Between 824 and 960, the island of Crete was controlled by Saracens and was a (semi-)independant emirate during those years.
In 960, it came under Byzantine control again, until it was conquered by the Venetians in 1204,
after which the Venetians held it until 1669, when the Ottomans took the island.
Now then, during Saracen rule, there was obviously a number of Cretan Greeks that converted to Islam, even though their numbers propably were relatively small, and the island was a backwater during Byzantine rule, while during Venetian rule, the main religious conflict on the island was between the local Orthodox Christians and the Catholics.
It seems not all that unlikely that under these circumstances, a Muslim community may have survived on Crete...
...and it should be noted that during late Ottoman times (19th century), about 45% of the Cretan population was Muslim,
and the lionshare of these Muslims were Greeks.
...and in my opinion, the existence of a surviving Cretan Muslim community could explain why the process of Islamization was significantly more successful on Crete than in other Greek areas (if there was already an existing Muslim community on Crete when the Ottomans took over, it would be a lot easier to convert to Islam without giving up one's own old Greek identity, because converts could simply integrate into the existing Greek Muslim community, instead of immediately joining the Turks)
..
Could a Cretan Muslim community that dates back to Saracen times have survived into the Ottoman age?
In 960, it came under Byzantine control again, until it was conquered by the Venetians in 1204,
after which the Venetians held it until 1669, when the Ottomans took the island.
Now then, during Saracen rule, there was obviously a number of Cretan Greeks that converted to Islam, even though their numbers propably were relatively small, and the island was a backwater during Byzantine rule, while during Venetian rule, the main religious conflict on the island was between the local Orthodox Christians and the Catholics.
It seems not all that unlikely that under these circumstances, a Muslim community may have survived on Crete...
...and it should be noted that during late Ottoman times (19th century), about 45% of the Cretan population was Muslim,
and the lionshare of these Muslims were Greeks.
...and in my opinion, the existence of a surviving Cretan Muslim community could explain why the process of Islamization was significantly more successful on Crete than in other Greek areas (if there was already an existing Muslim community on Crete when the Ottomans took over, it would be a lot easier to convert to Islam without giving up one's own old Greek identity, because converts could simply integrate into the existing Greek Muslim community, instead of immediately joining the Turks)
..
Could a Cretan Muslim community that dates back to Saracen times have survived into the Ottoman age?
