Gli (c. 2004 – 7 November 2020) was a Turkish domestic shorthair cat best known as the longtime resident of Istanbul's Hagia Sophia, where she spent her entire life interacting with visitors and gaining fame as an internet celebrity.[1][2]
Named "Gli," meaning "union of love" in Turkish, she was noted for her friendly demeanor, often posing for photographs with tourists and dignitaries, including U.S. President Barack Obama during his 2009 visit.[3][4]
Gli's presence at the historic site, which served variously as a cathedral, mosque, and museum before its 2020 reconversion to a mosque, made her a symbol of continuity and affection amid changing circumstances; assurances were given that she could remain regardless of the site's status.[5]
She maintained a popular Instagram account with thousands of followers, featuring images of her daily life at the monument, and gave birth to one kitten, Karakız, who tragically died in an accident.[6][7]
Gli passed away at age 16 from old age following a short illness that required veterinary care, and she was buried in the Hagia Sophia's garden.[8][1]
Biography
Origins and Early Presence
Gli was born in 2004 near the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey, to a stray cat named Sofi, alongside two siblings, Pati and Kizim.[7][9] The kittens were discovered by restoration workers under a guard's hut at the site's exit door during its operation as a museum, a status it held since its secularization in 1935 by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.[10] As a stray, Gli likely entered the premises freely, consistent with the site's historical openness to local animals, particularly cats, which roamed unhindered amid the architectural complex.[11]Without formal ownership, Gli was informally adopted as a resident by museum staff, who provided food and shelter without claiming legal possession. This arrangement reflected longstanding Ottoman traditions of communal care for stray cats in public and religious spaces, where felines were valued for pest control and tolerated as symbols of good fortune under Islamic cultural norms.[11][12] Specialized roles like mancacı, who distributed offal to feed street animals, underscored this pre-republican practice of tolerance toward strays in historic sites like Hagia Sophia.[13]Early undocumented life for Gli involved typical stray existence within the Hagia Sophia grounds, integrating into the daily routine of visitors and caretakers prior to any public recognition. Veterinary estimates of her age, derived from physical assessments later in life, corroborated the 2004 birth year, aligning with observed developmental milestones for domestic cats in urban environments.[7][9]
Residence in Hagia Sophia
Gli resided in the Hagia Sophia for nearly her entire life, having been born there around 2004.[7] She integrated seamlessly into the site's environment, roaming its halls and contributing to pest control by hunting mice.[2] Prior to widespread internet recognition, Gli habitually lounged in prominent locations such as the Empress Lodge, where she would pose regally for photographs taken by visitors.[7] These interactions drew casual attention from tourists throughout the 2010s, with Gli often resting in quieter corners during peak hours to avoid crowds.[14]Site caretakers, including archaeologist Defne Bali, provided ongoing support for Gli without formal state directives, offering food and monitoring her health as part of informal communal stewardship common in Turkish historical sites.[7][14] Gli's behaviors included welcoming petting from respectful visitors and displaying a discerning attitude toward those who approached her, as noted in early accounts from the 2000s and 2010s.[7] For instance, in 2009, she allowed then-U.S. President Barack Obama to stroke her during his visit, an event that garnered initial media notice among tourists.[15] Her presence near visitor paths facilitated spontaneous photo opportunities, fostering a sense of connection between the cat and the site's diverse clientele before her fame escalated.[14]
Rise to Internet Fame
Gli's ascent to internet prominence stemmed from visitor-shared photographs and videos depicting her lounging in the Hagia Sophia's historic interiors, which circulated widely on social media platforms including Twitter and Instagram. A defining viral incident unfolded on April 7, 2009, during U.S. President Barack Obama's visit to the site, where footage of him petting the cross-eyed tabby alongside Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan garnered extensive online shares and media pickup.[16][17]This 2009 exposure marked Gli's breakthrough as an online sensation, transforming her from a local fixture into a globally recognized feline figure, with the clip and images amplifying her photogenic appeal amid the monument's allure.[18][4]By 2019, amid heightened public discourse surrounding the Hagia Sophia, additional content featuring Gli—such as a May 9 YouTube video profiling her as the site's guardian—fueled further dissemination, correlating with spikes in shares on platforms where her poses drew millions of cumulative views from tourist uploads.[19] Dedicated Instagram accounts like @hagiasophiacat, which posted her images, experienced follower expansion, reaching over 100,000 by the following year, bolstered by hashtag trends like #HagiaSophiaCat.[6]
Historical Context and Role
Association with Hagia Sophia's Reconversion
Gli resided in Hagia Sophia continuously during the judicial and executive proceedings for its reconversion from museum to mosque. On July 10, 2020, Turkey's Council of State annulled the 1934 decree designating the site as a museum, deeming it unlawful, which enabled President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's immediate executive order to restore its mosque status, with the first congregational prayers conducted on July 24, 2020.[5][20] Photographs documented Gli's presence amid conversion preparations, including structural adjustments and ritual purifications, positioning her as a fixture unaffected by the transition.[5]Turkish officials explicitly affirmed Gli's ongoing access post-reconversion. Presidential spokesman İbrahim Kalın stated on July 24, 2020, that Gli and other stray cats could remain in their habitats within the complex, aligning with Islamic traditions accommodating felines in sacred spaces, as evidenced by longstanding cat populations in Istanbul's mosques like the Süleymaniye.[21][20] This policy ensured no alteration in animal ingress, countering unsubstantiated concerns over heritage disruption, given Gli's pre-existing residency spanned over a decade without prior exclusions.[15]Media coverage reflected divergent interpretations of Gli's role amid the reconversion. Pro-government Turkish outlets, such as Daily Sabah, portrayed her as an enduring "home" resident symbolizing seamless continuity between the site's Byzantine, Ottoman, and contemporary phases.[20] In contrast, international reports from outlets like Reuters emphasized her permitted stay as a neutral anecdote amid geopolitical tensions, without endorsing narratives of cultural erasure, while empirical observations confirmed visitor interactions persisted, with Gli freely navigating the reopened mosque areas until her health declined later that year.[5][21]
Death
Final Days and Passing
In late September 2020, Gli began showing signs of illness, prompting caretakers at the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque to isolate her in a private room and initiate treatment to prevent spread to other cats on the premises.[22] She was transferred to a private veterinary clinic in Levent, Istanbul, on September 24 for ongoing care, where she received attention for conditions associated with advanced age.