Madrasa is Arabic for any type of educational institution. This can mean secular or pertaining to any religion.  In the West, the word is used to refer to a specific type of religious school or college for the study of Islam, though it may not be the only subject studied. But, not all students in madrasas are Muslims. There is also a modern curriculum. The word madrasah derives from the triconsonantal Semitic root D-R-S ‘to learn, study’, through the wazn (form/stem) mafʻal(ah), meaning “a place where something is done”. Madrasah quite literally means “a place where learning and studying take place”. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madrasa#Definition)

A photo of a madrasa

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:La_madrasa_et_la_mosqu%C3%A9e_Tilla_Kari_du_Registan_(Samarcande,_Ouzb%C3%A9kistan)_(5630693152).jpg

The madrasa has recently developed a close relation with the Hagia Sophia. The Hagia Sophia is one of the most significant historical monuments in Turkey. It is a beautiful place that has been a “World Heritage Site” for a long time. The place is highly beloved by many people in Turkey. Recently, a new debate has come about with the Ministry of Culture’s plans to build a madrasa, a school of Islamic theology and law, in the Hagia Sophia’s courtyard. The source of the debate arose when the International Council on Monuments and Sites declared that once the madrasa is built, the status of the Hagia Sophia being a “World Heritage Site” will be reassessed and possibly removed. After the declaration, the Ministry of Culture began to reevaluate and have asked for an Environmental Impact Assessment Report. The Ministry plans to make their final decision regarding the madrasa plans after this report has been completed. But, because of the declaration to reassess the status of “World Heritage Site”, a rapidly growing resistance to the madrasa plans is assembling in Turkey.  (http://www.agos.com.tr/en/article/8493/new-madrasa-controversy-at-hagia-sophia)