Hoca İshak Efendi, the renowned Turkish mathematician, scientist, and translator, was born in Arta, Greece, around 1774 and died, either in Suez or Mecca, in 1834. A learned Jew who converted to Islam, Hoca İshak Efendi maintained close relations with the Jewish community of Istanbul throughout his life and supported it. The Jews of Istanbul called him the Rabbi of the Admiralty (tersane hahamı), the district where the school at which he taught was located. After completing his education in Istanbul, İshak Efendi became a teacher of mathematics at the Army Engineering Schoo…