Rayah

A rayah or reaya  (from  ra`aya, a plural of  ra`iya "citizens, subjects, nationals, flock", also spelled raya, raja, raiah, re'aya; Ottoman Turkish رعايا ; Modern Turkish râya  or reaya; related to the Arabic word alraaei الراعي which means "shepherd, herdsman, patron") was a member of the tax-paying lower class of Ottoman society, in contrast to the askeri (upper class) and kul (slaves). The rayah made up over 90% of the general population and the millet communities. In the Muslim world, rayah is literally subject of a government or sovereign. The rayah (literally 'members of the flock') included Christians, Muslims, and Jews who were 'shorn' (i.e. taxed) to support the state and the associated 'professional Ottoman' class.

However, both in contemporaneous and in modern usage, it refers to non-Muslim subjects in particular, also called zimmi. 

Edip Yuksel for verse 2:104 in his Quran: a Reformist Translation, provides the following information in the endnote:"O you who acknowledge, do not say, 'Shepherd us,' but say, 'Pay attention to us,' and listen. For the ingrates is a painful retribution. (2:104)."The word raina (shepherd us) implies to be led like sheep. Muslims do not and should not follow anyone blindly, including prophets, without using their intelligence, reasoning and senses (Quran 17:36). However, the Bible uses the shepherd/sheep analogy to depict the relationship between people and their leaders. "And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd" Ezekiel 34:23 . Jesus Christ is likened to a good shepherd (John 10:14 ; Heb 13:20). Kings and leaders are compared to shepherds (Isaiah 44:28 ; Jeremiah 6:3 ; 49:19). Ministers of the gospel too are likened to shepherds (Isaiah 56:11 ; Jeremiah 50:6 ; Jeremiah 23:4 ; Ezekiel 34:2 , 10). Also, see Zechariah 10:2; Psalms 78:52; Psalms 119:176. "This metaphor would be abused to its full capacity by St. Paul, the dubious figure who distorted the monotheistic message of Jesus after his departure. St. Paul fabricated many stories and practices, including the justification of receiving money for preaching. When the true followers of the Injeel, that is, the Good News, criticized him, he defended his "milking" the congregation, thereby twisting the original purpose of this Biblical metaphor. See 1 Corinthians 9:7 ." In the early Ottoman Empire, rayah were not eligible for military service, but from the late 16th century, Muslim rayah became eligible, to the distress of some of the ruling class.

See also
Dhimmi
Giaour
Ottoman Millet system
Second-class citizen

References

 Molly Greene, A Shared World: Christians and Muslims in the Early Modern Mediterranean, Princeton, 2000. 
 Peter F. Sugar, Southeastern Europe under Ottoman Rule, 1354-1804, series title A History of East Central Europe, volume V, University of Washington Press, 1983.  .

Category:Social class in the Ottoman Empire
Category:Taxation in the Ottoman Empire