This article explores false witnessing in the early modern Ottoman period, drawing on premodern doctrinal considerations, lawbooks, a variety of archival sources—including court records, complaint registers, registers of important affairs, and registers of punishments—and narrative sources by contemporary observers of the Ottoman polity. Our discussion is intended to complement jurisprudential formulations on the topic with insights into Ottoman legal practice. In the latter regard, we examine the prevalence of false witnessing in Ottoman courts, its impact on (...) litigation processes, and the profiles and motivations of habitual false witnesses. Additionally, we provide information on how the Ottoman legal system attempted to police and discipline this crime, and the factors that may have influenced the government effort in this regard. (shrink)

The history of Azerbaijan of the 19th-20th centuries was comprehensively studied. The first source we turn to in order to fully cover this period in the Caucasus region and South Azerbaijan, when political-military conflicts raged, socio-economic processes expanded or declined, and to correctly understand and evaluate the events is archival documents. It is precisely the study of these documents that allows us to look at the events in the region from a different perspective at a time when political games, interstate (...) conflicts, and economic instability were expanding. The documents preserved in the archives are very important in terms of identifying and analyzing the subsequent perverse actions of the Armenians who fled to the region under various pretexts and settled there, and the activities of the forces that supported them. The Sultan’s decrees, interstate correspondence, letters sent by embassies to the palace, etc., preserved in the Ottoman archives of the Republic of Turkey, provides an opportunity to approach the socio-political processes of the mentioned period from the perspective of the Ottoman state and helps to determine the importance of the region for the Ottoman Empire, along with Russia and a number of powerful states of Europe. The documents we have applied for the purpose of investigating and analyzing the topic in more detail and based on new facts are mainly kept in the Ottoman Archives of the Prime Minister’s Office. Some sources were involved in the research for the first time. The archival documents were written in the “siyakat” writing, which was used in the official correspondence of the Ottoman state at that time without use of diacritical marks. The present article analyzes the socio-political events that took place in the western and northwestern regions of South Azerbaijan in the late 19th- early 20th centuries on the basis of Ottoman documents in order to clarify the unstable, mixed picture of that historical period. (shrink)

This study explores the mechanisms of news transmission from the Ottoman central authority to the Regency of Algiers (1766-1830), examining the intermediaries, routes, and content of exchanged information. Using archival analysis of correspondence between Algiers and its agents in Izmir and Istanbul, the research adopts a historical methodology to reconstruct communication networks during this critical period, as the study particularly focuses on how political and military intelligence was conveyed before and after the French blockade of Algiers. The findings reveal (...) an organized network involving the Mufti, Hajj Ali ibn al-Mufti, and Liman Reis as key intermediaries, as news flowed directly to the Dey initially, but after the French blockade, it was rerouted through Tunis and Constantine, with reports becoming more detailed, where the agents not only transmitted news but also defended Algiers' economic interests. Additionally, their interrogations provided the Porte with intelligence, demonstrating a two-way flow of information that shaped Ottoman Mediterranean policy. The study will address the topic by examining the following key questions: Who were the intermediaries responsible for transmitting news from the central authority (the Sublime Porte) to the Regency? What were the routes taken by the news en route to Algiers? And what was the nature of the news being conveyed? (shrink)

Plague outbreaks, among the greatest catastrophes in human history, have caused profound fear in s eties regardless of the period in which they occurred. In efforts to halt the spread of the disease, physicians have employed numerous preventive measures and therapeutic methods. From the years when the Black Death ravaged Europe onward, independent treatises on plague began to be written. In the face of plague epidemics, which recurred intermittently for centuries, physicians of the two great neighboring empires of the sixteenth (...) century—the Ottoman Empire and the Holy Roman Empire—authored treatises either on their own initiative or in accordance with tasks assigned to them. These works, produced in two different geographical contexts, sought to mitigate the impact of the plague, provide means of protection against it, and contribute to the treatment of the afflicted. This study examines plague treatises written in roughly the same period by the Ottoman physician Qaysunizade Nidai (after 1514–after 1567) and the Holy Roman physician Johann Bosch (1514–85), comparing the measures, recommendations, and treatment methods adopted in these two neighboring regions in response to the disease. Qaysunizade and Bosch exhibited similar views regarding the causes of plague, attributing its emergence to miasma, while also citing sin and divine manifestation as spiritual causes. Both physicians regarded certain natural phenomena as signs of impending plague outbreaks. Concerning diet during periods of illness, they similarly recommended sour foods. On the matter of susceptibility to the disease, Qaysunizade offered a theoretical framework, whereas Bosch listed the constitutions more frequently affected without providing a rationale. With regard to quarantine measures during epidemics, Bosch discussed more detailed precautions. On the subject of the asbāb-i sitte-i ḍarūre (six essential causes), both physicians expressed similar views. Another notable similarity in the treatises is the recommendation to use precious stones, valuable metals, kil-i Ermeni (Armenian clay), and tin-i mahtum (sealed clay), as well as compounded preparations obtained by mixing numerous medicinal substances, albeit with differences in composition. In conclusion, a comparison of these two treatises, written in the Ottoman and Holy Roman Empires in the same period, reveals substantial similarities. However, in formulating the theoretical framework of the disease, Qaysunizade provided more detailed information. The varying degrees of elaboration on certain topics in the two works point to differing needs shaped by the religious life, climatic conditions, and medical traditions of the regions in which they were composed. (shrink)

