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Enönü is a district of Istanbul in Turkey, stretching from the mouth of the Bosphorus, where it has ferry crossings to the Asian shore and the Prince's Islands up the hill to Sultanahmet, the main tourist destination in Istanbul. This is the heart of the walled city of Constantine, the focus of a history of incredible richness, the point where the Golden Horn and the mouth of the Bosphorus open into the Marmara Sea. The Golden Horn was a natural port, particularly the Eminönü/Sirkeci shore, which being on a peninsula was also eminently defensible. |
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It was for this port that İstanbul was built, and from here that İstanbul grew, with the oldest neighbourhoods being the port districts along the Golden Horn. In time the Byzantine port was also occupied by merchants from Genoa and Pisa, who eventually acquired their own wharfs and waterfront districts.The Golden Horn was still a thriving port in Ottoman times, occupied by importers, warehousemen, sailors and traders of every description, the centre of trade in the city, a labryinth of narrow streets wokshops and markets leading uphill to Topkapi Palace, the Ottoman capital. The district's name, Eminōnū, also reflects its' place in history.
Translated from Turkish to English it roughly means 'in front of justice'. Emin meaning 'justice', ōnū meaning 'in
front of'. While the exact root of the name is uncertain, some Ottoman historians believe the name was given because the most important Ottoman courts were in the area. To this day many important governmental buildings are found in the neighborhood, including the municipality of Istanbul's headquarters.
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