Arap Mosque

Arap Camii, also called Arap Mosque and once known locally as San Paolo Kilisesi, carries a layered history that’s unusual even for this part of the city. The building began life as a church, and its later transformation into a Sunni mosque gives it a place in Istanbul’s long record of changing faith and power. Its name, “Arap Camii,” points to the Arabic-speaking Christian and Muslim communities that passed through Galata over the centuries, where merchants, diplomats, and travelers once lived side by side. Today, the mosque sits on Galata Mahkemesi Sokağı and is remembered in city lore as “İstanbul’un İlk camisi,” the “first mosque of Istanbul,” a title that speaks to its deep place in local memory. It’s one of those buildings where the name alone tells a story of conversion, continuity, and survival. …

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