This paper discusses literary, religious, economic and folkloristic aspects of saint worship in Muslim Syria and Palestine in the Mamluk and Ottoman periods, as reflected mainly in manuscripts of the genre ‘Merits of the Holy Land’. Traditions found in compositions of this type clearly go back to early Muslim times or even before, as they contain folk elements and legends which contradict accepted Islamic norms. The discussion is in two parts: a perusal of original traditions in manuscripts going back (...) to the periods in question, for the purpose of determining the identity of the holy sites, the legends which grew up around them, their miracle-working capacity in the popular mind, ceremonies associated with them, etc.; a comparison of the manuscript material in question with available historical, historiographical, geographical and other sources to determine whether the traditions do indeed reflect the period in which they were collected and, in particular, whether specific local conditions and interests also played a part. In addition to literary and folkloristic aspects of traditions concerning holy places, the paper also looks at the official attitude of Islam towards expressions of saint worship as reflected in the traditions in question. In particular we discuss the opposition to saint worship by the Hanbali school of Islamic jurisprudence. Because it was in the Mamluk period that the religious dispute among jurists concerning the status of saint worship was at its peak, it is no wonder that traditions on this matter are abundant for this period. We conclude that traditions concerning pilgrimage and saint worship in the Mamluk and Ottoman periods reflect a popular need, sometimes with local overtones, which found an outlet in pilgrimage to holy sites and in saint worship, despite the opposition of certain Islamic jurists to this practice. (shrink)

This article uses dreams, portents, and prognostications as an entry point into what some scholars have recently called ‘Ottoman exceptionalism’. Drawing on sources in Turkish and Arabic, it traces beliefs about the Ottoman dynasty and empire’s superiority, divine favour, and special role in history from the fifteenth to the eighteenth century. I begin with the ‘seeds’ of the topic in the empire’s early years and myths of origin, including a number of dream stories, before moving to full-scale political (...) exceptionalism. Looking closer, I then identify an eschatological strand in the lead-up to the Islamic millennium that centred on the dynasty’s role in the end time. The millennium’s uneventful passing led to the dissolution of this strand but not of ideas about exceptionalism itself, which in later forms turned inward, depicting the empire as ‘eternal’ and projecting its rule to an undetermined future period. (shrink)

In the bourgeoning field of Ottoman studies, there remains surprisingly little on the impact of the conquest upon the largest Arabic-speaking province, Egypt, in the long sixteenth century. Although the conquest of Mamluk Egypt in 1517 ushered in a period of extensive legal reforms, we have yet to fully analyse, classify or quantify the impact of these reforms on law and society in the sixteenth century. While it is widely acknowledged that the reforms triggered opposition from Egyptian ulema, the (...) prevailing view in the secondary literature is that tensions eased soon thereafter. Drawing on al-Damīrīʾs biography of sixteenth-century judges, as well as on Ibn Iyāsʾ well-known chronicle of the conquest, this paper challenges the conventional wisdom on both the duration and substantive consequences of the reforms. The picture that emerges is one which resists the traditional paradigms generally assigned to such conflicts, i.e. ‘juristic orthodoxy’ versus ‘state heterodoxy’. Turning this paradigm on its head, the evidence reveals that the real agent of legal ‘orthodoxification’, understood as a homogenizing, or streamlining process in which correct opinion is emphasized, was the state. Conversely, it is Egyptian jurists, guardians of a legal tradition which emphasized orthopraxy (correct conduct) over and above orthodoxy, who formed a bulwark against it. What is at stake is in this empire-wide debate/conflict is not only the definition and function of qānūn and its relationship to fiqh, as assumed by many, but the very definition of the Sharīʿa itself. As an abstraction of the perfected moral cosmos, the Sharʿa could and did undergo a radical reimagining, producing not only a consciously Ottoman qānūn, but a consciously Ottoman Sharīʿa, to be distinguished from that of rival Sunni powers, past and present. To avoid the conceptual confusion generated by the labels traditionally attached to such matters, the intervention I propose includes an alternative paradigm centered on the notion of ‘antagonistic Sharīʿas’, or antagonistic legal utopias. (shrink)

This article uses information on book ownership from probate inventories of the qassam court of Damascus in the last decades of the Ottoman Empire to highlight the prominence of Sufi literature, particularly the works of the 16th century Sufi shaykh Abd al-Wahhab al-Sha'rani, at the end of the 19th century. Al-Sha'rani’s theme of transcending the mentality of rivalry between madhhabs or schools of Islamic legal thought provides a lense through which to view the politics and upheavals of nineteenth century (...) Damascus. Following the social networks of readers, Sufis, Hanafis and Shafi'is who figured in late Ottoman Damascene institutions and conflicts reveals genealogies linking sufism and emergent salafi Islamic modernism which would contribute to nationalism in the twentieth century. (shrink)

This paper dives into how different religious groups got along in Ottoman Macedonia during the first half of the 19th century. Our main goal is to figure out how people’s long-held beliefs and their hopes for the future shaped relationships between Orthodox Christians and Muslims, and also the tensions that popped up among Christian groups themselves (like Greeks and Slavs). We’re looking at this through the ideas of Hans-Georg Gadamer, especially his concept of “fusion of horizons”—which helps us see (...) how past experiences and present understandings blend together. We’re also bringing in Reinhart Koselleck’s idea of a “horizon of expectation” to show how future dreams actually influenced how these communities interacted day-to-day. The study starts by explaining Gadamer’s way of thinking about understanding, where conversations mix old and new viewpoints. Then, it explores the historical setting, describing the millet system that allowed for different religions to coexist, how people lived side-by-side, and even shared holy places. We also look at the growing friction between the powerful Greek Orthodox Church and the rising Slavic Orthodox communities. We’ll dig into specific historical moments – like Muslims and Christians together honoring the Orthodox Monastery of Saint Naum, and the mid-19th- century Tanzimat reforms that promised everyone equal rights – using this particular way of looking at things. Our main point is that these religious interactions weren’t fixed; they were more like ongoing conversations, full of both understanding and misunderstanding, all driven by each community’s unique past and their hopes for what was to come. Ultimately, using Gadamer’s perspective helps us get a richer, more detailed understanding of inter-religious relations in 19th-century Ottoman Macedonia, moving past simple stories to see the complex ways different views were handled and sometimes even brought together. (shrink)

