The book of travels by evliya celebi is not just a fascinating travel book. The state of evliya celebi studies center for middle. He sailed down the nile, performed the pilgrimage to mecca, and visited the caucasus, iran and many other countries. Evliya celebi was born on the 25th of february 1611 in istanbul. Evilya celebi book of travels is the worlds first real virtual exhibition, and it happened above a public library in east london. He was a raconteur, dervish, musician, muezzin and linguist. The book of travels evliya celebis 10volume travel book, which is a memoir, is an indispensable source for the nations living under ottoman dominance and their neighbors, as much as it is for turkish culture. Although many of the descriptions in this book were written in an exaggerated manner or were plainly inventive fiction or 3rdsource misinterpretation, his notes are widely accepted as a useful guide to the cultural aspects and lifestyle of 17thcentury ottoman empire. Sep 15, 2011 the book of travels by evliya celebi is not just a fascinating travel book, it is a key source for understanding the ottoman empire in the seventeenth century, despite the fact that the author had a reputation for occasionally confusing fact with fiction. The collected notes of his travels form a tenvolume work called the seyahatname travelogue.
Evliya celebis father was the chief jeweller to the courts, and thanks to the talent of his father evliya was allowed to enjoy the favor of the court. Evliya celebis book of travels is too long to translate, and too big to write about. The turkish traveller evliya celebi toured kosovo in 1660, northern albania and montenegro in 1662, and southern albania in 1670. World lit i evilya celebi, the book of travels youtube. As portrayed in evliya celebi s book of travels seyahatname by. He is in the pantheon of the great travel writers of the world, though virtually unknown to western readers. Evliya celebi in albania and adjacent regions kosovo, montenegro. He mingled with military figures and heads of state. The result of these travels was his masterwork, the seyahatname 18981939.
It is probably the longdrawn and most enthusiastic travel story by any author in any language and an essential text for all viewpoints of the ottoman empire at the time of its biggest expansion in the 17th century. Feb 26, 2020 evliya celebi, also called dervis mehmed zilli, born march 1611, constantinople now istanbul, turkeydied c. Oct 25, 2018 the book of travels seyahatname of evliya celebi occupies a different place in the literature of travel. Because of his gift in reciting the quran, evliya was presented to sultan murad iv and admitted to the palace, where he received extensive training in calligraphy, music, arabic grammar, and. Born in istanbul in 1611, he started travelling in 1640 and continued for over forty years, stopping eventually in cairo where he died in about 1685. Over the course of his travels he wrote ten volumes detailing his adventures. Vol 2 evliya celebis book of travels temporarily out of stock. Nielsen book data evliya celebi was the 17th centurys most diligent, adventurous, and honest recorder, whose puckish wit and humor are laced throughout his tenvolume masterpiece. Publishes scholarly editions of portions of the seyahatname, with english translation and commentary. His father was dervis mehmed zilli, an ottoman court jeweller and his mother was a abkhazian. Selections from the book of travels of evliya celebi dankoff, robert, kim, sooyong, evliya, celebi on. Analysis of evliya celebis book of travels in terms of the concept. Seyahatname book of travels is a unique and important text.
Books by robert dankoff author of evliya celebi seyahatnamesi. Pdf samsun expressions in the book of travels of evliya. Selections from the book of travels of evliya celebi by robert dankoff online at alibris. Evliya celebi was an enlightened man in a variety of ways who believed in equality, freedom of thought and intellectual debate, and found all of these things present in islamic societies. Selections from the book of travels of evliya celebi robert dankoff on free shipping on qualifying offers. Dankoff is an excellent expert of evliya celebi, who was an influential travel writer from the 17th century. Evliya celebi project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. Land and people of the ottoman empire in the seventeenth century. It is a source of major importance for our knowledge of the region in the seventeenth century. Evliya celebis book of travels in the topkapi palace.
