Kadñköy () is a municipality and district in Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 25 km<sup>2</sup>, and its population is 467,919 (2023). It is a large and populous area in the Asian side of Istanbul, on the northern shore of the Sea of Marmara. It partially faces the historic city centre of Constantinople (modern Fatih) on the European side of the Bosporus. It is bordered by the districts of ÃÂsküdar, to the northwest, Ataà Âehir, to the northeast, and Maltepe, to the southeast.
Kadñköy was known in classical antiquity and during the Roman and Byzantine eras as Chalcedon (). Chalcedon was known as the 'city of the blind'. The settlement has been under control of many empires, finally being taken by the Ottomans before the fall of Constantinople. At first, Chalcedon was rural, but with time it urbanized. Kadñköy separated from the ÃÂsküdar district in 1928.
One of the most expensive places in Istanbul, Kadñköy is a residential and commercial area that, with its numerous bars, cinemas and bookshops, is the liberal cultural centre of the Anatolian side of Istanbul. Kadñköy contains the BaÃÂdat Avenue, which is one of the most significant shopping streets in Turkey and it spans through the entirety of the district. Some main transportation routes connecting various districts of Istanbul pass through Kadñköy.
While the borders of the district extend from Bostancñ to Koà Âuyolu, the central town which gives its name to the district encompasses only the limited area made up of the Rasimpaà Âa, OsmanaÃÂa, and CaferaÃÂa neighbourhoods. Outside of the centre, it is possible to see calmer, highly developed seaside settlements such as Caddebostan and Fenerbahçe. The most populated neighbourhoods of the district apart from the core of Kadñköy are Göztepe and KozyataÃÂñ.
Kadñköy ranked 1st place in Human Development Index out of the 188 most populated districts in Turkey.
Kadñköy was put under the administration of the courts of Constantinople, providing the origin of the name , literally meaning 'village of the judge'. It is also commonly thought that the modern name was a Turkification of the Greek name, .
Kadñköy is an older settlement than most of those on the Anatolian side of the city of Istanbul. Relics dating to 5500âÂÂ3500 BC (Chalcolithic period) have been found at the Fikirtepe Mound, and articles of stone, bone, ceramic, jewelry and bronze show that there has been a continuous settlement since prehistoric times. A port settlement dating from the Phoenicians has also been discovered. Chalcedon was the first settlement that the Greeks from Megara established on the Bosphorus, in 685 BC, a few years before they established Byzantium on the other side of the strait in 667 BC. Towns such as Rouphinianai and Poleatikon were located in Chalcedon.
Chalcedon became known as the 'city of the blind', the story being that Byzantium was founded following a prophecy that a great capital would be built 'opposite the city of the blind' (meaning that the people of Chalcedon must have been blind not to see the obvious value of the peninsula on the Golden Horn as a natural defensive harbour). The fourth ecumenical church council, Council of Chalcedon, was held there in 451 AD.
Chalcedon changed hands time and time again, as Persians, Bithynians, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Crusaders, and Turks passed through the area, which was badly damaged during the Fourth Crusade and came into Ottoman hands in 1353, a full century before Constantinople. Thus, Kadñköy has the oldest mosque in Istanbul, built almost a century before the conquest of Constantinople in 1453.
At the time of the conquest, Chalcedon was a rural settlement outside the protection of the city. It was soon put under the jurisdiction of the Constantinople courts, hence the name Kadñköy, which means Village of the Judge. In the Ottoman period, Kadñköy became a market for agricultural goods and in time developed into a residential area for people who would commute to the city by boat.
According to Ottoman estimations of 1882, the district of Kadñköy had a total population of 6,733, consisting of 2,695 Muslims, 1,831 Armenians, 1,822 Greeks, 249 Jews, 92 Latins, 28 Bulgarians and 16 Catholics.
Kadñköy became a district in 1928 when it was separated from ÃÂsküdar district. The neighbourhoods of Bostancñ and Suadiye were also separated from the district of Kartal in the same year, and eventually joined the newly formed district of Kadñköy.
There are 21 neighbourhoods in Kadñköy District:
The major Haydarpaà Âa Terminal of the Turkish State Railways is located close to Kadñköy's centre and was opened in 1908 as the terminus of the Istanbul-Baghdad and Istanbul-Damascus-Medina railways. The terminal closed due to infrastructure works in 2013 and reopened in 2018, serving east- and south-bound international, domestic and regional trains.
The SöÃÂütlüçeà Âme railway station, the next station after Haydarpaà Âa Terminal, is the terminus of the Metrobus line to European side of Istanbul.
The M4 line of the Istanbul Metro runs from Kadñköy to Tavà Âantepe daily between 6:00 and 23:57.
The centre of Kadñköy today is the transportation hub for people commuting between the Asian side of the city and the European side across the Bosphorus. There is a large bus and minibus terminal next to the ferry quay. Ferries are the most dominantly visible form of transport in Kadñköy, and the central market area is adjacent to the ferry quay.
