SCIENCE IN THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

Özet

The scientific activities observed within the borders of the Ottoman Empire
throughout the six centuries of its history displayed a unique course of
development. Although the Ottomans had shared many mutual elements with the
other Islamic societies remaining outside of the Ottoman Empire, from the
viewpoint of historical heritage and tradition, they also had some differences due to
the geographical location, administration of the state and the dynamism of the
society. Thus, Ottoman science had an innovative attribute from the viewpoint of
the developments experienced, even though it shared a lot with the Islamic world
outside the Ottoman lands from the aspect of its sources. Ottoman scientific
tradition was initially formed under the influence of the experience of the earlier
Islamic centers of science and culture. However, after a short period of time,
Ottoman science reached a point where it could influence the old centers of science
and culture and serve as an example to them. On the other hand, this innovative
character of the Ottomans was emphasized by the fact that as of the seventeenth
century the influences of Western science gradually appeared in the Ottoman world
and began to influence the other Islamic countries. These developments brought the
Ottomans, who represented the Islamic world as a whole, to a point of constituting
a unique synthesis between Islam and the modern West.