The term "Medrese" originates from Arabic and signifies "to read, comprehend, learn a text, and repetitively recite it for memorization." In Islamic nations, it denotes a structure characterized by its unique architecture, typically constructed around a spacious courtyard, either open or enclosed, where disciplines consistent with Islamic religious doctrines are taught, alongside accommodations for students’ residency and study. Madrasahs were first established in the 9th and 10th centuries. Some sources accept that the madrasahs started with "Suffe", which is a section of the Masjid9i Nabawi. The Masjid al9Nabawi is a mosque established under the leadership of the Prophet Muhammad. This masjid consists of 3 sections: The section where the Prophet Muhammad and his family stayed, the worship area, and the place where students stayed and received education. The first truly established madrasah was founded in the 11th century in Nisabur, Iran. The first madrasah established in Anatolia was the Yağıbasan Madrasah, founded by the Danishmendids in Niksar, Tokat, where medicine was taught. The most comprehensive madrasah, which is an example for the later ones, is the Nizamiye Madrasah built during the Seljuk period. It was built by Nizamü'l9Mülk in Baghdad in 1057. Nizamiye Madrasah is considered to be the first and real university of Islam in terms of providing free education, scholarships to students, providing accommodation and meeting the social needs of students. When we look at the reasons for establishing madrasahs, many opinions are put forward. The difficulty of conducting worship and education at the same time in mosques, the need for an institution that would meet the needs of the educational institution and the students, the intensity of the lessons in mosques, the establishment as a continu9 ation of masjids and mosques, the training of clergymen, statesmen, members of justice, scholars and derris, The establishment of madrasahs as a continuation of institutions established for library purposes such as Dar al9hikme and Beytu'l9Hikme, known as Dar al9ilim, to prevent inter9sectarian propaganda, to support a jurisprudential sect, to educate poor and talented students and to bring them into society are seen as the purposes of the establishment of madrasahs. Madrasahs are divided into general madrasahs and specialized madrasahs. General madrasahs provide primary and secondary level education and many sciences such as the Qur'an, hadith, fiqh, jurisprudence, vocabulary, nah, mathematics, astronomy, philosophy, history and geography are taught together in these madrasahs. Specialized madrasahs, on the other hand, provide higher level education and allow specialization in fields such as literature, theology, medicine, mathematics and natural sciences, such as dar al9qurra, dar al9hadith, dar al9tib (medical madrasah) etc. In addition to the cultural value they carry, madrasahs are important architectural elements both in terms of their architecture and their relationship with the city. When evaluated stylistically, they have a plan scheme consisting of cells, classrooms, a masjid and a mausoleum arranged around a courtyard and enriched with 194 iwan. The most important building elements of madrasah architecture are the portal, courtyard, iwan, winter classroom, tomb (masjid) and cells. The portal is the richly decorated, monumental entrance of the madrasahs. It emphasizes the entrance on the facade. The courtyard is an area in the center of the building, surrounded by walls or porticoes, gathering all the spaces and acting as a nodal point. The iwan is a space closed on three sides, with the open side facing the courtyard, raised by a few steps from the courtyard, and covered with a vault or dome. The winter classroom is a classroom space located to the right or left of the main iwan for use in cold weather. The mausoleum is a space covered with a dome, usually where the madrasah masters are buried, and can be located in different places according to the madrasah plan scheme. Cells, on the other hand, are the rooms lined around the courtyard and opening to the courtyard, which may have a portico in front of them according to the plan scheme, used by the students for sheltering and studying. When evaluated as an urban element, madrasahs are buildings that have the characteristics of "urban nucleus" in the words of Kevin Lynch with the relationship they establish with their surroundings and the meaning they carry. Urban nuclei are important nodes and focal points that are the nucleus of the region and create areas of gathering and activity. At the same time, some urban nuclei are signposts that create visual perception and reference for their surroundings. It would be appropriate to say that madrasahs are the product of interdisciplinary cooperation. The strategic perspectives of the states in making construction decisions, the mission of the madrasah, the foundation culture kept alive during the construction process, the esthetic and meaning value of its formal elements, and the architectural enrichment with other types of buildings built together make madrasahs important architectural elements with both physical and spiritual dimensions. Such structures naturally affect the city in both physical and spiritual dimensions. In the physical dimension, it has the power of influence that can determine the way of land use, the density of construction around it, building types, urban silhouette (storey height, material / texture selection, etc.), urban orientation and development, zoning decisions, and transportation network; while