An hour and a half’s flight from Istanbul lands a curious traveler in one of the most mesmerizing cities in the Balkans. Known over its history as Thessalonica, Salonica or Selanik, today’s Thessaloniki is the second-largest city in Greece. For all its touristic pull, the city has witnessed many far-reaching …
Read More »The Hejaz Railway
On Sept. 1, 1900, on the orders of Sultan Abdulhamid II, the Ottoman authorities started working on a 1,320 kilometer (820.2 miles) railway project, linking Medina to Damascus and eventually Istanbul in the north. The construction was finished in September 1908 and the railway remained in operation until it was …
Read More »Museum dedicated to Ottoman Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror opens in 2021
Turkey will establish a museum to honor Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II, also known as Mehmed the Conqueror, in northwestern Edirne province. A committee of 19 scientists was formed to establish the Fatih Sultan Mehmet Museum in the Saatli Madrassa, where Sultan Mehmed II was educated, in the city. Among the …
Read More »Ottoman descendants living in South Africa get Turkish citizenship
Fifteen South African descendants of Ottoman scholar Abu Bakr Efendi (Ebu Bekir Efendi), who was sent at the request of the British Empire to the Cape of Good Hope in 1862 to teach Islamic thought and culture to the Muslim community, became Turkish citizens with a presidential decree on Aug. …
Read More »The Palestine issue that cost Sultan Abdülhamid II the Ottoman throne
In the late 1800s, the Zionist movement called for a Jewish state to be established in Palestine. Sultan Abdülhamid II took a series of precautions to reverse the plan. However, when the sultan was dethroned and the Young Turks took charge, the movement was able to spread in the region …
Read More »Ottoman influence in European architecture
The 18th century was a period of great acculturation between the Orient and the West. The first thing that came to mind when the Orient was mentioned in Europe was the Ottoman Empire. The rise in Franco-Ottoman trade relations during the reign of Sultan Suleiman I (aka Suleiman the Magnificent) …
Read More »Eid Al Adha in the Ottoman Empire
Qurban Bayram, also known as Eid al-Adha, is the second significant holiday following Ramadan Bayram, also known as Eid al-Fitr, in the Islamic world. The religious festival is celebrated in commemoration of Prophet Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son on God’s command. Abraham, known as Ibrahim in the Islamic world, …
Read More »Ottoman architectures converted to Churches in Europe
Searching and traveling across the land that once constituted the Ottoman Empire, a master architect traced Ottoman buildings in 18 countries and found at least 329 of them had been turned into churches or bell towers. Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA), Mehmet Emin Yılmaz said he traced Ottoman architectural works …
Read More »Women and Ottoman empire
With the recently viewed opinion about how Sharia oppresses women, why not look back at the position of women in the Ottoman era. Let’s see how Europeans saw the Sharia ruled society. “Turks rule countries and their wives rule them. Turkish women go around and enjoy themselves much more than …
Read More »Ottoman Manners and Etiquettes
The Ottoman Empire was not just an Empire but a Civilization. A Civilization can be recognized through its various manners and etiquettes. Let’s have a look at some Ottoman manners and etiquettes. • If there was a yellow flower in front of the window, it meant: ‘there is a patient in …
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