Waqf Activities of Jews in the Ottoman Empire: Social Integration and Examination of »Muslim-Type« Waqfs

This study focuses on the endowment activities of Jews living in Ottoman territories, particularly those resorting to Muslim courts. Within this scope, it examines trends in endowment preference, motivations and judicial practices. It is as an important step in understanding how Jews integrated with Ottoman society by establishing »Muslim-type« endowments and how they contributed to Ottoman Muslim society, and elucidates the emergence of Jewish interactions with Muslims within the realm of endowments. It concludes that there was no significant difference between Jews endowment activities and those of other Ottoman communities, indicating the absence of a strict classification between religions. It also finds that Jews, especially Karaites, had a pronounced inclination to integrate Muslim- Ottoman legal principles, particularly in the context of establishing and managing charitable endowments (waqfs).