Table of Contents

1. The Background: An Introduction, by L. Carl Brown Part 1: Perceptions and Parallels 2. The Meaning of Legacy: The Ottoman Case, by Halil Inalcik 3. The Problem of Perceptions, by Norman Itzkowitz Part 2: The Arab World and the Balkans 4. The Ottoman Legacy in the Balkans, by Maria Todorova 5. Yougoslavia's Disintegration and the Ottoman Past, by Dennison Rusinow 6. Memory, Heritage, and History: The Ottomans and the Arabs, by Karl K. Barbir 7. The Ottoman Legacy in Arab Political Boundaries, by Andre Raymond Part 3: The Political Dimension 8. The Ottoman Legacy and the Middle East State Tradition, by Ergun Ozbudun 9. The Ottoman Administrative Legacy and the Modern Middle East, by Carter Vaughn Findley 10. Ottoman Diplomacy and its Legacy, by Roderic H. Davison Part 4: The Imperial Language 11. The Ottoman Legacy to Contemporary Political Arabic, by Bernard Lewis 12. The Ottoman Legacy in Language, by Geoffrey Lewis Part 5: Europe, Economics and War 13. The Economic Legacy, by Charles Issaw 14. The Military Legacy, by Dankwart A. Rustow Part 6: Religion and Culture 15. Islam and the Ottoman Legacy in the Modern Middle East, by William Ochsenwald 16. The Ottoman Educational Legacy: Myth or Reality?, by Joseph Szyliowicz 17 Epilogue, by L. Carl Brown

Promotional Information

The Ottoman Empire ranks alongside the Roman and Byzantine as one of the most powerful and long-lasting imperial systems in world history. In existence from the late thirteenth century until 1923 and embracing at its height most of Southeastern Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa, it was certainly the most imposing and arguably the most influential political system over the course of more than a millennium of Islamic history.Though the Ottoman Empire left an indelible mark on people in many parts of the world, in the modern West its influence is little understood. For many living in former Ottoman-controlled regions, this heritage is often rejected or misrepresented as unwanted alien domination.Imperial Legacy gathers together distinguished scholars to demonstrate how the Ottoman legacy continues to shape patterns of behavior and perception among the peoples of Western Asia, Northern Africa, and Southeastern Europe. The authors also explore how this complex history is reinscribed by nations and ethnic groups in the building of ideologies and identities today. Ranging widely through issues including politics, diplomacy, education, language, and religion, these essays also address the different regional perspectives on the Ottoman Legacy found in the Arab world, the Balkans, and the Republic of Turkey. Imperial Legacy enriches our understanding of the Ottoman past and provides needed insights into the post-Ottoman present.

About the Author

L. Carl Brown is Garrett Professor in Foreign Affairs Emeritus at Princeton University, and a former director of the interdisciplinary Program in Near Eastern Studies.

Reviews

"A feast of thoughtful and informative essays, this timely collection explores an age-old issue: the impact of the past on the present. Contributors -- whose names make a very impressive list -- consider... influences of the Ottoman Empire on its successor states in the Balkans and the Arab world. If, as the editor remarks, the studies 'aim more for broad themes than discrete details, ' they provide substance enough for thorough lessons in historical influence." -- "Choice"

A feast of thoughtful and informative essays, this timely collection explores an age-old issue: the impact of the past on the present. Contributors -whose names make a very impressive list -consider . . . influences of the Ottoman Empire on its successor states in the Balkans and the Arab world. If, as the editor remarks, the studies 'aim more for broad themes than discrete details, ' they provide substance enough for thorough lessons in historical influence.