Under Ottoman rule, residents were classified by religion rather than ethnicity, as 'Muslims of Cyprus' and 'Christians of Cyprus,' under the millet system, which allowed each religious community to govern its own internal affairs. Non-Muslims held the legal status of "dhimmis" and paid additional taxes, including the "jizya" (poll tax), from which Muslims were exempt, while Muslims were subject to military conscription from which non-Muslims were excused. At the same time, Ottoman rule abolished Venetian feudal serfdom, granting Cypriot peasants hereditary land rights for the first time, and elevated the Greek Orthodox Church to prominence after centuries of suppression under Latin rule. Both communities shared villages and maintained common traditions, with intermarriage occurring in mixed areas. Turkish Cypriots in mixed areas typically acquired Greek as a second language; Greek Cypriots rarely learned Turkish.