Public transportation with terminus in Kadñköy:
For more lines, visit: http://www.iett.istanbul/en/main/hatlar
Traditional ferries,
Sea buses,
For the main opposition party Republican People's Party (CHP), Kadñköy has been a stronghold in both local and national elections. Since 1989, the local electorate have voted for social democratic candidates to be chosen mayors, namely from the CHP as well as the SHP, its 1980s coup-era counterpart. Kadñköy ranks 1st place on the Human Development Index scale, among all the other districts of Turkey, according to a 2020 report and ranks 4th place in socio-economic development.
Marmara University has most of its buildings in Kadñköy, including the large and elegant Haydarpaà Âa Campus, while the largest private university in Istanbul, Yeditepe University, is located on the hill named "Kayñà ÂdaÃÂñ" at the easternmost edge of the borough (Which later connected to Ataà Âehir). A new state university, ðstanbul Medeniyet University, opened in 2010. It has its main building in Göztepe, Merdivenköy, and has begun to develop campuses in both Kadñköy and ÃÂsküdar. The campuses are divided by the D-100 Highway. Each have a metro station close by.
Another private institution for higher education, the DoÃÂuà  University, is situated in the Acñbadem neighborhood of Kadñköy.
Remarkable and important high schools in the area include Atatürk Fen Lisesi, Kadñköy Anadolu Lisesi Erenköy Kñz Lisesi, and Saint-Joseph French High School.
Kadñköy is a busy shopping district, with a wide variety of atmospheres and architectural styles. The streets are varied, some being narrow alleyways and others, such as Bahariye Caddesi, being pedestrian zones. Turkey's biggest food market is there, starting next to the Osman AÃÂa Mosque, and has an immense turnover of fresh foods and other products from all around Turkey, including a wide range of fresh fish and seafood, olive oil soap, and so on. There are also modern shopping centres, most notably the large Tepe Nautilus Shopping Mall behind the center of Kadñköy, and pavements crowded with street vendors selling socks, unlicensed copies of popular novels, and other products. In the streets behind the main post office, there is a large number of well-known bookshops selling both new and second-hand books, craft-shops and picture-framers, and a number of shops selling music CDs and related ephemera such as film posters and T-shirts. Hard Rock and Heavy Metal music is sold in the arcade named Akmar Pasajñ, where associated items are also sold. On Sundays this area becomes a large second-hand book and music street market. Being a crowded shopping district, Kadñköy has many buskers, shoe shine boys, glue sniffers and schoolchildren in the streets selling flowers, chewing gum and packets of tissues.
At the top of the shopping district there is an intersection, with a statue of a bull, called Altñyol (Six Ways), where a road leads to the civic buildings and a huge street market called Salñ Pazarñ (Tuesday Market). The working-class residential districts of Hasanpaà Âa and Fikirtepe are located behind the civic buildings.
There is a lot of residential property in the centre of Kadñköy, mostly somewhat dilapidated today, but there are still quiet suburban streets. The area is home to many students as well as a small number of foreign residents.
Kadñköy has many narrow streets filled with cafés, bars and restaurants, as well as many cinemas. Süreyya Opera House is a recent redevelopment of the same named historic movie theatre.
The market area is mostly closed to traffic and contains a wide variety of fast food restaurants serving toasted sandwiches, hamburgers and döner. There are also traditional Turkish restaurants and patisseries, bridge schools, wine houses, bars with jazz, folk and rock music, as well as working class tea and backgammon houses.
Behind the coast, lies a large shopping and residential district winding uphill to the Bahariye Caddesi pedestrian zone. This area was transformed during the economic boom of the 1990s and shops were opened and bars at surrounding.
Kadñköy's entertainment is generally not of the affluent type. It has a more working class ambiance; therefore, it is easier to find food of the like of kebab and fried mussels than haute cuisine, although one of Istanbul's most traditional Turkish cuisine representatives, Yanyalñ Fehmi Lokantasñ and the foreign tourist attracting ÃÂiya is found here. Also, the oldest recorded maker of Turkish delight, Hacñ Bekir and chocolate maker Baylan are located in Kadñköy.
Kadñköy does not have as much nightlife as BeyoÃÂlu (where nightlife also continues much later into the night), nor does it have Nià Âantaà Âñ's style of shopping or the Bosphorus for nightlife. Instead, it is often considered a modest alternative but may still be regarded as vibrant and cosy. Residents like to frequent the seaside to walk or sit in the grass with a view of the European side of Istanbul across the Bosporus.
Along the coast, away from the centre of Kadñköy, there are many expensive shops and the area becomes more upmarket in neighbourhoods near the BaÃÂdat Avenue. There is also the Moda quarter located south of central Kadñköy.
