Ani Sargsyan – författare

This collection explores the complexities of translation in the Ottoman Empire, examining the intersections of Arabic, Persian, and Turkish (elsine-i s̱elās̱e) that formed the linguistic backbone of Ottoman high culture and literature. The contributors investigate translation practices, cultural exchange, and power relations that shaped the Ottoman intellectual landscape, covering topics such as literary translations, lexicography, and the evolution of Ottoman Turkish as a lingua franca. Focusing on the fifteenth to the nineteenth centuries, the articles reveal the intricate web of linguistic, cultural, and historical forces that influenced translation decisions, authorship, and readership in the Ottoman Empire, shedding new light on the dynamics of cross-cultural communication and knowledge transfer in pre-modern Eurasia.

The volume investigates flows of knowledge that transcended social, cultural, linguistic and political boundaries. Dealing with different sources such as dictionaries, early printed books, political advice literature, and modern periodicals, the case studies in this anthology cover a time frame from the 15th to the early 20th century. Being concerned with a wide variety of geographical areas, including the Ottoman capital Istanbul, provincial settings like Ottoman Palestine, and also Egypt, Bosnia, Crimea, the Persian realm and Poland-Lithuania, this volume gives transepochal and transregional insights in the production, transmission, and translation of knowledge. In so doing it contributes to current debates in transcultural studies, global history, and the history of knowledge.