This article traces the establishment of a network of educational institutions, and the accompanying consolidation of a class of learned men, with varying levels of Islamic education, in sixteenth-century Bosnia. It explores the ways in which these developments affected Bosnia’s integration into the imperial Ottoman education network. Analysis of the creation of this local network and its effects is done through prosopographical study of two sample groups of Ottoman scholars: first, scholars who studied or worked in Sarajevo in (...) the sixteenth century; and, second, Ottoman scholars who originated from Bosnia. The samples were created using sixteenth-century biographical dictionaries. By following these scholars’ careers and highlighting their recurring characteristics, this article lays out the rise of Bosnia, especially Sarajevo, in the broader Ottoman scholarly network throughout the sixteenth century. It explains the implications that this rise had on the Ottoman education system in general, and on Muslim life in Sarajevo in particular, and argues that this process was essential for Bosnia’s successful and long-lasting integration into the Ottoman Empire. It also locates the establishment of a Muslim education system and the creation of a learned elite in sixteenth-century Bosnia in the context of the larger process of the Sunnitization of Ottoman society. (shrink)

Name der Zeitschrift: Der Islam Jahrgang: 94 Heft: 2 Seiten: 496-526.

Robert G. Morrison. Merchants of Knowledge: Intellectual Exchange in the Ottoman Empire and Renaissance Europe. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2025. 342 sayfa. ISBN: 9781503636323.

Este artículo tiene por objeto dar una versión diferente y más breve del poema que contiene una demanda morisca de ayuda al Imperio Otomano, poema estudiado por James Monroe en Al-Andalus XXXI, 281-303. Esta versión indica que había habido otra demanda similar por parte de los moriscos al sultán mameluco de El Cairo, y que ésta era la original. El artículo contiene: 1) un análisis comparativo de las versiones de la casida dirigidas a los mamelucos y a los otomanos, 2) (...) el marco histórico de las relaciones entre los reinos cristianos y musulmanes de la Península Ibérica por un lado y los territorios mameluco y otomano por otro, y 3) una discusión de la fecha de las dos versiones de la casida, así como su autoría. Parece probable que el autor de la casida perteneciera a círculos de musulmanes granadinos que habían formado parte de las clases dirigentes de Granada y que luego habían aceptado puestos en la administración cristiana de la ciudad, como son, por ejemplo, varios miembros de la familia al-Baqannī, algunos de los cuales habían emigrado con Ibn al-Azraq al Norte de África, pero regresaron para integrarse en los grupos dirigentes mudéjares. (shrink)

Translations, whether in the form of text, illustration, or interpretive analysis, served knowledge-making in multiple ways. It offered a refuge, severed contexts, and concealed the various workers that created it. Over the course of the seventeenth century, European naturalists in Istanbul, such as Luigi Ferdinando Marsigli (1658–1730), procured illustrations of Ottoman nature as fundamental resources to identify, collect, and compare indigenous plants and newly bred varieties. Despite maintaining an actual mediation for cross-cultural interactions, these sources of virtual communication remain (...) largely forgotten in modern scholarship. This article argues that this curious yet invisible corpus was not a nonagentive medium in an alienated leisure of a gentleman-scholar; instead, these illustrations were designed to call upon the viewer’s constant attention in self-motivated scientific labor. Such handy tools responded and contributed to early modern scholars’ modes of working, and in exchange they determined these sources’ own function, position, and visibility – either as a by-product or as a derivative. It is therefore only when integrated into the labor history of science that the degrees of invisibility pertaining to both Ottoman nature studies and self-directed labor can come into a granular view. (shrink)

This article examines the role and consequences of scholarly encounters and interactions in the early modern Muslim world. It argues that the biography and intellectual formation of Veliyüddin Cârullah (d. 1738), a vigorous and reflective Ottoman scholar who travelled from the capital Istanbul to engage with intellectual circles in Arab and other Kurdish centres of the eastern part of the Ottoman Empire and returned with a more critical and interdisciplinary vision, contributed to the cultural and intellectual activity of (...) the early eighteenth century. The article highlights his reading practices, teaching activities, and his writings based on his margin annotation on manuscript copies, in order to better elaborate his vast knowledge and intellectual networks. It concludes that interactions with scholarship in the eastern lands of the empire were as significant for the formation of Istanbul intellectuals as their contacts with the West in the same period. (shrink)

Ottoman Puritanism and its Discontents: Aḥmad al-Rūmī al-Āqḥiṣārī and the Qāḍīzādelīs By SheikhMustapha, ix + 191 pp. Price HB £65.00. EAN 978–0198790761.

The Ottoman Scramble for Africa: Empire and Diplomacy in the Sahara and the Hijaz By MinawiMostafa, xviii + 219 pp. Price PB £17.99. EAN 978–0804799270.

The Scopes trial fuelled discussion in the United States on the social and political implications of Darwinism. For the defenders of the 1925 Tennessee law – which prohibited the teaching of Darwinism in schools – Darwinism was, amongst other things, responsible for the German militarism which eventually led to the First World War. This view was supported by İsmail Fennî, a late Ottoman intellectual, who authored a book immediately after the trial which aimed to debunk scientific materialism. In it, (...) he claimed that Darwinism blurred the distinction between man and beast and thus destroyed the foundations of morality. However, despite his anti-Darwinist stance, İsmail Fennî argued against laws forbidding the teaching of Darwinism in schools, and emphasized that even false theories contributed to scientific improvement. Indeed, because of his belief in science he claimed that Muslims should not reject Darwinism if it were supported by future scientific evidence. If this turned out to be the case, then religious interpretations should be revised accordingly. This article contributes to the literature on early Muslim reactions to Darwinism by examining the views of İsmail Fennî, which were notably sophisticated when compared with those of the anti-religious Darwinist and anti-Darwinist religious camps that dominated late Ottoman intellectual life. (shrink)

This chapter discusses the Ottoman presence in Arabia, from the initial conquests in the sixteenth century up to the end of the eighteenth century, before the French invasion of Egypt followed by the rise of Mehmed Ali Pasha fundamentally changed the balance of power in the region. In particular, it focuses on the evolution of the Syrian hajj route and compares it to wider developments elsewhere in the Arabian Peninsula. The first part of the chapter focuses on the expansion (...) and contraction of Ottoman rule in Arabia. The second part focuses on the Hijaz and the fortification of the hajj route linking it to Mecca. (shrink)

