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The Ottoman Empire ranks alongside the Roman and Byzantine as one of the most powerful and long-lasting imperial systems in world history. In existence from the late thirteenth century until 1923 and embracing at its height most of Southeastern Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa, it was certainly the most imposing and arguably the most influential political system over the course of more than a millennium of Islamic history.
Though the Ottoman Empire left an indelible mark on people in many parts of the world, in the modern West its influence is little understood. For many living in former Ottoman-controlled regions, this heritage is often rejected or misrepresented as unwanted alien domination. Imperial Legacy gathers together distinguished scholars to demonstrate how the Ottoman legacy continues to shape patterns of behavior and perception among the peoples of Western Asia, Northern Africa, and Southeastern Europe. The authors also explore how this complex history is reinscribed by nations and ethnic groups in the building of ideologies and identities today.
Ranging widely through issues including politics, diplomacy, education, language, and religion, these essays also address the different regional perspectives on the Ottoman Legacy found in the Arab world, the Balkans, and the Republic of Turkey.
Imperial Legacy enriches our understanding of the Ottoman past and provides needed insights into the post-Ottoman present.
List of contents
1. The Background: An Introduction, by L. Carl Brown
Part 1: Perceptions and Parallels
2. The Meaning of Legacy: The Ottoman Case, by Halil Inalcik
3. The Problem of Perceptions, by Norman Itzkowitz
Part 2: The Arab World and the Balkans
4. The Ottoman Legacy in the Balkans, by Maria Todorova
5. Yougoslavia's Disintegration and the Ottoman Past, by Dennison Rusinow
6. Memory, Heritage, and History: The Ottomans and the Arabs, by Karl K. Barbir
7. The Ottoman Legacy in Arab Political Boundaries, by Andre Raymond
Part 3: The Political Dimension
8. The Ottoman Legacy and the Middle East State Tradition, by Ergun Ozbudun
9. The Ottoman Administrative Legacy and the Modern Middle East, by Carter Vaughn Findley
10. Ottoman Diplomacy and its Legacy, by Roderic H. Davison
Part 4: The Imperial Language
11. The Ottoman Legacy to Contemporary Political Arabic, by Bernard Lewis
12. The Ottoman Legacy in Language, by Geoffrey Lewis
Part 5: Europe, Economics and War
13. The Economic Legacy, by Charles Issaw
14. The Military Legacy, by Dankwart A. Rustow
Part 6: Religion and Culture
15. Islam and the Ottoman Legacy in the Modern Middle East, by William Ochsenwald
16. The Ottoman Educational Legacy: Myth or Reality?, by Joseph Szyliowicz
17 Epilogue, by L. Carl Brown
About the author
Edited by L. Carl Brown
Summary
The Ottoman Empire ranks alongside the Roman and Byzantine as one of the most powerful and long-lasting imperial systems in world history. This book aims to bring together scholars to demonstrate how the Ottoman legacy shapes patterns of behavior and perception among the people of Western Asia, Northern Africa, and Southeastern Europe.