Moda is an old, quiet, cosmopolitan Istanbul settlement. As elsewhere in Istanbul, many historic houses have been demolished and replaced with apartment buildings; however, Moda is generally considered one of the more pleasant residential districts in the city. There are numerous churches in Moda with active congregations, and well-known schools, such as the Lycée Saint-Joseph and Kadñköy Anadolu Lisesi. There is a small, attractive theatre in Moda named Oyun Atölyesi, founded by actor Haluk Bilginer. The area is also well known for its multiple modern cafes, bars, shops and is popular among Istanbul's creative class and tourists.
Beyond this area, the huge stadium of Fenerbahçe Football Club dominates the skyline. From here, the long shopping street BaÃÂdat Avenue heads east and there are many affluent neighbourhoods between the avenue and the coast. Until the 1950s these areas, such as Göztepe, Caddebostan, Erenköy, and Suadiye, were full of summer houses and mansions for the city's wealthy upper middle class. Since the Bosphorus Bridge was built, it has become easier to commute from here to the European side of Istanbul, and most of these summer houses have been demolished and replaced with modern apartment buildings. The coast here has a long stretch of seaside parks and yacht marinas, and the streets behind the coast in areas such as Caddebostan are lined with numerous bars and cafés. From Bostancñ onwards the economic level progressively lessens, so there are more retired and working-class residents here. There are no more villas, excepting some on the coast at Dragos, and the apartment buildings are narrower and less widely spaced. Bostancñ itself is a busy shopping district built around a railway station.
Inland from the coast there is a great deal of housing development: Most are expensive, especially in areas such as KozyataÃÂñ. These districts house many of Istanbul's upper-middle class residents. These neighbourhoods are mainly built around wide avenues and tree-lined streets, with four to six-storey apartment buildings that have sizable gardens and car-parking around them. Especially in KozyataÃÂñ, there are old Ottoman houses nearly in every houses' garden. KozyataÃÂñ, Suadiye and Kazasker used to be one of the most popular summer areas for wealthy Istanbul residents. Today, KozyataÃÂñ has tree-lined streets, especially magnolia, linden and fruit trees such as medlar trees, plum trees, cherry, mulberry and quince trees, many large greenfields, parks, children parks. These areas, Suadiye, BaÃÂdat Avenue, Kalamñà Â, KozyataÃÂñ, Fenerbahçe have today, upper-middle or upper class residents. There are many schools, hospitals, shops and restaurants in these areas. Another smart new neighbourhood is Acñbadem. This area has one of the best-known private hospitals in the city and a long avenue of cafés, restaurants and ice cream parlours. In the late 1990s, new luxury housing developments such as Ataà Âehir began to be constructed in the previously undeveloped area north of the E5 highway. These have their own shops, private colleges, sports centres and other facilities. Ataà Âehir separated from Kadñköy in 2009 elections.
Kadñköy experiences a Mediterranean climate (Csa/Cs) according to both Köppen and Trewartha climate classifications, with cool winters and warm to hot summers. Its milder winters allow it to be classified in USDA hardiness zone 9b, while its summers are hot enough to be classified as AHS heat zone 4.
Kadñköy has many houses from the Ottoman and some from Roman period which are hidden in its side streets. Some of them have been turned into cafés, pubs and restaurants, particularly serving seafood and rest of them waiting for restoration. YeldeÃÂirmeni is an important neighbourhood in terms of architecture.
The district is home to the major Turkish powerhouse, multi-sport club Fenerbahçe S.K. and their football stadium, the à Âükrü SaracoÃÂlu Stadium. It is the neighborhood where Fenerbahçe was founded. Kadñköy is also the area where the first football match in the Ottoman Empire was played. Following important victories, all neighbourhoods of Kadñköy are crowded with celebrating people. The stadium hosted the 2009 UEFA Cup Final. The area also has a rugby union team, Kadñköy Rugby, which was the first official rugby club in Turkey.
The multi-purpose arena of CaferaÃÂa Sport Hall, located in the center of Kadñköy's shopping district, is home to the basketball teams of Alpella (men team) and Fenerbahçe Istanbul (women team), volleyball teams (Fenerbahçe Men's Volleyball and Fenerbahçe Women's Volleyball).
The district was also home to KadñköySpor, a basketball club that evolved into the current top-level club Anadolu Efes.
Kadñköy has been always a place with population belonging to the three Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. There are still many examples of mosques, Greek and Armenian Orthodox churches, and OttomanâÂÂJewish synagogues, as with the rest of Istanbul.
The town serves as the Holy See for the Metropolis of Chalcedon, one of the four remaining metropolises of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in Turkey today. Hemdat Israel Synagogue, situated in YeldeÃÂirmeni neighbourhood close to Haydarpaà Âa Terminal, is one of the oldest Jewish houses of prayer in Istanbul.
There are a high number of non-believers in Kadñköy, especially among the youth, as the Atheism Association, the only atheism-related institution in Turkey is located here.
Kadñköy is twinned with: