Turkish Mohammedans 1,767,500
Mohaminedaiis of other nationalities. 2,479,500 Total Mohammedans
4,247,000
13,273,350
Greek Church 4,70.5,450
Armenians S9,(l00
Roman Catholics 426,000
Protestants 10,000
Total Christians
Jews
Gypsies
Total
Asia.
Turks 0,973,500
Other IMohammedaiis 0, 211 1), 850
Total Mohammedans
Greek Church 1,484,868
Anueuiaiis 735,100
Roman Catholics 100,100
Protestants 10,4.')0
Maronites, etc 487,000
Total Christians
Jezides and Kizilbashi
Jews
Gypsies
Total
A Servian statistician, Jakshitsh, gives the following es- timates of the population of European Turkey: Chiis- tians in Turkey jiroper, '2,484,501 ; in Eastern Poumelia, 559,776; in Bosnia, 780,276 ; in Bulgaria, 1,196.248; to- tal, 5,020,801. Mohammedans in Turkey proper, 1,883,- 127; in Eastern Roumelia, 359.434; in Bosnia, 400,635 ; in Bulgaria, 700,267 ; total, 3,403,463. Jeics in Turkey
TURKEY
58G
TURKEY
proper, 55,018; in Eastern Roumelia, 3969; in Bosnia, (J'.)(!S; in IJulg'aria,H9>j9; total. 74,914. Total population (if European Turkey, 8,499.178. According to these au- tliorities, the aggregate number of jMohammedans in lOuropean and Asiatic Turkey may be estimated at from l.'),70(),000 to U!,500,000, that of Christians of all denom- inations at about 8,000,000, that of the Jews at about '200,000. The aggregate population of the African de- pendencies, owing to the rapid expansion of the Egyp- tian dominions of late years, was estimated, in 1880, at 20,500,000, nearly all of whom, with the exception of the Copts of Egypt, are Mohammedans. See Mouam-
.-MlM^ANtS.M.
V. Till! Christian Churches ofTiirkeij. — Although the Turks, after the conquest of the Balkan peninsula, dis- pLtved all the horrors of Oriental despotism, they did not aim at the extermination of the Cliristiau religion. There is probably nocouiitry of Christian Europe which lias not imposed, at some time in the course of its his- tory, more severe penalties upon the profession of a dis- senting Christian creed than the Turks have done upon I lie profession of Christianity. The Christians, in their civil relations, found themselves greatly oppressed, but the Turks did not meddle with the internal affairs of tlie churches. Tlie influence w'hich they usurped by the appointment of the high dignitaries in the Eastern churches was inspired by considerations not of power or proselytism, but of greed. The social advantages which an apostasy to Islam involved gradually in- duced nearly the w'hole population of Albania, the en- tire nobility of the Bosnians, and large numbers of the Bulgarians and other Christian tribes to adopt the re- ligion of the conquerors; but the immense majority of the population of the European dominions of Turkey and large numbers in Asia continued to adhere to the several Christian churches. As the military power of Turkey began to wane, Russia, France, and other powers claimed, and received by treaty, the right of protecto- rate over the Turkish subjects professing the national religions of the several European countries. In 1839 the sultan, by the hd/ti-sheri/ of Gulhane, proclaimed tlie equality of Ciiristians and Moslems before the law. The provisions of this charter of religious liberty were renewed and extended by sultan Abdul-Mejid in the charter called the hatti-huimiyum, promulgated in Feb- ruary, 1856. The renewal of the charter was mentioned i 1 the treaty of Paris as the consideration on which the powers admitted Turkey to the company of Euro- jiean states, and guaranteed to it its rights as an inde- pendent and inviolable power. The new Turkish con- stitution of December, 187G, promised to the professors of all religious denominations full equality of civil rights. In the first Turkish Parliament, which met in 1877, all tlie religions of the empire were fairly represented. Thus among the deputies returned from Constantinople were five T'urks, four Christians, and one Jew; and of the C,hristians, one was a Greek, one a Roman Catholic Ar- menian, and two Gregorian Armenians. In 1878 the treaty of Berlin (art. 0"-') placed the establishment of the princi|)le of religions liberty to its fullest extent tni- der the guarantee of all the great powers of Europe. When the Turks completed the conquest of the Balkan peninsula, they designated the aggregate of the Chris- tian subjects as nijah (herds), while the different tribes were distinguisheti as milkt (nation). The Mohamme- dan Turks were, however, so strongly inclined to con- foimd Church and State that they viewed the several millets as so many religious communions. jSIohammed II, after the capture of Constantinople, made the patri- arch of that city the secular head of all the rajah be- longing to the Orthodox ICnstern or (ireek Church, The civil functions of the patriarcli were shared in dif- ferent degrees by the subordinate bisho|is, and thus the entire hierarchy of the (Jreek Church appeared as the actual administrator of the civil interests of the people, and as such were held by the Porte responsible for the loyalty of the population. Besides the millet of the
Greeks, there are others for the Armenians, United Ar- menians, Latins, Protestants, and Jews. Their organi- zation is similar to that of the (irceks. The secular jurisiiiction of the Armenian patriarch includes the Jac- obites. For various statistical statements of the pres- ent Christian population of Turkey, see above.