now telling different stories.  

 It is thought that Izmir kortejos have started with the arrival of Spanish Jews in Izmir. It means that these kortejos exist for about 500 years. According to the interviews with some of the habitants of kortejos, these houses were used by Jewish people even in 1940's. However, the amount of kortejos has started to decrease in 19th century because Jews have moved to better houses for better living conditions. The first kortejos were shelter for Sephardic Jews who were in need. They had a common language, traditions, and foods. Kortejos, or Yahuthane as Izmirian people call it, were also secure places for people with different backgrounds. According to the expression of some old Jews, kortejos were emptied in the 50's. This situation can be explained by the fact that underprivileged Jewish people in Turkey have migrated to Israel in 1948. There were not many people wanting to live in such places anymore. There were more kortejos in Thessalonica than in Izmir where Jewish people were living. 
 In recent years, Turkish people coming from the east started to settle in these houses. Migration in Turkey has gradually increased in Turkey starting from 50's until the 70's. Because of this reason, underprivileged Turkish immigrants have settled in these kortejos. The rents for the rooms are very low and living conditions are quite poor. It also means that protecting kortejos are no longer possible. Some kortejos give interesting although inadequate clues about old lifestyles. Most of the people who can give information on this subject have migrated to Israel.  

Blue Kortejo is a building next to the Smyrna Agora, a few steps from Anafartalar Street. Kortejoards are common structures with common toilets, bathrooms and kitchens. Although there are dozens of examples in history, unfortunately only a few have survived to the present day. The most beautiful examples of the Kortejo, which has been used as accommodation for hundreds of years, are located in Basmane.

When the project is completed, it will serve as a accommodation structure for young people and will be used as a youth hostel. The hostel will provide affordable accommodation, and will be a pioneer in transforming these and other historic small hotels into the Youth Hostel. Besides, positive transformation will be accelerated with more young people drawn to the Historic Area.

A lifestyle unique to Izmir, Jewish family houses "kortejo", in other words, Jewish houses, gathered poor Jews who had immigrated from Spain. These people were classless, identityless and all alone. Tarık Dursun, who says, "These people have life wars that will astonish them," talks about the Izmir of the period, where the tradition of "apartment" was not yet formed in K. Rıza Bey's Family House. Different stories continue today in the courtyards where poor Jewish families cooked boyoz and in their rooms where they drank broth. After the Safarad Jews who came to Turkey from Spain in 1492, the cortejos are now witnessing the lives of their new hosts. Today's family houses are the new place of people who have been destroyed by life, alone, unable to hold on, abandoned, lost. Karataş cortejo, the cortejo behind the Lux Bath, the cortejo behind İkiçeşmelik changed with the people it lived in, and took its new shape with their scent, emotion and spirit.

Rasel Amado Bortnick, a Jew from Turkey, describes the "El Han de Las Kavras[*]", that is, the “Keçiler Yahudihanesi", opposite Konak Izmir Girls' High School, in the old Izmir times: “Every family sits in one room of the house. There is a small kitchen next to the room. They draw water with a pump. The 'Family Houses' with a courtyard in the middle, where poor Jewish families live together, are in Namazgah, Karataş and Elevator. There were 4-5 Yavutanes in Karataş. I can't forget the days when I went to Tilkilik and Namazgah in the Jewish quarter, wandered the old streets alone and went to my aunt alone."

Dr. Fikret Cevahirci observes the lives of Jews who were forced to immigrate from Spain: “The Jews have a tradition of securing themselves in a Ghetto and living within thick walls since their arrival from Spain. They feel obliged, their doors are closed at a certain time at night, the keys are at the head of the janitor, if any sudden event, such as illness, birth, the head of the room would come and open the door. In other words, these are the places established to secure themselves. However, these were the places where the poor Jews lived daily. There was a great migration from Izmir, but none of the Jews, who had rich business, property and trade, left. Their men used to work in day jobs, their women went to the houses for daily laundry and cleaning.” Source

[*] The Yahudi hane (mumhane), which later became Urgancı Apartment (needs research), opposite the current Girls' High School.

