THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

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Undergraduate Level

Pinar Emiralioglu, PhD, History

Course Description: The Ottoman Empire was the longest-lasting Islamic empire and the only one to figure as a major power in the history of both Europe and the Islamic world. This course is a chronological survey. It traces the history of the empire from its origins as an obscure band of frontier warriors, to the highpoint of its geopolitical power in the sixteenth century, and on to its further evolution as an increasingly complex and peaceful society, down to the opening of the period of European imperialism and rapid change. The last part of the course considers the process by which territories of the empire developed into independent nation-states, and discusses the legacy of the empire in its former lands. The course will address not only the Ottomans' political power, but also those economic, social, and cultural factors that helped explain that power and gave the empire such a distinctive place in the history of Western Europe, Balkans and the Middle East.

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