Throughout history, the Turks have established numerous states of varying sizes. Among these, the Ottomans were the longest-ruling and demonstrated the highest level of performance in terms of culture and civilization. The process of Turks’ migration from Central Asia to the Near East and Anatolia, along with their conversion to Islam, began in the tenth century and continued for about 200 years. During this time, numerous dynasties established different states from India to Egypt and Yemen. Foremost among these dynasties were (...) the Seljuks, who ruled in Iran, Mesopotamia, present-day Syria, and Anatolia. After converting to Islam, the Seljuk Turks built a high civilization in such fields as science, art, literature, and politics. Due to external factors such as the Crusades and Mongol invasions, however, as well as internal factors such as throne disputes and the conditions of nomadic life, the high culture and civilization that had been established were unable to be sustained. In the thirteenth century, many small dynasties fought for political supremacy in Anatolia. Toward the end of the century, Ertuğrul and his son Osman, from the Oghuz Turks tribe, laid the foundations for the Ottoman Empire in northwestern Anatolia, just before the Byzantine Empire. This small organization grew rapidly for geographical, military, strategic, and other reasons, ruling over more than half of Anatolia within a century and becoming neighbors with the kingdoms of Wallachia and Serbia (today Serbia and southern Romania) in the Balkans. After the battle in Ankara in 1402 between Yıldırım Bayezid, the fourth Ottoman sultan, and Timur, the great ruler of Central Asia, the Ottoman Empire experienced a serious crisis for about a decade but quickly recovered and conquered Istanbul 40 years later. (shrink)

In the second half of the nineteenth century, education and modernization efforts rapidly increased in the Ottoman Empire. Numerous new institutions emerged during this period, and new projects began being implemented. The origins of all these developments actually lie in the reforms made during the reign of Sultan Mahmud in the first half of the century and the subsequent renewal movements of Sultan Abdülmecid’s reign. In this respect, the educational developments during the reigns of Sultan Abdülaziz and Sultan Abdülhamid (...) II are entirely a continuation of the previous developments with close continuity between them. (shrink)

From the 1630s to the 1680s the Kadızadeli movement dominated the political scene in the Ottoman capital of Istanbul, the latter part of this period coinciding with the Ottomans’ greatest expansion of their land empire. Based on the teachings of Birgivi, and with clear influences from Ibn Taymiyya, the Kadızadeli movement worked to eradicate religious innovations, sometimes through the use of force. However, the Ottoman defeat at Vienna in 1683 marked the political downfall of the Kadızadelis in Istanbul (...) and elsewhere in Ottoman lands. Yet within 60 years the movement of Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhāb emerged in Najd with striking similarities. Both movements voiced strictures against religious innovations, particularly regarding seeking the intercession of the dead at grave sites, for which they accused their opponents of unbelief (kufr), and both were willing to use force if necessary to establish their opinions. This paper traces the historical and scholarly links between these two important movements, and includes a detailed examination of the scholarly credentials of Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhāb. This fuller contextualization should enable a clearer understanding of the religious climate in which Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhāb started his movement. (shrink)

Ahmed Mâhir, who was born in Kastamonu in 1860-70, is one of the last period Ottoman scholars and is known by the penname "Ballıkızâde". He lived in the 19th century, during the Constitutional Monarchy period when the West progressed in many directions and the Ottoman Empire began to lose land alongside its reforms. After taking lessons from the scholar Ahmed Hicâbî, he also gave lectures and educated many students, and taught tafsir and theology for thirteen years at Daru'l-Fünûn (...) Faculty of Theology and Medresetü'l-Vâizîn. In addition to this, the scholar, who has served as a member of the Supreme Court, a judge, and a deputy, also appears as a political personality. Mâhir, who has four published works, is one of the important personalities that Kastamonu raised in religious, political, and literary fields. In this study, the Constitutional Era and the position of the science of tafsir in this period are discussed. Secondly, after transferring information about Ahmed Mâhir's life, his exegesis method on the works of "Mu'cizât-ı Kur'âniyye" and "al-Fâtiha fî Tefsîri'l-Fâtiha" was examined. The qualitative research method and document analysis technique wasused for this study. In addition, the data were analyzed with the help of description, sampling and association techniques. The fact that Ahmed Mâhir has both a political and religious personality and that we have four works about him today makes it important to research him. In this context, the study aims to reveal Ahmed Mâhir's exegesis based on his works. A doctoral thesis on him, in which his mystical aspect was emphasized, and an article by the same person, again, two master's theses were made about the work he wrote in the field of Sufism. Some sources provide concise information about his life and works, and brief information given in some biographical or literature studies. But his works named "Mu'cizât-ı Kur'âniyye" and "al-Fâtiha fî Tefsîri'l-Fâtiha" have not been studied academically. This situation made this study important. In addition, the existence of various interpretations on whether the author's interpretation of Surah Fâtiha is original or not has caused us to consider this issue as a problem. As a result of our analysis, Ahmed Mâhir has conveyed the negative political or religious situations of his period, especially in his work "Mu'cizât-ı Kur'âniyye". Based on the idea that the Qur'an is perfect and contains everything, he used the verses to correct these situations. His work "el-Fâtiha fî Tefsîri'l-Fâtiha" shows us both the traces of the Ottoman tafsir accumulation of that period and that this scholar has a scientific tradition on tafsir, hadith, and literature. (shrink)

