Editing Sarajevo (section)

===Ottoman era===
{{See also|Bosnia and Herzegovina cuisine|Ottoman Bosnia and Herzegovina|Sacking of Sarajevo}}
[[File:Sarajevo Bascarsija Sebilj 2007-08-16 (7).jpg|thumb|The [[Sebilj in Sarajevo|Sebilj]] is a [[Ottoman Empire|pseudo-Ottoman]] style wooden [[fountain]] in the centre of [[Baščaršija]] square. The current structure is an 1891 reconstruction of the original, which burnt down in 1852]]

Sarajevo was founded by the [[Ottoman Empire]] in the 1450s upon its conquest of the region, with 1461 used as the city's founding date. The first Ottoman governor of [[Bosnia Eyalet|Bosnia]], [[Isa-Beg Ishaković]], transformed the cluster of villages into a city and state capital by building several key structures, including a mosque, a closed marketplace, a [[hamam]], a [[caravansarai]], a bridge, and of course the governor's palace ("Saray"), which gave the city its present name in conjunction with “evo”. The mosque was named "Careva Džamija" (the [[Emperor's Mosque]]) in honor of Sultan [[Mehmed the Conqueror|Mehmed II]]. With the improvements, Sarajevo quickly grew into the largest city in the region. By the [[15th century]] the settlement was established as a city, named ''Bosna-Saraj'', around the citadel in 1461.

Following the [[expulsion of Jews from Spain]] at the end of the 15th century, and the invitation from the Ottoman Empire to resettle their population, [[Sephardi Jews|Sephardic Jews]] arrived in Sarajevo, which over time would become a leading center of Sephardic culture and the [[Judaeo-Spanish|Ladino language]]. Though relatively small in size, a Jewish quarter would develop over several blocks in [[Baščaršija]].

Many local Christians converted to Islam at this time. To accommodate the new pilgrims on the road to [[Mecca]], in 1541, [[Gazi Husrev-beg]]'s quartermaster Vekil-Harrach built a pilgrim's mosque which it is still known to this day as the [[Hadžijska Mosque]].

Under leaders such as the second governor Gazi Husrev-beg, Sarajevo grew at a rapid rate. Husrev-beg greatly shaped the physical city, as most of what is now the Old Town was built during his reign. Sarajevo became known for its large marketplace and numerous mosques, which by the middle of the 16th century numbered more than 100. At the peak of the empire, Sarajevo was the biggest and most important Ottoman city in the Balkans after [[Istanbul]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-03-29 |title=Life in Sarajevo |url=https://www.ius.edu.ba:443/life-sarajevo |access-date=2021-03-13 |website=International University of Sarajevo |archive-date=8 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220408054803/https://www.ius.edu.ba/life-sarajevo |url-status=live }}</ref> By 1660, the population of Sarajevo was estimated to be over 80,000.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Velikonja |first=Mitja |title=Religious Separation and Political Intolerance in Bosnia-Herzegovina |publisher=[[Texas A&M University Press]] |year=2003 |isbn=1-58544-226-7 |pages=121}}</ref> By contrast, [[Belgrade]] in 1683 had 100,000,<ref name="The History of Belgrade">{{cite web |url=http://www.belgradenet.com/belgrade_history_middle_ages.html |title=The History of Belgrade: Middle Ages - Turkish Conquest - Liberation of Belgrade |last=Belgradenet.com |website=www.belgradenet.com |access-date=26 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081230032249/http://www.belgradenet.com/belgrade_history_middle_ages.html |archive-date=30 December 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> and [[Zagreb]] as late as 1851 had 14,000 people. As political conditions changed, Sarajevo became the site of warfare.

[[File:Impressions of Sarajevo (2496832484).jpg|thumb|The [[Sarajevo Clock Tower]] and [[Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque]]]]

In 1697, during the [[Great Turkish War]], a raid was led by [[Prince Eugene of Savoy]] of the [[Habsburg monarchy]] against the Ottoman Empire, [[Sacking of Sarajevo|which conquered Sarajevo and left it plague-infected and burned to the ground]]. After his men had looted thoroughly, they set the city on fire and destroyed nearly all of it in one day. Only a handful of neighborhoods, some mosques, and an [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox church]] were left standing. Numerous other fires weakened the city, which was later rebuilt but never fully recovered from the destruction. By 1807, it had only some 60,000 residents.<ref name=":0" />

In the 1830s, several battles of the [[Bosnian uprising (1831–32)|Bosnian uprising]] had taken place around the city. These had been led by [[Husein Gradaščević]]. Today, a major city street is named ''Zmaj od Bosne'' (Dragon of Bosnia) in his honor. The rebellion failed and for several more decades, the Ottoman state remained in control of Bosnia.

The Ottoman Empire made Sarajevo an important administrative center by 1850. [[Baščaršija]] became the central commercial district and cultural center of the city in the 15th century when Isa-Beg Ishaković founded the town.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://roker.bloger.hr/post/bascarsija/1118045.aspx |title=Baščaršija |work=bloger.hr |access-date=24 September 2015 |archive-date=2 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120502051957/http://roker.bloger.hr/post/bascarsija/1118045.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref> The toponym Baščaršija derives from the [[Turkish language]].