Hagia Sophia's Reconversion: Turkey's De-Europeanization through Lefebvre's Spatial Triad

Abstract

Hagia Sophia, as a monument of enduring historical and cultural significance, has long stood at the intersection of religious, spatial, and political transformations. Its successive conversions - from basilica to mosque, from museum to mosque again - constitute the layers of its multidimensional character and reflect its symbolic role beyond mere architecture as a palimpsest of meanings. Throughout history, sovereignty over Hagia Sophia has embodied hegemonic power, with its spatial reconfigurations serving political concerns and ideological narratives. This article argues that Turkey's recent de-Europeanization is materially and symbolically manifested in the 2020 reconversion of Hagia Sophia into a mosque. By situating this transformation within Lefebvre's triadic spatial model-perceived space, conceived space, and lived space, the study conceptualizes Hagia Sophia as a paradigmatic site where space, power, and politics intersect, offering an interdisciplinary framework that links the politics of Europeanization with the spatial production of power.