At the turn of the 17th century, the historical Armenian population centres in Eastern Anatolia and the Caucasus were ravaged by war with Persia, rebellion, famine and economic collapse. This instability caused mass migrations towards secure territories in Western Anatolia, Istanbul and Thrace, migrations which catalysed a renaissance of Armenian literary and cultural life in the Ottoman capital.This book traces the emergence, experiences and cultural and literary production of Armenian communities in and around Istanbul and the western provinces of the Ottoman Empire in the early modern period. Using both Ottoman Turkish and little-known Armenian sources, Henry Shapiro provides a systematic study of the Armenian population movements that resulted in the cosmopolitan remaking of Istanbul and the birth of the Western Armenian diaspora.

About the Author
Henry Shapiro, Postdoctoral researcher, Polonsky Academy for Advanced Study in the Humanities and Social Sciences at the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute.


Book Information
ISBN 9781474479608
Author Henry Shapiro
Format Hardback
Page Count 336
Imprint Edinburgh University Press
Publisher Edinburgh University Press