An ottoman traveller selections from the book of travels of evliya celebi translation and commentary by robert dankoff and sooyong. His father was dervis mehmed zilli, a jeweller for the ottoman court. And when i heard a description of the seven climes and the four corners of the earth, i longed to travel. Evliya celebi had provided information and made evaluations about the economic, social, cultural life, state officials in charge of the places and languages used by ethnical groups, in his works. Evliya celebi was the 17th centurys most diligent, adventurous, and honest recorder, whose puckish wit and humor are laced throughout his tenvolume masterpiece. We arrived in the eastern black sea region of turkey in early september intending to follow in the footsteps of evliya celebi by bicycle to scout a potential tourist route and to consider his travelogues. Melek ahmed pasha 15881662 as portrayed in evliya celebis book of travels. This is a beautiful website that accompanies the art exhibit inspired by evliya celebis 400th birthday, and his crown jewel. Nov 16, 2016 class discussion of evilya celebi s book of travels seyahatname and its 17thcentury ottoman context. Evliya celebi traversed the ottoman empire and beyond for over 40 years. To mark the 400th anniversary of his birth, unesco has declared evliya celebi a man of the year. Evliya celebi was the orhan pamuk of the 17th century, the pepys of the ottoman world a diligent, adventurous and honest recorder with a puckish wit and humour. A few pages are enough to accustom one to his unusual and flowing style.
Book of travel s is the worlds first real virtual exhibition, and it happened above a public library in east. Evliya celebis the book of travels is described by the translatorseditors robert dankoff and sooyong kim in the. Evliya celebi, in his work seyahatna me book of travels, draws the reader s attention to certain narratives by repeated recourse to specific narrative genres. Sooyong kim selections from the writings of the 17thcentury ottoman who travelled for 40 years before dying in cairo in about 1685. The intimate life of an ottoman statesman, melek ahmed pasha. In the 17th century, an ottoman traveller evliya celebi was inspired by a. His mother was also a relative of the later grand vizier melek ahmed pasha. Mar 18, 2011 2011 is the 400th birthday of evliya celebi s birth. During his travels in south slavic regions of the ottoman empire celebi.
Oct 02, 2018 evliya celebi is the greatest travel writer of the ottoman empire. Evliya celebi was the 17th centurys most diligent, adventurous, and honest recorder, whose puckish wit and humor are laced throughout his tenvolume. His observations were published as a tenvolume manuscript, the seyahatname or the book of travels. His mother was a tribeswoman, a relative of the later grand vizier melek ahmed pasha. Seyahatname book of travels is a unique and important text, representing one of. This project aims to follow the route taken by evliya celebi, focused on travels of his trips in west turkey and romania timisoara, alba iulia, sibiu, bucharest, mangalia. This book is all about evliya s travels through the empire, from the arab middle east to the deep in balkan geography. This brand new translation brings evliya sparklingly back to life. Edited with translation, commentary and introduction volume 1 editors.
Unlike matsuo bashos narrow road to the deep north, cao xuequins story of the stone, and chikamatsu monzaemons love suicides at amijima, this narrative is not an explicitly literary one. Selections from the book of travels of evliya celebi robert dankoff, sooyong kim, celebi evliya on. Selections from the book of travels of evliya celebi 2nd ed. His work covers the historic events of the 17th century ottoman empire with vivid flashes into the life of the period and is an invaluable source of historical and geographic knowledge. This article will examine evliya celebis ekphrastic rendering of certain works of sculpture in seyahatname the book of travels and demonstrate the working of culture, creed, and aesthetic taste in the ekphrastic narrativity of foreign works of art. To date, only parts of it have been translated into english, by robert dankoff and sooyong kim, from whose book the quotations in this article are taken.
