Beyoğlu

Beyoğlu (Turkish: [ˈbejoːɫu]; Ottoman Turkish: بك‌اوغلی) is a municipality and district of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 9 km², and its population is 225,920 (2022). It is on the European side of Istanbul, Turkey, separated from the old city (historic peninsula of Constantinople) by the Golden Horn. It was known as the region of Pera (Πέρα, meaning "Beyond" in Greek) surrounding the ancient coastal town Galata which faced Constantinople across the Horn.

As the Ottoman capital of Constantinople grew during the 19th century, Pera/Beyoğlu became the modern Western influenced quarter of the city, across from the old town, Fatih. It was the center of the empire's politics, finance, diplomacy, culture, and commerce. Centered on the Grande Rue de Péra (today İstiklâl Avenue), it was a predominantly Christian (Armenians, Greeks, Levantine, and European expat) neighbourhood. Its population today mostly consists of Turks and Kurds who moved there after the Republic of Turkey was founded in 1923 and after the Istanbul pogrom in 1955.

The district encompasses other neighborhoods located north of the Golden Horn, including Galata (the medieval Genoese citadel from which Beyoğlu itself originated, which is today known as Karaköy), Tophane, Cihangir, Şişhane, Tepebaşı, Tarlabaşı, Dolapdere and Kasımpaşa, and is connected to the old city center across the Golden Horn through the Galata Bridge, Atatürk Bridge and Golden Horn Metro Bridge. Beyoğlu is the most active art, entertainment and nightlife centre of Istanbul.