Slavery, which is thought to have existed since the appearance of mankind in stage of history, has developed in parallel with the civilization progress of mankind. The altering conditions, particularly the developments in production relations that are based on economic activities, have also shaped slavery. In the Early Ages, slaves were used only in agricultural production, but later on, they were begun to be used in various areas. The developments experienced throughout the history in slavery have followed different courses in (...) every society and every civilization. Slavery, which has possessed differences in geographical context, was shaped by social values and belief systems. Scientific and intellectual developments since 18th century, which is also known as the Age of Enlightenment, have influenced many institutions of societies and caused a change in the institution of slavery as well. The modern and libertarian ideological movements, which developed in the West, spread to the Ottoman State in the 19th century and led to significant shifts in the life of the state and society. Ottoman State followed modern developments in the slavery system and took some measures to ban slavery in its territory, particularly since the Tanzimat era. One of the regions where these measures were taken is the Middle East. Archival documents were used for this study which includes the initiatives of the Ottoman State that tried to terminate the slave trade in the region with various instructions and firmans. According to documents there was an intense effort to block this trade in the Middle East where was an important slave trade area with regard to Ottoman geography. However, despite these hard efforts, it is seen that a complete success regarding blocking slave trade in the Middle East could not be achieved. (shrink)

The main purpose of this study is to become acquainted with the educational institutions in Ottoman Empire during and after the 18th century. In this respect, special attention is given to which initiatives were taken in terms of education and which educational institutions were established during the aforementioned period. The need to comply with the West in terms of science, culture, reasoning, and technological advancements has led to the questioning of the current madrasah system. Upon revising the educational system (...) of the madrasah, which had difficulties in being productive and attaining to the necessities of the time, there have been initiatives primarily to establish and structure military schools. These attempts to reform education was intensively seen as from the early 18th century. The above-mentioned changes and progress have gained momentum with the Tanzimat era. It was observed that during this period, many schools were established beyond military; education levels were clarified and; females were given right to study. Similar to Tanzimat era during the first Constitutional Monarchy and Autocracy eras, positive contributions toward educational reforms were made. However, beginning from the middle of the second Constitutional Monarchy era, the economic and social complications that the state was going through had a negative impact on the educational system and the practicality of the educational institutions.Summary: Education has been the most important factor in determining the social, economic, and cultural level of a society. The level of development, which is the determinant of the superiority of the nations to each other over the world, varies according to the importance given to education. To be a pioneer in the scientific sense, to be able to have technological opportunities, to make people live more comfortable and peaceful, to have more power in the economic field and to ensure the continuity of the nation that depending on all these, it will be possible with the understanding of education that can read the time and future well. The fact that world states are superior to each other in different periods of history is directly related to their understanding of education. It can be said that in the centuries following the beginning of the new age, especially the Western nations have taken a more positive step at this subject. The changes in both mental and action spheres such as XVI. century Renaissance movements, XVIII. century enlightenment movement and finally the industrial revolution triggered the development in the scientific and technological field. In these periods the importance given to thinking and the freedom of thought has been the main factor of the progress in the scientific field. The European nations, which went beyond their religion-based bigotry and prioritized the free and secular understanding, have become superior to other nations of the world. However, it is not quite possible to say that in the same periods the Ottoman Empire was able to adapt with the same speed to such accelerations of change and development that placed in Europe. One of the main reasons for this situation and perhaps most importantly is that the educational concept in the Ottoman Empire remained within a static structure in the last centuries. In particular, the matters such as the madrasa being away from productivity, the limitation of the understanding of the science only with religious sciences, has led to the problem of inability to adapt to the rapid transformation that in Europe. The first steps towards eliminating this weakness noticed by the state executives over time has been taken through the improvement and transformation of the Ottoman educational institutions. It is possible to say that the first attempts as to these restructures of education, which is also called as Westernization or modernization by the educational historians, has begun in the period of Sultan III. Selim. In the context of the Nizam-ı Cedid movement, a number of positive initiatives in education, such as the improvement of madrasas, the opening of military schools and translation activities, constitute the core of the changes that will take place in later periods. Immediately afterwards, in the period of II. Mahmut, making the reading and writing education compulsory, opening of Western-style junior high school, establishing medical and vocational schools that provide education at higher education level are considered as positive innovations of the period. The time interval from the proclamation of the Tanzimat edict until the First Constitutional monarchy is the period in which the institutionalization and structuring towards education in the Ottoman Empire is at the highest level. Besides many educational institutions in this process where the ministry responsible for education and training is established and the regulation containing the arrangements regarding this field is put into force, one of the most important initiatives made is laying the foundations of the Dâr al-Fünûn (Ottoman University) which is considered as the first university in this land. The fact that many educational institutions established in this period that are the roots of today's educational institutions is important in terms of demonstrating the accuracy of the initiatives within the mentioned period. In Meşrutiyet (the First Constitutional Monarchy) and the subsequent period of Mutlakiyet (Autocracy), contributions were provided on previous positive structuring. However, the social and economic problems experienced in the country since the second half of II. Meşrutiyet (the 2nd Constitutional Monarchy) have been effective in the inability of continuing innovations towards education. In this study, the educational institutions established in the Ottoman Empire before and after the Tanzimat period were discussed. The aim is not just to reveal what these schools are. It was also aimed to emphasize which areas in which schools are required to be based on which needs, which obstacles are encountered during the change of mentality in education, regulatory activities foreseen to overcome obstacles and to what extent they have been successful. In this regard, the signals of change as to the structure of educational institutions, which could be the source of most of the republic period, started from the beginning of 1700s and continued until World War II period. During this period of more than a hundred years, the political periods related to the structure and functioning of the state have also been influential in the structuring of educational institutions. In fact, the Reorganization (Tanzimat) period, which is known as ‘reform’ in the mentioned process, is considered as the stage where the change and transformation concerning education is the most. It is seen that the process of westernization still continues even though it is not with the same acceleration in the Constitutional Monarchy and Autocracy periods after the Reorganization period. When looking at the facility of educational institutions in chronological order, it is determined that there is a dominated understanding that prioritizes to train military staff in the military field and to have a competent army with the technological possibilities of the time, in other words, to create a strong defence system against the foreign powers of the country. Indeed, for the first time in order to give technical information about modern military, Hendesehane opened and started to operate in İstanbul in 1734 by Mahmut I; Mühendishâne-i Bahrî-i Hümâyûn, the school of the first military maritime was opened in 1775 in order to provide modern education; Mühendishâne-i Berrî-i Hümâyun was founded in 1795 in Istanbul, in order to train artillery and military officer (military engineer); Mekteb-i Harbiye, which was opened in 1835 to train officers, and Menşe-i Küttab-ı Askeri, which was established to train military scribes, contributed to the contemporary construction of the army. In the mentioned period, the most important change outside the military area was in the health area. In this sense, in order to meet the medical doctor needs of the army, Tıbhâne-i Amire was established in 1827. In 1867, the first civilian medical school, Mekteb-i Tıbbiye-i Mülkiye, started education and training. Another important innovation movement for education was in the field of law. In this context, the School Law was established in 1880. In order to train competent staff in administrative staff, the schools of the Mekteb-i Mülkiye, the schools of teacher, the schools that enable women to do education, the improvement of schools that train the clergy and the regulations based on this take attention as educational activities carried out in the mentioned period. (shrink)

