Kuzguncuk

About Kuzguncuk

Kuzguncuk is a neighbourhood in the municipality and district of Üsküdar, Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its population is 4,151 (2022). It is on the Asian side of the Bosphorus. The neighborhood is centered on a valley opening to the Bosphorus and is somewhat isolated from the main part of the city, being surrounded by nature preserves, cemeteries, and a military installation. It is a quiet neighborhood with streets lined with antique Ottoman wooden houses.

Kuzguncuk is a small, charming neighbourhood on the Asian side of the Bosphorus in the Uskudar district of Istanbul, with about 4,150 residents, centred on a green valley opening onto the strait between Beylerbeyi to the north and Uskudar to the south, across the water from Besiktas. Surrounded on all sides by nature reserves, historic cemeteries and a military installation, it has stayed somewhat cut off from the bustle of the city and keeps a village feel. The neighbourhood is known for its quiet streets lined with colourful old Ottoman wooden houses with projecting balconies, and for its historic religious diversity: until a few decades ago it was home to many Armenian and Greek Christians and Jews alongside Muslims, and it still has churches, among them the Armenian Surp Krikor Lusavoric, two synagogues and mosques standing side by side on the same main street, a rare picture of coexistence, together with a historic cemetery. In recent years Kuzguncuk has become a favourite of photographers and a location for Turkish television dramas, with its cafes, bakeries, small restaurants and the Bostan community garden, and it is one of the loveliest places for a quiet morning away from the crowds.

Where:

Istanbul, Türkiye