A Locally Generated Modernity: The Ottoman Empire in the “Long” 18th Century

This workshop aims to provoke discussion and to facilitate future research surrounding the term "locally generated modernity” from a historical and contemporary perspective in the context of Islamic and Eastern Orthodox societies. During the “long” 18th century the Ottoman Empire demonstrated unexpected strength as well as cultural and political innovations. Over the past two decades Ottoman historians have employed the term “locally generated modernity” for a process that had its beginnings in the 17th century and both preceded and partly conflicted with attempts to modernize Ottoman society along Western lines in the first half of the 19th century. By approaching these local changes as an alternative form of “modernity,” scholars acquire a powerful means to understand the potential latent within these societies.

Image Credit: Ünver Rüstem

Convened by

• Walter Zev Feldman, Senior Research Fellow, NYUAD