An interpretation of relations between the central Ottoman Empire and provincial Iraqi society in the early modern period.

This book studies the functions and responsibilities of Islamic courts and explores the processes of adjudication and dispute resolution in the context of the late seventeenth- and early eighteenth-century Ottoman Anatolia.

This book is a new history of the Ottoman Empire's Tanzimat reforms in the provinces of Edirne and Ankara. It studies variation across the two provinces and the crucial role of local intermediaries such as notables, tribal leaders and merchants who at times undermined the power of the state but in other times worked hand-in-hand with state officials to build roads, improve infrastructure and provide security.

This skillfully written text presents the full sweep of Ottoman history from its beginnings on the Byzantine frontier in about 1300, through its development as an empire, to its late eighteenth-century confrontation with a rapidly modernizing Europe. Itzkowitz delineates the fundamental institutions of the Ottoman state, the major divisions within the society, and the basic ideas on government and social structure. Throughout, Itzkowitz emphasizes the Ottomans' own conception of their historical experience, and in so doing penetrates the surface view provided by the insights of Western observers of the Ottoman world to the core of Ottoman existence.

Charts the Ottoman Empire's unique path to creating a realm of social life in which public opinion could be formed.

Provincializing the history of the Ottoman Empire, this book provides a critical approach to the projects of ‘modernity’ that took place in the Eastern Mediterranean over the past two centuries. Leaving their mark on this period are; the turmoil of insurgency in Greece and Egypt, a growing intervention of European Powers in Eastern Mediterranean politics, and the unfolding of large reform projects within the administration of the Ottoman Empire. Whilst these developments have prompted enduring debates over Middle Eastern paths of transformation, the case of Cyprus has remained isolated from these discussions, something this book seeks to address. One of the first research monographs to appear in English on Cyprus during the eventful times of the Ottoman ‘long’ 19th century, this book consistently seeks to provide a dialogue between source analyses and theoretical frameworks. Exploring the myriad relationships between this singular locality and the regional – not to say global – dynamics of empire, trade and social change at that time, A Provincial History of the Ottoman Empire will be of interest to students and scholars with an interest in the Middle East and Modern History.

A history of the political transformation of the Ottoman Empire from the 16th century to the present by an anthropologist who has spent 30 years studying Turkish history and culture.