Travels in the Ottoman History with Evliya Çelebi

TRAVELS IN THE OTTOMAN HISTORY WITH EVLİYA ÇELEBİ HIST 317, SPRING 2011

Aslı Niyazioğlu [email protected] Office hours: TueThur 11-12 or by appointment SOS 263

Course Requirements

Preparation for each class by doing the assigned readings is an essential part of this course. You will be expected to participate in discussions, submit 4 short response papers (23 February, 15 March, 19 April, 16 May), take a mid-term exam (March 29th), and make presentations. There will also be quizzes or assignments where you will be asked to identify major issues, people or concepts in a short paragraph.

The aim of the response papers is to prepare you for the discussions. These papers will not be more than 2 pages double-spaced (Times New Roman 12). Late papers will not be accepted without a valid medical excuse. Please answer the questions clearly and briefly supporting your argument with specific examples from your readings. You have to submit both an electronic copy using “Turn-it-in” and a paper copy on the required date.

During your presentations, you will be expected to provide a brief summary of your readings and discuss them by addressing the following questions:

What does Evliya Çelebi emphasis or omit in his writings about this topic? What do we learn when we compare the writings of Evliya Çelebi with the studies by modern historians? And last, but not least: What do you find interesting in your readings and why?

Grading will be as follows: Presentation, Quizzes, Participation 20% Mid-term exam 30% Response papers 50% (Papers 1,2& 3 10% each, Paper 4 20%)

Readings are electronically available at: http://libunix.ku.edu.tr search Reserves by Course under Hist 317. You could also purchase a reader in hardcopy from the photocopy center at the library.

Syllabus is subject to change.

1 Week 1 (7-9 February) Introduction Cemal Kafadar, “The Ottomans and Europe,” in Handbook of European History, 1400-1600, eds. T.A. Brady, et at., (Leiden: 1994-5), p. 589-633. [Recommended background reading]

Week 2 (14-16 February) Travels, Travel-Writing and the Seyahatname Roxanne L. Euben, Journeys to the Other Shore, Muslim and Western Travelers in Search of Knowledge (Princeton and Oxford: 2006), p. 46-52 and 63-89. Robert Dankoff, An Ottoman Mentality, The World of Evliya Çelebi, (Leiden and Boston: 2004): 1-6. Mehmet Tütüncü, “Seyahatname’de Kitabeler ve Evliya’nın Hattat ve Hakkaklığı Hakkında” in Çağının Sıradışı Yazarı Evliya Çelebi, Nuran Tezcan (ed.) (İstanbul: 2009), 397-412.

Week 3 (21-23 February) A Curious Young Man in Istanbul Robert Dankoff, An Ottoman Mentality, The World of Evliya Çelebi, (Leiden and Boston: 2004): 21-47. Katib Çelebi, The Balance of Truth, Translated wit an introduction and notes by G.L. Lewis, (London: 1957), 132-152, with Encyclopedia of Islam article on Katip Çelebi. Evliya Çelebi, Seyahatname, Transcription by Orhan Şaik Gökyay, published as Evliya Çelebi Seyahatnamesi, (Istanbul: 1996) vol 1, 9-11 & vol 2 7-8.[you are not expected to read the Ottoman-Turkish originals, but try to have a sense of Evliya Çelebi’s style] English translation by Robert Dankoff and Sooyong Kim, An Ottoman Traveler, Selections from the Book of Travels of Evliya Çelebi (London: 2011), 3-8 and 35-38.

**Response Paper I (due February 23rd) Compare the intellectual pursuits of Evliya Çelebi and Katip Çelebi.

Think about what it meant to grow up in the mid-seventeenth century Istanbul. (How and where did they receive their education? What were their family backgrounds and how did it influence their intellectual life? How did they access books? In which subjects and areas were they interested? Among whom did they share these interests and how?)

Week 4 (28 Feb-1 March) Dreams, Legends and History John Freely, Evliya Celebi’nin Istanbulu, trans. Müfit Günay, (Istanbul: 2004): 13-52 (English original not printed).

PLEASE NOTE:

2 For this week’s lectures, we will visit Ayasofya, Hippodrome and Ahi Çelebi Mosque (setting for Evliya Çelebi’s dream) on Saturday. Date and time to be announced.

Week 5 (6-8 March) Raconteur of the Urban Life Robert Dankoff, An Ottoman Mentality, The World of Evliya Çelebi, (Leiden and Boston: 2004), p. 48-56. Evliya Çelebi, Seyahatname, Transcription by Orhan Şaik Gökyay, published as Evliya Çelebi Seyahatnamesi, (Istanbul: 1996), vol 1 181-185, 290, 298, 318.[recommended not required] English translation by Robert Dankoff and Sooyong Kim, An Ottoman Traveller, Selections from the Book of Travels of Evliya Çelebi (London: 2011), 17-21, 29-31.

Week 6 (13-15 March) Social Circles and Love at a Palace

Robert Dankoff, trans., The Intimate Life of an Ottoman Statesmen, Melek Ahmed Pasha (1588-1662) as Portrayed in Evliya Çelebi’s Book of Travels, p. 6-12, 31-36 (by Rhoads Murphey), 222-36, 259-85. Evliya Çelebi, Seyahatname, Transcription by Yücel Dağlı, Seyit Ali Kahraman and İbrahim Sezgin, published as Evliya Çelebi Seyahatnamesi, (Istanbul: 1996), vol 5, 130-135 [Suggested not required] Nuran Tezcan, "Seyahatname'deki Aşk Öyküsü: Bir Kaya Sultan Vardı!," Kebikec, 2006, 21, 13-27.

