Istanbul, capital and centre of two great Empires also covering
the Balkans, is a place where all contrasts, contradictions and
promises of modern Turkey can be studied. The largest city in
South East Europe, it has been experiencing rapid change in
recent decades, growing from 3 million people in 1970 to some 12
million in 2003. Today it is home to 15 percent of Turkey's
population, the industrial, financial and media centre of the
country, and, due to its strategic location between East and
West, symbolizes current debates about Turkey's European
identity. This was always a global city: just before World War I
some 130,000 foreigners lived here. The Encyclopaedia Britannica
described the city in 1910 as "a remarkable conglomeration of
different races, various nationalities, divers languages,
distinctive customs and conflicting faiths." But the loss of
many of its minority populations deprived the city of a large
number of its merchants and businessmen. The subsequent loss of
Empire and the suspicion of the