This article argues that in the late-sixteenth and the early-seventeenth centuries the high-ranking Ottoman judges and professors of law, the mevali (sing. mevla, lord), came to constitute a privileged social group, a nobility of sorts, whose members could pass on their social status to their sons. It discusses briefly the legitimizing and legal-administrative functions of the ulema, or scholar-jurists, which provided them with invaluable leverage vis-à-vis the Ottoman administrative apparatus and thus secured them certain privileges, and then summarizes (...) the main rules that governed ulema careers and brought about the development of a quite exclusive social group, the mevali, at the summit of the ulema hierarchy. Thereafter, the evidence that demonstrates the exclusivity of the mevali nobility in the period 1550–1650 is presented in some detail. The last part of the article introduces one of the most important mevali families of the seventeenth century, the Sa’deddinzades. (shrink)

Grown up as versatile people, Ottoman intellectuals had holistic views towards science, art and literature, and wrote in a variety of disciplines. It was not uncommon for a mathematician to write in philosophy, for a ḥadīth (report of the words and deeds of the Prophet) scholar to write history books, for a statesman to be busy with calligraphy or for a Shaykh al-Islām (the highest ranking Islamic legal authority) to have a “Dīwān” (a collection of poems). However, possibly due (...) to specialization-based scientific understanding of modern researchers, one side of these people generally came to the fore and some capabilities of them remained unknown. Grown up in Istanbul, capital town of Ottoman Empire, in late 16th and early 17th centuries, Okchuzāde Mehmed Shāhī was also one of these personalities called “hezār-fan” (polymath). Mehmed Shāhī served in top level offices of the State, was busy with art and literature, and became known for inshāʾ (composition) kind of works written with elaborate prose. Mehmed Shāhī earned a deserved fame with these capabilities and he was also a poet. Indeed, due to poems he wrote in his early ages, he was noticed by some biography writers about poets and his poems were mentioned in some anthologies. In addition to poetry anthologies, he had some classical works, and some couplets, quatrains and verses included in his prose works. In the present study, a collection and evaluation of poems by Mehmed Shāhī were presented.Summary: Ottoman statesman Okchuzāde Mehmed Shāhī was born in 1562 AD (970 AH) in Istanbul. He was son of Okchuzāde Mehmed Pasha (d. 995 AH/1587 AD) and served as Kātib (scribe), Defterdār (treasurer), Reīs-ul-kuttāb (chief of the scribes), Governor General of Cyprus and Aleppo. His real name was Mehmed, but he was mentioned in different sources by names such as Mehmed Bey, Mehmed Shāh, Mehmed Shāhī, Mir Mehmed Shāhī and Okchuzāde Mehmed Shāhī. Starting at a young age, he was well educated in madrasah (college). With his vibrant character and superior genius, he came to the forefront among his peers. He was educated under the supervision of Māʿlūlzāde Nakīb Efendi (d. 993 AH/1585 AD) and graduated in 988 AH/1580 AD at the age of 18. When Nakīb Efendi became Shaykh al-Islām in the same year, he started his official duty as Dīwān-ı Humāyūn (imperial council) secretary. With the duty of Executive Assistant, he became the secretary of Damad İbrahim Pasha who started to his office in 1004 AH/1596 AD. He worked under the patronage of the Pasha until Pasha’s death in 1010 AH/1601 AD. Mehmed Shāhī succeeded Musa Chelebi as Reīs-ul-kuttāb and Basdefterdar (chief treasurer) in 1005 AH/1596 AD, and was appointed as title deed and cadastre director in 1006 AH/1597 AD. However, he was dismissed from this duty and was included among the officials to join military campaign. He was prosecuted and tried for imprisonment for the accusation of coming to Istanbul without permission. He succeeded Hamza Pasha as Nishanci (high-ranking bureaucrat) in 1007 AH/1599 AD and was assigned to military campaign. Mehmed Shāhī was dismissed from his duty in 1008 AH/1600 AD. Although he was reappointed to his duty in the same year, he was dismissed again in 1010 AH/1601 AD. While Hamza Pasha was reappointed to his office, Mehmed Shāhī was not assigned to any duty. He succeeded Murad Efendi as the Defterdar of Egypt in 1013 AH/1605 AD. After this duty, one of the vassal Sanjak (administrative district) Beyliks (principalities) in Egypt was given to him. When vassal Sanjak Beyliks were abolished by Kara Mehmed Pasha, Beylerbeyi (governor) of Egypt, in 1016 AH/1608 AD, he returned to Istanbul. He was not appointed to an office for a long time. In 1029 AH/1620 AD, he was appointed as title deed and cadastre director in 1029 AH/1620 AD, and became Nishanci again in 1030 AH/1621 AD. He served in military campaign to Poland, but was dismissed from this duty during the campaign. He was appointed as Nishanci for the fifth time during the second reign of Sultan Mustafa (1622-1623). He was dismissed in 1033 AH/1624 AD and retired. In early 1039 AH/1630 AD, he died at the age of 69 in Istanbul. His tomb is near Ekmekchioghlu tomb in the vicinity of Sunbul Efendi.What is known about his family is limited to his son named Vakʿi Ahmed Efendi (d. 1060 AH/1650 AD). Ahmet Efendi learned Naskh, Thuluth and tevkīʿi types of calligraphy styles from his father. He served as anthology writer for Shaykh al-Islām Bahāī Efendi. He died in 1060 AH/1650 AD when he was serving as teacher in Sulaymaniyah Madrasah. His tomb is around Shaykh Vefa tomb.In addition to his administrative duties, Mehmed Shāhī was also interested in poetry, prose, calligraphy, mysticism, ḥadīth and tafsīr (exegesis). Possibly also due to his dismissal of duties many