Ottoman Turkish and Çaĝatay MSS in Canada


Book Description

There are over 275 Ottoman Turkish and Çaĝatay manuscripts in Canada, including more than 200 in the collection of Professor Eleazar Birnbaum. These are remarkable in terms of age (mostly 15th to 17th century) and subject range. The descriptions in this catalogue are unusually detailed: they include author, title, subject, contents, first and last words, date of manuscript, calligraphy, foliation, dimensions, and the location of similar manuscripts elsewhere. Among other special features are details of watermark designs in the paper (useful for dating undated manuscripts), descriptions of seals and notes of previous owners, and many colour illustrations. The catalogue also describes all Turkish manuscripts in the three other small Canadian collections: at the University of Toronto, McGill University (Montreal), and the Royal Ontario Museum.




Arabic and Persian Manuscripts in the Birnbaum Collection, Toronto


Book Description

Arabic and Persian Manuscripts in the Birnbaum Collection, Toronto includes many early copies, from the 6th century A.H. / 12th century C.E. onwards. They cover a wide range of subjects. The catalogue gives detailed descriptions of 66 Arabic and 34 Persian works, arranged by subject. Author and title indexes provide easy access, and photographs of selected pages enhance the descriptions. The manuscripts were acquired individually over many decades.




Historical Dictionary of Turkey


Book Description

The fourth edition of Historical Dictionary of Turkey covers Ottoman Empire and the Republic of Turkey through a time span of more than six centuries. It presents the basic characteristics of the two periods and traces the developments from an empire to a state-nation, from tradition to modernity, from a sultanate to a republic, and from modest country to a country that is already a regional power and further aspiring becoming a country to be reckoned with. This is done through a chronology, an introduction, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 900 cross-referenced entries on important personalities, politics, economy, foreign relations, religion, and culture. This book is an excellent resource for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about Turkey.




Turkish Language, Literature, and History


Book Description

The twenty two essays collected in Turkish Language, Literature and History offer insights into Turkish culture in the widest sense. Written by leaders in their fields from North America, Europe and Turkey, these essays cover a broad range of topics, focusing on various aspects of Turkish language, literature and history between the eighth century and the present. The chapters move between ancient and contemporary literature, exploring Sultan Selim’s interest in dream interpretation, translating newly uncovered poetry and exploring the works of Orhan Pamuk. Linguistic complexities of the Turkish language and dialects are analysed, while new translations of 16th century decrees offer insight into Ottoman justice and power. This is a festschrift volume published for the leading scholar Bob Dankoff, and the diverse topics covered in these essays reflect Dankoff’s valuable contributions to the study of Turkish language and literature. This cross-disciplinary book offers contributions from academics specialising in linguistics, history, literature and sociology, amongst others. As such, it is of key interest to scholars working in a variety of disciplines, with a focus on Turkish Studies.




Turkey: The Pendulum between Military Rule and Civilian Authoritarianism


Book Description

In Turkey: The Pendulum between Military Rule and Civilian Authoritarianism, Fatih Çağatay Cengiz explains Turkey’s trajectory of military and civilian authoritarianism while offering an alternative framework for understanding the Kemalist state and state-society relations.




From the Khan's Oven


Book Description

Spanning the history of Islamic Central Asia from medieval to modern times, this volume features groundbreaking studies of the region’s religious life and culture by leading scholars in the field.




The Ottoman Empire and the World Around it


Book Description

In Islamic law the world was made up of the 'House of Islam' and the 'House of War' with the Ottoman Sultan - successor to the early Caliphs - as supreme ruler of the Islamic world. However, in this ground-breaking study of the Ottoman Empire in the early modern period, Suraiya Faroqhi demonstrates that there was no 'iron curtain' between the Ottoman and 'other' worlds but rather a long-established network of connections - diplomatic, trading and financial., cultural and religious. These extended beyond regional contacts to the empires of Asia and the burgeoning 'modern' states of Europe - England, France, the Netherlands and Venice. Of course, military conflict was a constant factor in these relationships, but the overriding reality was 'one world' and contact between cultured and pragmatic elites - even 'gentlemen travelling for pleasure' - as well as pilgrimage and close artistic contact with the European Renaissance. Faroqhi's book is based on a huge study of original and early modern sources, including diplomatic records, travel and geographical writing, as well as personal accounts. Its breadth and originality will make it essential reading for historians of Europe and the Middle East.




Ebu's-su'ud


Book Description

The Jurist Ebu's-su`ud (c1490-1574) occupies a key position in the history of Islamic Law. He was a scholar who, for forty years, occupied successfully the senior judicial positions in the Ottoman Empire. Confronting the problem of reconciling classical Islamic jurisprudence with the day-to-day legal needs of an empire, he earned an enduring reputation as the jurist who harmonised the Holy Law of Islam with secular practice. The book examines the substance of this reputation by showing, through Ebu's-su`ud's writings, how he adapted classical Islamic legal doctrine to contemporary needs.




Qazaqlïq, or Ambitious Brigandage, and the Formation of the Qazaqs


Book Description

In Qazaqlïq, or Ambitious Brigandage, and the Formation of the Qazaqs Joo-Yup Lee examines the formation of new group identities, with a focus on the Qazaqs, in post-Mongol Central Eurasia within the context of qazaqlïq, or the qazaq way of life, a custom of political vagabondage widespread among the Turko-Mongolian peoples of Central Asia and the Qipchaq Steppe during the post-Mongol period. Utilizing a broad range of original sources, the book suggests that the Qazaqs, as well as the Shibanid Uzbeks and Ukrainian Cossacks, came into existence as a result of the qazaq, or “ambitious brigand,” activities of their founders, providing a new paradigm for understanding state formation and identity in post-Mongol Central Eurasia.




Crossroads of Cuisine


Book Description

Crossroads of Cuisine offers history of food and cultural exchanges in and around Central Asia. It discusses geographical base, and offers historical and cultural overview. A photo essay binds it all together. The book offers new views of the past.