Abstract
Stip (Štip), located in North Macedonia today, was a significant Rumelia District where the Turks lived during the Ottoman period. In this article, the data in the Štip Sharia Court Registers numbered 191 in the Ottoman Archives, and those obtained from foreign archives were used as the primary source. However, civil registers and other official archive documents are also among the sources. It is focused on the edicts and orders containing the tereke (estate) registers and taxes in the said sharia court register. In addition to this, other types of documents were also studied. Most of the document types in the sharia court register consist of edicts and copies of orders, estate registers, and some decrees. Ali Agha, a landed proprietor (ayan) in Štip district, where Muslims and non-Muslims lived together, was martyred during the campaign against the Morea rebellions. Estates (tereke) of Ali Agha estate had the highest value and the richest variety among the estates in the book. Except this, there are also estates belonging to the deputy of the landed proprietor and military and civilian persons. Houses in Štip are usually single or two-story and covered with tiles. There exist several shops of tradesmen and artisans in the town. The bazaar and arasta (Ottoman Bazaar) are significant social spaces. The presence of non-Muslims among tradesmen also attracts attention. Yuruk (Nomad) villages, also known as Evlâd-ı Fâtihan (Children of the Conquerors), are dense in the countryside. The livelihood of the people is agriculture and animal husbandry. Štip district, which is located in the Kyustendil Sanjak of Rumelia province, dealt with some additional taxes for the expeditions organized due to the Morea rebellion, as well as avarız (extraordinary tax in Ottoman Empire) type taxes such as ayaniyye, ilaniyye, imdâd-ı hazariyye. Besides that, the fees charged by the Štip Court under several names against some transactions also constitute the expenses of the people in the district.