times in his life, he produced many works. Among them are Aḥsan al-ḥadīth, an-Naẓm al-mubīn fī āyāt al-erbaʿīn, al-Maqām al-Maḥmūd, Tarjuma-i Tuḥfa as-ṣalavāt, Jāmiʿ al-ghāyāt, Mukhtār al-akhyār, Qānūn-i Jadīd-i Arāḍi, Munsheat ve Dīwān. Famed for his prose works, the author was also a poet. With his couplets which he wrote under pseudonym of Zaynī, he managed to get on the anthology of Kınalızāde at his twenties. He was celebrated with the expression of “Arrow of word from his bow of soul has reached the target of approval from masters; he is at a young age (at his twenties)”. Subsequently adopting pseudonym of Shāhī, the poet had some poems published within the works of Beyānī, Nevʿizāde and Mustaqimzāde as well as within his own prose works. Mustaqimzāde even mentioned that Mehmed Shāhī had a dīwān. Nevertheless, this work of him has not been found yet. A total of 30 poetry works of Mehmed Shāhī were found in various sources, except for his translations of 40 ḥadīth and 40 Qur’ān verses written in poetry. Of his 30 poetry works, 26 were written in Turkish and 4 in Persian. Various sections of ʿarūḍ (meter) were used in these works written as couplets, quatrains and verses. It could be stated that his poems rich in Persian and Arabic words had a rich rhyme frame. In his poetry works in which religious, literary, historical, legendary and mysticism themes were worked, concepts and figures such as Allah, the Lord, Messiah, Messenger, Risālet (messengership), intercession, Kāfūr al-Ikhshīdī (966-968), Mustaʿsim (d. 656 AH/1258 AD), Ibn Alkamī (d. 656 AH/1258 AD), Naṣīr-i Tūsī (d. 672 AH/1274 AD), Jamshīd, Keyumars, Uftade, Hudāyī, Majūsī, Kizilbash, Bayramī and muftī (jurist capable of giving a formal legal opinion). His poems were about intercession demand from the Messenger (PBUH), sin of serving to Persian, importance of an invention, praise of Uftade Sultan (d. 988 AH/1580 AD), effect of prayer, fate of administrator favoring his relatives, futility of envying the rich, importance of fighting with Zoroastrian, benefits of exhibition of sorrow, value of skillful people, resembling of the world to a bride with a thousand grooms, beauty of eloquence, ignominy of leaving chastity for lust, asking for forgiveness for sins, talent of understanding the words, not giving quarter to enemies, praise of Hz.ʿUmar, humbleness, value of lack of worldly things, sufferance due to the beauty of the beautiful, needing not to wonder why the beloved one is far away, evil of protecting the snot, richness of Arabic language, deeds of Anatolian fāḍils (virtuous), importance of endeavor in succeeding the closeness to God and respectability of ʿAzīz Maḥmūd Hudāyī (d. 1038 AH/1628 AD). Okchuzāde Mehmed Shāhī was an Ottoman statesman who also earned a well-deserved fame for his works written in inshāʾ (composition) genre of elaborate prose. In addition, he also had poetry works. Praised for the poems which he wrote in his early ages by anthology writers who included his poems in their anthologies, the poet also had some couplets and quatrains scattered among his own prose works. His poems in the form of couplets and quatrains within abovementioned works mostly were about religious, literary, legendary, historical and mysticism themes.Mehmed Shāhī was knowledgeable in tafsīr, ḥadīth, mysticism and calligraphy, and had good levels of Arabic and Persian. Writing poems in Persian, Mehmed Shāhī was decorated his prose works with Arabic expressions such as Qur’ān verses, ḥadīths and proverbs. It could be stated that such decorations made the language of his poems more difficult. Nevertheless, his poems are plainer and easier compared to his prose works. The poet who also had lyrical poems generally preferred ḥikamī (sapiential) style and wrote genres such as munacaat (prayer to God), shafaatnāme (intercession epistles), historical quatrain, medhiye (panegyric) and hicviye (epigram). His poems in anthologies were lyrical, those in Aḥsan al-ḥadīth and an-Naẓm al-mubīn were didactical and those in Munsheat were epic. Based on an evaluation of these poems, it could be stated that he was a poet with a style, though not a poet of first class. (shrink)

This chapter attempts to analyse the shift in the Adriatic policy of the Ottoman Empire in the Napoleonic period. The focus is on the formation of the Republic of the Seven United Islands — the Ionian islands of Corfu, Paxos, Leucada, Cephalonia, Ithaca, Zante and Cythera — through active Ottoman and Russian intervention. Ottoman-Russian quarrels over the status of the Republic as well as the conflict between imperial realities versus local interests are integral to the understanding of (...) the delicacies of running the Adriatic frontier in the Napoleonic period. When the Russo-Ottoman alliance shattered and the Ionian Islands were abandoned to the French together with the four coastal towns, the Ottomans once again resorted to the good old policy of cautious diplomacy; that is to say, the provisioning of the occupying force in Corfu. (shrink)

This chapter aims to provide an outline of the archaeological remains reflecting the Ottoman presence on the Middle Nile, with preliminary interpretation and suggestions for areas in which future research could most profitably concentrate. The Nubian frontier region of the Ottoman Empire is one of its least-known areas. It raises numerous questions relating to both Sudanese and Ottoman history, as well as the nature of relations between the Ottomans and the Funj, in which the Ottoman garrisons (...) on the Middle Nile must have played an intermediary role. While Sai is traditionally thought of as marking the southernmost extremity of Ottoman rule, the evidence of some of the sites above suggests that Ottoman rule extended further south, towards Hannek. (shrink)