**Response Paper II (March 15th) What is the intimate life of an Ottoman princess and her husband according to Evliya Çelebi? (Focus on Evliya Çelebi’s presentation of fears, family ties, gender relations, and being a royal son-in-law in the seventeenth century.)

Week 7&8 (20-29 March) Taverns, Bathhouses, and Excursion Spots Suraiya Faroqhi, “What happened in Istanbul Gardens and Beauty Spots? Evliya Çelebi on Religion, Commination and Entertainment,” unpublished paper presented at Bogazici University Symposium, September 2011. Bruinessen&Boeschoten, Evliya Çelebi in Diyarbakır, (Leiden, N.Y., Kobenhavn, Köln: 1988), 177-81 Evliya Çelebi, Seyahatname, Transcription by Orhan Şaik Gökyay, published as Evliya Çelebi Seyahatnamesi, (Istanbul: 1996), vol 1, 206-207, 286-287 and vol 2 16-18. [recommended not required]

3 English translation by Robert Dankoff and Sooyong Kim, An Ottoman Traveler, Selections from the Book of Travels of Evliya Çelebi (London: 2011), 21-22 and 38-42

MIDTERM MARCH 29nd DURING CLASS

Week 9 (3-5 April) Sufi Lodges and the Spiritual Realm Robert Dankoff, trans., The Intimate Life of an Ottoman Statesmen, Melek Ahmed Pasha (1588-1662) as Portrayed in Evliya Çelebi’s Book of Travels, p.114-124

SPRING BREAK APRIL 9-13th

Week 10 (17-19 April) Salonica Mark Mazower, Salonica, City of Ghosts, Christians, Muslims and Jews, 1430- 1950, (N.Y.: 2005), p. 32-63. Evliya Çelebi, Seyahatname, Transcription by Seyyit Ali Kahraman, Yücel Dağlı and Robert Dankoff, published as Evliya Çelebi Seyahatnamesi, (Istanbul: 2003), vol 8, pp 63-76.[Suggested not required] Modern Turkish translation by Seyit Ali Kahraman and Yücel Dağlı, Günümüz Türkçesiyle Evliya Çelebi Seyatnamesi (İstanbul: 2004), vol 8, 63-76. [Alternative Reading for Non-Turkish Speakers] Evliya Çelebi, Seyahatname, English translation by Robert Dankoff and Sooyong Kim, An Ottoman Traveller, Selections from the Book of Travels of Evliya Çelebi (London: 2011), 278-93.

**Response Paper III (due April 19th) Discuss Evliya Çelebi’s description of Salonica in comparison with the study of the city by the modern historian Mazower. (What do we learn from Mazower’s work on Salonica? What does Evliya Çelebi emphasis, omit or alter in his account?)

Week 11 (24-26 April) Cairo Doris Behrens-Abouseif, “Egypt’s Adjustment to Ottoman Rule, Institutions, Waqf, and Architecture in Cairo (16th and 17th Centuries)”, (Leiden, New York, Köln: 1994); 134-144 Evliya Çelebi, Seyahatname, Transcription by Seyyit Ali Kahraman, Yücel Dağlı and Robert Dankoff, published as Evliya Çelebi Seyahatnamesi, (Istanbul: 1996), vol 10, 263-65, 277-78.[Suggested not required] English translation by Robert Dankoff and Sooyong Kim, An Ottoman Traveller, Selections from the Book of Travels of Evliya Çelebi (London: 2011), 403-406.

4 Mustafa Ali, Description of Cairo, Translated by Andreas Tietze as Mustafa Ali’s Description of Cairo, (Vienna: 1975), 7-8, 36-37& 40-43.

Week 12 (3 May) Vienna Nabil Matar, In the Lands of Christians, Arabic Travel Writing in the Seventeenth Century, (New York and London: 2003), xiii-xlviii. Robert Dankoff, An Ottoman Mentality, The World of Evliya Çelebi, (Leiden and Boston: 2004), 62-69. Evliya Çelebi, Seyahatname, Transcription by Seyyit Ali Kahraman, Yücel Dağlı and Robert Dankoff, published as Evliya Çelebi Seyahatnamesi, (Istanbul: 1996), vol 7, 86-87 and 99-126.[Suggested not required] English translation by Robert Dankoff and Sooyong Kim, An Ottoman Traveller, Selections from the Book of Travels of Evliya Çelebi (London: 2011), 230-247.

No Class on May 1st Official Holiday

Week 13 (9-10 May) Eyüp Çiğdem Kafescioğlu “A Shrine at the City’s Edge” in Constantinopolis/Istanbul Cultural Encounter, Imperial Vision, and the Construction of the Ottoman Capital,(University Park: 2009), 45-52. Cemal Kafadar, “Eyüp’te Kılıç Kuşanma Törenleri” in Eyüp: Dün/Bugün (ed.) Tülay Artan (İstanbul: 1994): 50-62 Evliya Çelebi, Seyahatname, Transcription by Orhan Şaik Gökyay, published as Evliya Çelebi Seyahatnamesi, (Istanbul: 1996), 168-174. [Suggested not required] Modern Turkish translation by Seyit Ali Kahraman and Yücel Dağlı, Günümüz Türkçesiyle Evliya Çelebi Seyatnamesi (İstanbul: 2004), vol 1 358-371.

PLEASE NOTE: For this week’s lecture, we will visit Eyüp on Saturday. Date and Time to be announced.

Week 13 (16-18 May) Looking at Istanbul with Evliya Çelebi **Response Paper IV (due May 16th) Discuss your visit to a neighborhood you choose from the Seyahatname and what you discovered by visiting it with Evliya Çelebi. (Rather than giving an inventory of buildings, focus on the ways in which Evliya Çelebi perceived and presented his city. Compare it with your ways of observation and narration)