in the spiritual dimension, it is effective in the formation of urban identity, memory, culture, and brand value. The madrasahs built in Konya city center added cultural value to the city in the period they were built and served to create a brand value such as "capital of science and culture". In addition to this service, they have become a symbol of urban esthetics and richness in terms of architecture. Especially in the Seljuk Period, very magnificent madrasahs were built, and these madrasahs have become the icons of the city of Konya today. This study identifies medreses constructed in the Konya city center during the Seljuk, Karamanids, and Ottoman periods and investigates their contributions to subsequent regional developments. The names, construction dates, and present conditions of the identified medreses are tabulated. The locations of the madrasahs are expressed both in writing and cartographically, with reference to today’s urban texture. The existence of 25 madrasahs in the Seljuk Period, 17 in the Karamanids Period, and 44 in the Ottoman Period could be identified in the city center of Konya. The institutionalization of madrasahs in Konya and its surroundings occurred during the Seljuk period. This was a period when Konya shone in every sense, became a center of education and culture and had an important political and military power. Almost all of the valuable madrasahs that have survived to this day in Konya are the works of the Seljuk Period. The Karamanids, who came after the Seljuk Empire, built some madrasahs and tried to protect the cultural heritage inherited from the Seljuks. Toward the end of the 13th century, the Seljuks disintegrated and the conflicts and political problems between the principalities established in various regions in this period caused educational activities to slow down. Many madrasahs became unusable due to lack of maintenance. After the Karamanids, new educational structures were not established in Konya until the 18th century, but as of the 18th century, Konya started to rise again, and many madrasahs were built. In addition to madrasahs, lodges, mosques and zawiyas were built, libraries were established and many valuable works were endowed to these libraries. However, as the Ottoman Empire began to weaken, madrasahs began to lose their importance. The madrasahs built in Konya city center added cultural value to the city in the period they were built and served to create a brand value such as "capital of science and culture". In addition to this service, they have become a symbol of urban esthetics and richness in terms of architecture. Especially in the Seljuk Period, quite magnificent madrasahs were built and these madrasahs have become the icon of Konya today. On an urban scale, madrasahs have a relationship with urban development in the period in which they were built. Konya city center was first established on Alaaddin Hill and then developed to the north of the hill. It is seen that the Seljuk Period madrasahs were also concentrated in this direction. Afterwards, the city started to develop toward the east of the hill. In the Ottoman Period, it is seen that the madrasahs were concentrated on the Alaaddin9Mevlana axis in the east of the hill. In fact, this situation is not a coincidence. Madrasahs were generally built with the support of foundations, and in accordance with the foundation culture, other buildings that could meet the expenses of the madrasah were also endowed while the madrasah was being built. Endowing income9generating real estate is considered a part of the process of establishing a madrasah. The endowed buildings may be an existing structure or they may be built with the madrasah or for the madrasah in the close neighborhood of the madrasah. The areas where madrasahs are concentrated are also the areas where urban mobility and commercial activities are intense in the relevant period. Madrasahs not only bring mobility to the area where they are built, but also the places where they are built are usually located within the development area of the city. It is possible to observe this situation, especially on the Alaaddin9Mevlana axis, where the madrasahs of the Ottoman Period are concentrated. Madrasahs have contributed to this axis being an important trade axis throughout history. Today, this area is the area where cultural and commercial activity is the most intense and constitutes the historical city center of Konya.

It has been observed that madrasahs also affect the functions of the buildings in their immediate surroundings in line with their area of specialization. Karatay Madrasah was an educational institution where fiqh was taught, equivalent to today’s law faculties, and the Konya Courthouse was located just behind the Karatay Madrasah. The area between Alâeddin Dârüşşifâsı (House of Healing), the medical madrasah of the period, and Kadi Izzeddin Maristan9ı Atik is now surrounded by buildings serving health9related functions. It is seen that the neighborhood of the building, which was used as the Provincial Public Library for many years and was demolished in 2012, was also neighbored by library buildings in the past. The "educational" identity of the areas where some madrasahs are located continues today. Finally, the madrasahs built in the city center of Konya, in addition to their impact on urban shaping, have given Konya the identity of a capital of science, science and culture since the Seljuks, played a role in the naming of the districts and left important spiritual traces where urban memory is preserved and reminded for centuries.