The two books surveyed in this review article have, despite containing quite different subject matter, two important aspects in common: they both try to push the borders of Ottoman historiography and to be truly innovative. The first does that within the challenging new topic of identity—in the first place Ottoman identity, but quite often another kind, sometimes expressed in the life of one person—and the second deals with a much more technical area, that of Ottoman law, challenging (...) several of the theoretical assumptions and conclusions of the former generation of Ottoman legal scholars. (shrink)

The northern frontiers of the Ottoman Empire lay across a swathe of lands between Hungary and Iran, arcing through the principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia, then north of the Black Sea through the steppes of southern Ukraine, and finally proceeding further east along the Caucasus Mountains as far as the Caspian Sea. In a frontier region such as the one on the northern Black Sea, where environment, human geography and historical traditions made the steppe an alien place that did (...) not readily yield to control and assimilation, the fortress was indispensable for maintaining the centre's presence. As imperial presence in such an area was anchored at and emanated from the fortress, the fortress can be seen as a prime target of a strategy aimed at learning about this frontier of the Ottoman world. (shrink)

Empire was never an important concept in Ottoman politics. This did not stop Ottoman rulers from laying claim to three titles that may be called imperial : halife, hakan , and kayser . Each of these pertains to different translationes imperii , or claims of descent from different empires: the Caliphate, the steppe empires of the Huns, Turks, and Mongols, and the Roman Empire. Each of the three titles was geared toward a specific audience: Muslims, Turkic nomads, and (...) Greek-Orthodox Christians, respectively. In the nineteenth century a new audience emerged as an important source of political legitimacy: European-emergent international society. With it a new political vocabulary was introduced into the Ottoman language. Among those concepts was that of empire , which found its place in Ottoman discourse by connecting it with the existing imperial claims. (shrink)

This article examines the Shiite ulama's social and economic organization, which established its presence in the Atabāt region, its political and activist groups, and the factors that facilitated their emergence. The research investigates the perception of the Sunni state in the late Ottoman Empire and the reasons behind the spread of Shiism in southern Iraq, which became a dominant power in the region. In doing so, the focus was on the state's reactions to the spread of Shiism, which were (...) analyzed from the Sunni state's perspective. The scope of the research focuses on the period between the Qajar Dynasty (1796) and the First World War. In the early days of the Ottoman Empire, people of different religions and sects lived in the border regions. With the opening of madrasahs and the rise of the ulama, the state turned to a more madrasah-based Islam. The socio-cultural divide between the center and the periphery widened as Sunni authoritarianism gained influence in the center. Some Anatolian Turkman communities became part of the Safavid State. In the eastern part of the empire, this situation was exploited to the advantage of the Safavid Dynasty (1501–1736). Early in the 16th century, the Safavids crystallized Ottoman Sunnism and established Shiism as the official state religion. Thus, the two states engaged in fierce battles as they sought to present themselves as global empires and the sole defenders of Islam. This process influenced the stability of sectarianism in both nations, the legitimacy discourses they employed, and their attitudes in forming their communities. The Safavids continued their theological conflict until 1722, when the Afghans decisively defeated them. The subsequent period saw extensive negotiations regarding the Sunni-Shia war between Mahmud I (1730–1754) and Nadir Shah (1736–1747). However, Shiism was not recognized as a Sunni sect. The conflict between Sunnis and Shiites, which had been absent from the agenda for a long time, entered a new era with the establishment of Shiite ulama as dawah (invitation) centers in Atabāt al-Āliyah (Najaf, Karbala, Kazmiyya, and Samarra) and the rise to power of the Qajar Dynasty (1796-1925) in Iran in the early 19th century. The sources for this research include Ottoman archival documents, British archival documents, and secondary literature on the topic. In the relevant archival documents, it is possible to observe the Ottoman state's Sunni reactions and the Iraqi Shiite ulama's emergence as a dominant force in the region. (shrink)

The issue of Palestine is a religious, political and cultural issue that transcends continents; historically, it has hosted the oldest civilizations and the holiest cities, all heavenly religions have been affiliated with it and many prophets have lived in these lands. God Almighty has granted it a number of advantages not granted to others and, starting from this, has created a starting point for Palestine to become one of the most effective and influential issues in its surroundings and even in (...) the entire world. This impact did not only occur in a political dimension, but also went beyond this and transcended thought, culture, economy and other areas. When we look at the literary aspect of the Palestine issue, what it affects, what it is affected by and what is poetically associated with Palestine, we see that Ottoman Turkish literature and modern literature are closely connected to this issue. This connection, which has been politically, historically, intellectually and religiously connected to Palestine since the foundation of the Ottoman Empire, continued until the Turkish Republic. The relationship between Palestine and Turkey continues with problems, different standards and dialectics. How could Palestine, an inseparable part of the Ottoman Empire, not be so important? What confirms the importance that the Ottoman State gave to Palestine is the interest of Suleiman the Magnificent in Palestine and the special attention he showed to it, which is narrated in history books. Similarly, Sultan Abdulhamid II, while rejecting the offers and provocations of the Jews, gave great importance to Palestine and openly stated that the price of Palestine was the price of 800 million Muslims and that he would not surrender Palestine to the Jews as long as he lived. This attitude he displayed even led to his dethronement. However, what interests us in this study is how and what Ottoman literature and especially poetry about Palestine are. In other words, it is the poetic treatment of the Palestinian issue and at a special historical stage. We have limited our research to the scene of the Divan, that is, classical Ottoman poetry, and its relationship with Palestine in terms of its political, artistic, historical, intellectual and doctrinal foundations, so that this will be a threshold that we can rely on in the future. As a matter of fact, it has become an urgent need to complete a comprehensive study in the Arabic language on the relationship between Turkish and Arabic literature, specifically in Palestine. (shrink)