A Critical Reassessment Of The Spatial And Demographic History Of Old Jerusalem During The Ottoman Period

Abstract

Jerusalem stands as one of the rare cities in the world that has managed to preserve its religious sanctity and geopolitical significance. Today, as in the past, the city continues its struggle for survival—though the contemporary battle is waged not only on military fronts, but more critically, in the realms of identity and historical narrative. In this context, Israel has adopted a systematic policy of distortion and appropriation aimed at erasing Jerusalem’s Islamic and Arab character. A central tool in this policy has been the renaming of geographic locations in Palestine—particularly in Jerusalem—with mythological terms disconnected from historical or cultural reality.

This study examines the Judaization policy in Jerusalem, focusing specifically on the fabrication of a historical narrative around the "quarters of Jerusalem." These fabricated narratives are inconsistent with the city’s documented civilizational and architectural history. Within this framework, Zionist-aligned writers and institutions have advanced mythologized accounts of the city, disseminated through media, academic publications, and official reports that claim neutrality and objectivity. Alarmingly, these narratives have found widespread acceptance, even among audiences in the Arab and Islamic worlds—largely due to the absence or marginalization of authentic Islamic and Arab historical perspectives. As a result, the spread of these distortions constitutes a direct threat to historical truth and a strategic erasure of Jerusalem’s genuine identity.

The significance of this study—titled “The Quarters of Jerusalem”—lies in its critical and systematic examination of the historical and civilizational development of Jerusalem’s Old City. It challenges the widely circulated notion that the Old City is divided into four quarters: Jewish, Christian, Muslim, and Armenian. The study aims to reconstruct a more accurate historical account by consulting primary archival sources, including Ottoman documents, Sharia court records, and selected travel literature.