Although many of the descriptions in this book were written in an exaggerated manner or were plainly inventive fiction or 3rdsource misinterpretation, his notes are widely accepted as a useful guide to the cultural aspects and lifestyle of. This massive travelogue is entitled the seyahatname, or the book of travels. According to evliya celebi, the name mostar means bridge. Evliya celebi was the orhan pamuk of the 17th century, the pepys of the ottoman world a diligent, adventurous and honest recorder with a puckish wit and. Ali kayasi efsaneleri a garaib narrative in evliya celebis book of travels. Selections from the book of travels of evliya celebi. It contains vital information about the author, the work, and some really great maps and pictures. Caroline finkel celebrates a figure little known in the west. There s a gorgeous online exhibition about him here. The book of travels by evliya celebi is not just a fascinating travel book, it is a key source for understanding the ottoman empire in the. His seyahatname, or book of travels, is one of the worlds great works of literature.
The book of travels by evliya celebi, does anyone have any helpful. Celebi s account is sensitive to all the currents of his age and reflects them in his narrative. Evliya s style of writing was unconventional and often highly exaggerated, so, the tv show could be. This volume includes a critical edition and annotated translation of evliya celebi s descriptions of albania and adjacent regions, extracted from his seyahatname or book of travels. Evliya celebi turkish traveler and writer britannica. He collected his lively and eclectic observations into a tenvolume manuscript the seyahatname, or book of travels. Analysis of evliya celebis book of travels in terms of the. This book is all about evliyas travels through the empire, from the arab middle east to the deep in balkan geography. So, allow me to pitch book of travels the tv series. He says he slipped out of every difficulty in his adventurous life with ease because of. Analysis of evliya celebis book of travels in terms of. Evliyas written legacy is the seyahatname, or book of travels, comprising 10 volumes and thousands of pages composed in the highly recondite language of ottoman turkish.
Whatever its merits, it is not the work of a consciously literary artist. We have new and used copies available, in 0 edition starting at. Dervis mehmed zilli 25 march 1611 1682, known as evliya celebi ottoman turkish. Those who enjoy witch stories, history and geography will find in celebi a rich source of historical accounts in a lucid style and will find it hard to stop reading the book of travels.
An ottoman traveller is a selection of extracts from the book of travels. The relevant section of the seyahatname evliya celebis book of travels. Get an answer for the book of travels by evliya celebi, does anyone have any helpful insights on this book. Horseback riding enthusiasts might be interested in this project, to make it possible for riders to recreate one of celebi s journey, just as this crew is doing right now. Evliya celebis book of travels virtual tour of celibi exhibit. Evilya celebi book of travel s is the worlds first real virtual exhibition, and it happened above a public library in east london. His collection of notes from all of his travels formed a tenvolume work called the seyahatname book of travels. Travelogue, ethnography, architectural and musical guide, dream diary and action drama, intimate portrait of the ottoman porte, foreign phrasebook and economic catalogue, diplomatic history, it features battles.
Celebis book of travels presents a different set of challenges than the some of the other nonwestern works that weve looked at thus far. Evliya celebi at the sulaymaniyyah mosque in istanbul. Contentsshow life evliya celebi was born in constantinople in 1611 to a family from kutahya. In the 17th century an ottoman traveller evliya celebi was inspired by a dream to embark on a journey across the ottoman empire. It is a vast panorama, both an extensive description of the ottoman empire and its hinterlands, and an account of the authors peregrinations over roughly forty years 164080. Jan 01, 2020 today he would be described as a travel writer. Retracing evliya celebis travels university college oxford. Evliya celebis seyahatname or book of travels is the longest and fullest travel account in islamic literatureperhaps in world literature. He evliya celebi book of travels an extensive summary of the history of jerusalem and the aqsa mosque and the dome of the rock.
The intimate life of an ottoman statesman, melek ahmed pasha 15881662. In his book, evliya celebi traces his paternal genealogy back to khoja. The present volume includes a critical edition and annotated translation of his descriptions of these regions, extracted from books v, vi and viii of his seya. He mentions many places from egypt to vienna in the book.