The Ali Vural Ak Center's Fall Lecture Series ended on November 15 with a talk by Dr. Huseyin Yilmaz, the Center's Co-Director, titled "Ottoman Europe or Europe's Ottomans?: The Politics of Defining the Self and the Other."
Dr. Yilmaz, a specialist in Ottoman history, opened his presentation by tracking the origin and use of certain terms such as "European" or "Ottoman", arguing that these perceptions of these "identities" had very different foundations. However, as Yilmaz explained, these terms developed over time to mean different things and were constantly being reinterpreted. By examining a number of historical primary sources, mainly European and Ottoman-era Turkish maps, Yilmaz contrasted the way Europeans and Turks saw both themselves and each other.
As the Enlightenment flourished in Europe, these maps began to change. Notions of "civilzation" started to shape perceptions of the Ottoman Turks and became the underlining factor in explaining conflict or antagonism between the two. The concept of European "superiority" to "inferior" Muslims became the dominant discourse in Europe, and became the basis for the ongoing debate of the nieneteenth century, the so-called "Eastern Question". As Yilmaz described, it was this period that essentially cemented these "civilizational" perceptions and ultimately shaped contemporary European and Turkish views on their relationship with each other.
To watch the entire lecture, click on the video below.