See also: 

Dr. Siren Bora´nın kaleminden İzmir´in Eski Yahudi Mahallesi

İzmirli Yahudiler ve Birinci Juderia | [**]

Birinci Juderia Dr Siren Bora Kitap Tanıtımı

19. YÜZYILDA İZMİR’DE YAHUDİ GÖÇMENLER VE GÖÇMEN İSKANI İÇİN BULUNAN ÇÖZÜMLER: DİASPORA’YA ÖZGÜ YAPILAR Siren BORA

" İZMİR YAHUDİ MAHALLESİ İzmir, 16. yüzyılın son çeyreğinde beş yerleşim alanına ayrıldı. Bu beş alan, çağdaş anlamda yerel yönetimlerle ilgili en küçük yönetim birimini değil; sadece birbiri ile dayanışma içinde olan bireylerden oluşan dinsel cemaatlerin ayrı ayrı ve kendilerine ait ibadethaneleri çevresinde oluşturdukları yerleşim alanlarını ifade ediyordu. Nitekim, kentte mahalle teşkilatı oluşturuluncaya kadar, seçilecek mahalle adlarında genellikle ibadethaneler esas alınacaktı. Söz konusu dönemle ilgili olarak elde bulunan seyahatnameler ve dönemsel çalışmalardaki tanımlamalarda yer alan, Frenk mahallesi, Çarşı, 1. Kordon, Müslüman, Rum, Yahudi ve Ermeni mahalleleri gibi nitelendirmeler; idari birim olarak mahalleyi değil, ticaretin canlı olduğu merkezleri ya da dinsel cemaatlerin yoğunlaştığı alanları işaret etmekteydi . İzmir’in 17. ile 18. yüzyıllar arasındaki demografik yapısı ve topografik haritası, tarihçiler ve gezginler tarafından şöyle betimleniyor: Avrupa uluslarının konsoloslukları ve Levantenler kentin batısında deniz ile Ermeni Mahallesi arasında kalan lüks ve gelişmiş Frenk Mahallesi’nde; Rumlar bugünkü Basmane Garı’ndan denize dik olarak çizilecek bir doğrunun kuzeyinde; Türkler güneyde, Kadifekale ete kleri ve Eşrefpaşa’ya kadar uzanan alanda; Yahudiler ise, Türk Mahallesi ile Ermeni Mahallesi arasında kalan alanda yaşıyordu. Betimlemede dikkati çeken başlıca ayrıntı şuydu: Hemen hemen bütün Osmanlı kentlerinde olduğu gibi İzmir’de, bir tarafta Yahudi v e Müslüman Türk mahalleleri, öte tarafta Frenk ve Rum mahalleleri yan yanaydı...İkiçeşmelik’ten Karataş’a, Karantina’ya ve Göztepe’ye doğru uzanan Yahudi iç göçü, büyük ölçüde 19. yüzyıl Aşkenaz göçlerinin eseridir. Aşkenaz kökenli göçmenler, İkiçeşmelik’teki toplu konutlara yerleşirken; artan yoksul nüfustan bunalan zengin İzmirli Yahudiler, Karataş’ta, Karantina’da ve Göztepe’de inşa edilen yeni evlere taşınmaya başlamışlardır. İzmir Yahudi Cemaati nüfusunun büyük bir bölümünü oluşturan yoksulların da göçmenlerin varlığından rahatsızlık duyması olasıdır. Toplu konutları, sosyal yardımları ve iş olanaklarını paylaşmak zorundadırlar. Dolayısıyla kısa dönemde, kentte Aşkenaz - Sefarad kaynaşması olası değildir. Yahudihaneler ve kortejolar pratik göçmen toplu konutlarıdır. "

[**] Juderia is a word of Spanish origin. It means Judaism and defines the Jewish quarters or Jewish neighborhoods. Therefore, Juderia was also used to define the area encompassing the Jewish neighborhoods in Spain where the Jewish Diaspora live. The First Juderia was used to refer to the first Jewish settlement established in Izmir during the Ottoman Period, in the region between the Anafartalar Street and the slopes of Kadifekale- Değirmendağı. Izmir’s Jewish Community has not had a homogeneous group structure since the beginning. Established by the Romaniote, Karaite, Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews that settled in the city during different periods, the Jewish Community of Izmir was influenced by the dominant Sephardic culture and became almost completely Sephardic over time. For this reason, a Spanish word “Juderia” was chosen by the Izmirian Jews to define the Jewish Quarter in Izmir.

Source: The Jews of the Ottoman Empire and the Turkish Republic | Stanford J. Shaw

Sarıkışla (IN YELLOW) is a large administrative structure that was built in Sarıkışla İzmir Konak Square in 1829 and was demolished in 1953 by İzmir Municipality. It was one of the symbols of Izmir before it was destroyed. Since it is an area obtained by filling the sea with soil, it was established in a place called Dolma. Previously, there were about 10 soap shops, Jewish guesthouses and taverns here. KARATAS JEWISH HOSPITAL (1857)

[1] The Kemeraltı Cortejo: Five examples of cortejos were identified in an area around the Roman Agora in the Kemeraltı Conservation Area. 

