A Comparison of Kātib Çelebī and Edward Bernard's Education, Works and Mental Backgrounds
Abstract
The comparison of Ottoman and European history can be viewed as a novel approach in historical studies. Therefore, this study adopted such an approach by focusing on two important figures of the Ottoman and British intellectual life. These two people, who are often known for their catalogue and bibliographic works, were studied with respect to their intellectual skills, educational and intellectual backgrounds. The study focused on similarities and differences, and efforts were made to uncover the reasons lying behind them. This is because, being leading figures in their own cultural contexts, Kātib Çelebī and Ed-ward Bernard are intellectuals of the Ottoman Classical Period and of the Renaissance, respectively. This study basically aimed to compare and contrast Kātib Çelebī [d. 1067/1657] and Edward Bernard [d. 1697] in terms of their educational background, studies, and mental background. It addressed how both scholars were brought up, what kind of works they produced besides why and how they produced them. Further-more, based on the data from this comparison, the study also investigated if Kātib Çelebī could be consid-ered as a Renaissance intellectual. The reader's attention was drawn to the characteristics of the period, and an overall description of a typical intellectual in the seventeenth century was provided. Thus, this was intended to paint a global picture of the mentality of the period. Therefore, it was shown that alter-native perspectives are also possible when it comes to Ottoman and European history.
Keywords
Islamic History, Ottomans, European History, Edward Bernard, Kātib Çelebī, Edward Bernard
References
- Adıvar, Abdülhak Adnan. Osmanlı Türklerinde İlim. İstanbul: Remzi Kitabevi, 4. Basım, 1982.
- Beckett, William. A Universal Biography; Including Scriptural, Classical, and Mythological Memoirs,Together with Accounts of Many Eminenet Living Characters the Whole Newly Compiled and Composed from the Most Recent and Authentic Sources. 1 Cilt. London: Mayhew, Isaac, and Co., 1834.
- Bernard, Edward. Catalogi librorum manuscriptorum Angliae et Hiberniae. Oxoniae: E Theatro Sheldoniano, 1697.
- Bilgicioğlu, Banu. “16. ve 18. Yüzyıllar Arasında Avrupa ve Osmanlı Münasebetleri Neticesinde Osmanlı ve Kültür Sanatının Avrupa Toplumu Üzerinde Gösterdiği Etkileşimlerden Bazı Örnekler”. Sanat Tarihi Yıllığı 19 (2006), 91-132.
- Cormack, Bradin – Mazzio, Carla. Book Use, Book Theory: 1500-1700. Chicago: University of Chicago Library, 2005.
- Flood, Raymond – Fauvel, John. “John Wallis”. Oxford Figures: Eighth Centuries Of the Mathematical Sciences. ed. John Fauvel vd.. 115-140. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2. Basım, 2013.
- Faroqhi, Suraiya. Osmanlı Tarihi Nasıl İncelenir: Kaynaklara Giriş. çev. Zeynep Altok. İstanbul: Tarih Vakfı Yurt Yayınları, 1999.
- Forbes, Eric Gray vd.. The Correspondence of John Flamsteed: First Astronmer Royal: Volume Two 1682-1703. Bath: IOP Publishing Ltd., 1997.
- Goodrich, Thomas. “Osmanlı Haritacılığı 1450-1700”. Doğumunun 400. Yıl Döneminde Kâtip Çelebi. ed. Bekir Karlığa, Mustafa Kaçar. 127-141. Ankara: Kültür ve Turizm Bakanlığı, 2012.
- Gökyay, Orhan Şaik. “Katip Çelebi: Hayatı-Şahsiyeti-Eserleri”. Katip Çelebi: Hayatı ve Eserleri Hakkında İncelemeler. 3-90. Ankara: Türk Tarih Kurumu, 1957.
