Ottoman Cities in German Travel Books 1850 - 1912

Ottoman Cities in German Travelogues 1850 - 1912 Book Description Although travelogues are not often used as sources in historiography, they can actually offer an extremely rich repertoire of information, observations and impressions about the period in which they were written. Aysel Kaya, Ottoman Cities in German Travelogues 1850-1912, makes a significant contribution to the field by tracing the German and Austrian travelers who visited the Ottoman Empire for different purposes between the second half of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. It provides detailed descriptions of everything from economy to geography, from social life to architecture, through the eyes of people who came to the country, some for the purpose of obtaining news and espionage, and others for scientific research or the curiosity of discovering new places. What emerges is a dynamic and lively portrait of the Ottoman society, which went through a drastic transformation while undergoing the test of modernization in every aspect of life. The travelogues discussed in the writing of this book offer a very broad panorama of the period covering many disciplines. These travelogues have an important place in terms of understanding the daily life of the Ottoman society in the city and rural areas, their relations with other states and the economic structure of the country, especially between 1850 and 1912. Although the book is called a travelogue, it should be emphasized that these are not ordinary works. Because the people who wrote these works, that is, the travelers, were not ordinary people. They explained the Ottoman society and Anatolia of the period with an in-depth look. AYSEL KAYA (From the Promotional Bulletin)