TRAVELS IN THE OTTOMAN HISTORY WITH EVLYA ELEB

HIST 317, SPRING 2011

Asl Niyaziolu
aniyazioglu@ku.edu.tr
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 elebi emphasis or omit in his writings about this topic? What do
we learn when we compare the writings of Evliya elebi 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.

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 elebi, (Leiden and
Boston: 2004): 1-6.
Mehmet Ttnc,
Seyahatnamede Kitabeler ve Evliyann Hattat ve Hakkakl
Hakknda in ann Srad Yazar Evliya elebi, Nuran Tezcan
(ed.) (stanbul: 2009), 397-412.
Week 3 (21-23 February) A Curious Young Man in Istanbul
Robert Dankoff,
An Ottoman Mentality, The World of Evliya elebi, (Leiden and
Boston: 2004): 21-47.
Katib elebi,
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 elebi.
Evliya elebi,
Seyahatname, Transcription by Orhan aik Gkyay, published as
Evliya elebi 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 elebis style]
English translation by Robert Dankoff and Sooyong Kim, An
Ottoman Traveler, Selections from the Book of Travels of Evliya
elebi (London: 2011), 3-8 and 35-38.
**Response Paper I (due February 23rd)
Compare the intellectual pursuits of Evliya elebi and Katip elebi.
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 Celebinin Istanbulu, trans. Mfit Gnay, (Istanbul: 2004):
13-52 (English original not printed).
PLEASE NOTE:

For this weeks lectures, we will visit Ayasofya, Hippodrome and Ahi elebi Mosque
(setting for Evliya elebis dream) on Saturday. Date and time to be announced.
Week 5 (6-8 March)
Robert Dankoff,
Evliya elebi,

Raconteur of the Urban Life

An Ottoman Mentality, The World of Evliya elebi, (Leiden
and Boston: 2004), p. 48-56.
Seyahatname, Transcription by Orhan aik Gkyay,
published as Evliya elebi 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 elebi (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 elebis Book of
Travels, p. 6-12, 31-36 (by Rhoads Murphey), 222-36, 25985.
Seyahatname, Transcription by Ycel Dal, Seyit Ali
Kahraman and brahim Sezgin, published as Evliya elebi
Seyahatnamesi, (Istanbul: 1996), vol 5, 130-135 [Suggested
not required]
"Seyahatname'deki Ak yks: Bir Kaya Sultan
Vard!," Kebikec, 2006, 21, 13-27.

Evliya elebi,

Nuran Tezcan,

**Response Paper II (March 15th)

What is the intimate life of an Ottoman princess and her husband according to
Evliya elebi? (Focus on Evliya elebis presentation of fears, family ties, gender
relations, and being a royal son-in-law in the seventeenth century.)
Week 7&8 (20-29 March)
Suraiya Faroqhi,

Bruinessen&Boeschoten,
Evliya elebi,

Taverns, Bathhouses, and Excursion Spots

What happened in Istanbul Gardens and Beauty Spots?
Evliya elebi on Religion, Commination and
Entertainment, unpublished paper presented at Bogazici
University Symposium, September 2011.
Evliya elebi in Diyarbakr, (Leiden, N.Y., Kobenhavn,
Kln: 1988), 177-81
Seyahatname, Transcription by Orhan aik Gkyay,
published as Evliya elebi Seyahatnamesi, (Istanbul:
1996), vol 1, 206-207, 286-287 and vol 2 16-18.
[recommended not required]

English translation by Robert Dankoff and Sooyong Kim,

An Ottoman Traveler, Selections from the Book of Travels
of Evliya elebi (London: 2011), 21-22 and 38-42
MIDTERM MARCH 29nd DURING CLASS
Week 9 (3-5 April)
Robert Dankoff, trans.,

Sufi Lodges and the Spiritual Realm

The Intimate Life of an Ottoman Statesmen, Melek Ahmed
Pasha (1588-1662) as Portrayed in Evliya elebis 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, 14301950, (N.Y.: 2005), p. 32-63.
Evliya elebi,
Seyahatname, Transcription by Seyyit Ali Kahraman, Ycel Dal
and Robert Dankoff, published as Evliya elebi Seyahatnamesi,
(Istanbul: 2003), vol 8, pp 63-76.[Suggested not required]
Modern Turkish translation by Seyit Ali Kahraman and Ycel
Dal, Gnmz Trkesiyle Evliya elebi Seyatnamesi (stanbul:
2004), vol 8, 63-76.
[Alternative Reading for Non-Turkish Speakers]
Evliya elebi,
Seyahatname, English translation by Robert Dankoff and Sooyong
Kim, An Ottoman Traveller, Selections from the Book of Travels of
Evliya elebi (London: 2011), 278-93.
**Response Paper III (due April 19th)
Discuss Evliya elebis description of Salonica in comparison with the study of
the city by the modern historian Mazower. (What do we learn from Mazowers
work on Salonica? What does Evliya elebi emphasis, omit or alter in his
account?)
Week 11 (24-26 April) Cairo
Doris Behrens-Abouseif,
Egypts Adjustment to Ottoman Rule, Institutions, Waqf,
and Architecture in Cairo (16th and 17th Centuries), (Leiden, New
York, Kln: 1994); 134-144
Evliya elebi,
Seyahatname, Transcription by Seyyit Ali Kahraman, Ycel Dal
and Robert Dankoff, published as Evliya elebi 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
elebi (London: 2011), 403-406.

Mustafa Ali,

Description of Cairo, Translated by Andreas Tietze as Mustafa

Alis 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 elebi, (Leiden and
Boston: 2004), 62-69.
Evliya elebi,
Seyahatname, Transcription by Seyyit Ali Kahraman, Ycel Dal
and Robert Dankoff, published as Evliya elebi 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
elebi (London: 2011), 230-247.
No Class on May 1st Official Holiday
Week 13 (9-10 May) Eyp
idem Kafesciolu A Shrine at the Citys Edge in Constantinopolis/Istanbul
Cultural Encounter, Imperial Vision, and the Construction of the
Ottoman Capital,(University Park: 2009), 45-52.
Cemal Kafadar,

Eypte Kl Kuanma Trenleri in Eyp: Dn/Bugn (ed.)

Tlay Artan (stanbul: 1994): 50-62

Evliya elebi,

Seyahatname, Transcription by Orhan aik Gkyay, published as

Evliya elebi Seyahatnamesi, (Istanbul: 1996), 168-174.
[Suggested not required] Modern Turkish translation by Seyit Ali
Kahraman and Ycel Dal, Gnmz Trkesiyle Evliya elebi
Seyatnamesi (stanbul: 2004), vol 1 358-371.

PLEASE NOTE:
For this weeks lecture, we will visit Eyp on Saturday. Date and Time to be announced.
Week 13 (16-18 May) Looking at Istanbul with Evliya elebi
**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 elebi. (Rather than giving an inventory
of buildings, focus on the ways in which Evliya elebi perceived and presented
his city. Compare it with your ways of observation and narration)