Rav akçesi

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Rav akçesi, the “rabbi tax,” was a cash tax paid by Jewish communities in the Ottoman Empire. Its exact origins are unclear. Some think it was one of two taxes aimed at Jews and grew with the authority of a chief rabbi in Istanbul, whose power probably mainly reached Istanbul. Others say Mehmet II imposed it after 1455 to secure separate Jewish representation and to help rebuild the city, possibly weakening Greek influence. The empire sometimes favored Greeks or Jews, so tensions existed between the groups. Rav akçesi could be used to buy goods; for example, in 1655 the tax from Monastir helped pay for drapery for the Janissaries, and the same official who collected the tax also handled purchases. Non-Muslims generally faced higher overall taxes, including rav akçesi and ispence, and Jews sometimes paid higher ispence too. Authorities knew heavy taxation could tempt people to convert, so Bayezit II urged leniency toward non-Muslims to keep tax revenue from disappearing. Like other taxes, rav akçesi had local exemptions; after Murad II conquered Thessaloniki, its Jewish community was exempted by a special muafname.