 A cortijo is a type of traditional rural habitat in the Southern half of Spain, including all of Andalusia and parts of Extremadura and Castile-La Mancha. Cortijos may have their origins in ancient Roman villas, for the word is derived from the Latin cohorticulum, a diminutive of cohors, meaning 'courtyard'. They are often isolated structures associated with a large family farming or livestock operation in the vast and empty adjoining lands.

In certain Anatolian towns, in Izmir [Smyrna] and Aydin for instance, an important part of the Jewish population lived in cortijos, vast enclosed yards. Sephardic Jews migrated to the Ottoman Empire from the Iberian Peninsula and while migrating they brought along their culture, which developed in those land as well as their traditions, and residential architecture, which was shaped by their lifestyle in that region. They lived in family homes, known as Cortijo in Spanish, or Yahudhane by locals, where a courtyard, which also serves as a guest room and a where a central fountain is placed, is surrounded by rooms. Cortijos were built in Ikicesmelik, the first settlement of Jews in Izmir. One of Izmir’s most recognizable person, a very popular singer from Izmir, Dario Moreno, has grown up in on of these cortijos.

 Life in cortijos have blended with Izmir's food culture and served the people of Izmir as "boyoz" and the "subiya" (a sherbet drink made of melon seed).

Kortejos / Cortijos of Salonika

Until 1944 Salonika was also known as the Jerusalem of the Balkans for its predominantly Jewish population. In August 1917 however, late Ottoman Salonika was ravaged by a great fire which destroyed most of its oldest synagogues. 

 
 “In olden days, The Jews of Salonika lived in houses which surrounded large courtyards called cortijos. The houses formed a kind of square around the courtyard. Facing the courtyard were open galleries, with roofs held up by wooden pillars. At the back were the living quarters with small grilled windows overlooking the street. (…) Each house would give refuge to a family comprised of many souls (…) To house these new generations it was necessary to construct room after room, reducing the size of the courtyard with new extensions, and sometimes even to overflow into the street. (…) The Jewish dwellings always had a modest and inexpressive exterior, sometimes even a shabby look. The cortijos were not completely devoid of foliage and fig trees, pomegranate trees, vines and jujube trees gave welcome shade during the warm summer. In the spring, jasmine and roses emitted a delicious perfume which permeated the air.” SOURCE

The Idol Arcade at Salonika, from J. Stuart and N. Revett, The antiquities of Athens, 1794 (Private collection, Salonika). This is an example of a cortijo which was formed by the conjestion of multiple Jewish dwellings around an interior courtyard where most daily activities were carried out.

 A dye-works in cortijos of Salonika, early 20th century.
 

Sarajevo 

The beginning of Sephardi presence in the city dates back to 1565, most Jews arriving via Salonica. Over the next decade they established their cortijo or mahalla judia (Jewish quarter) and built a synagogue, Il Kal Vieju (the Old Synagogue). 

Source: The Jews of the Ottoman Empire and the Turkish Republic | Stanford J. Shaw

Since 1492, Sephardic Jews from Spain and Portugal settled in cities such as Thessaloniki, Edirne and Istanbul during the first migration. However, at the end of the 16th century, immigration to this city began as the Izmir Port began to gain importance.

After the Ottomans captured Belgrade in 1521, the Jews living here immigrated to Izmir. In addition, after the conquest of Hungary in 1539, some of the Hungarian Jews came to Izmir.

As the Ottoman Empire entered the period of stagnation, the fate of Izmir changed and at the end of the 16th century, with the shift of trade routes and silk roads from the south to Izmir, Izmir began to experience its golden period. Konverso, who immigrated to Izmir again in the 17th century, did not break the trade ties with their own countries, and most of the Marrano Jews (who accepted the Christian religion under pressure in Spain and Portugal and never gave up on the Jewish religion) did not break their trade ties with their own countries, and thus they played a very important role in the life of Ottoman Jews and especially in Izmir. played important roles.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, Jews witnessed massive fires, cholera and plague, the economic situation gradually deteriorated, and class differences began to emerge between the rich and the poor. Troubles in the empire, janissary attacks and rebellions also caused a great decrease in the quality of life of the Jews; There were great regressions in the fields of handicrafts, trade, culture and politics. Hospitals, old people's hostels and Alliance Schools, which were established with the help of prominent families of the Jewish community such as Rothschild, Montefiore, and Cremioux, were instrumental in enabling Jews to develop and show themselves again.

When the Ottoman Empire entered the First World War in 1914, the Jews of Izmir fought on all fronts and thousands of them were martyred. The war brought misery to the country and to the Jews and left behind thousands of orphaned children. During the War of Independence, the Jews showed great heroism.

(Pictured) 1905 Map

After the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, most of the Jews of Izmir (about 10 thousand) migrated from Izmir to Israel over time. Today, the Jewish population of Izmir is around 1100-1500 people.”