Abstract
Sivrihisar, a significant settlement since antiquity, was a Byzantine military stronghold before being captured by Suleiman Shah after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071. Following the collapse of the Anatolian Seljuks, it was annexed by the Karamanids and later definitively joined the Ottoman Empire in 1415 under Mehmed I. Initially a sub-district (nahiye) of Hüdavendigar, it was later attached to Bilecik, then to the Muhassıllık of Eskişehir, and eventually to Ankara Province following the Provincial Regulation. In 1915, it became a district (kaza) of the newly formed Eskişehir sanjak.While the exact arrival date of Armenians in Sivrihisar is unknown, 15th–17th-century registers identify them in a central neighborhood and Altunbağ village. The Armenian population increased during the 18th and 19th centuries due to migration. According to Armenian sources, this growth led to the construction of the Surp Yerrortutyun Church in 1650, which was rebuilt in 1881 after being damaged by fire in 1876.This study evaluates the settlement patterns, population figures, and demographic shifts of Armenians in Sivrihisar from the earliest records until the 20th century. Furthermore, the ratio of the Armenian population to the Muslim population is calculated. These issues are addressed comparatively in light of land surveys (tahrir), poll tax (cizye), extraordinary tax (avarız), census, and dividend (temettuat) registers, alongside other archival records, travelogues, and Armenian sources.
Keywords: Sivrihisar, Ermeni, nüfus, göç, mahalle.
This article has been read 22 times