Medieval medical schools in the Seljuk and Ottoman empires

Abstract

Throughout the Middle Ages, two Turkish empires (Seljuks and Ottomans), placed between the East and West, influenced the surrounding world in a powerful way. It is accepted that they used Islamic medical doctrines derived basically from Greco-Roman scientists, such as Hippocrates and Galen, and Islamic scientists, such as Avicenna and AlZahrawi [1, 2]. The Turkish (Anatolian) Seljuks attributed much importance to the sciences and they set up a specific building consisting of a “medrese” (medical schools) and a medical center, named “Darush-Shifa,” “Dar al-Shifa,” “Darul-Afiye,” or “Darus-Sihna” in Anatolia dating back to 1217 in which experienced physicians trained medical students (Fig. 1) (http://www.kayseri.gov.tr/images/resim_ random/gevher_nesibe_tedavi.jpg). The most famous of these are the Gevher Nesibe in Kayseri (1205), the Izzettin I Keykavus in Sivas (1217), the Torumtay in Amasya (1266), the Pervaneoglu Ali in Kastamonu (1272), and the Muinuddin Pervane in Tokat (1275) (http://www.kayseri. gov.tr/images/resim_random/gevher_nesibe_tedavi.jpg). In the Ottoman, the students were chosen from the brightest of “devsirme” children between 8 and 20 years of age who were conscripted from the non-Muslim populations of the Balkans before adolescence according to the system beginning with Murat I at 1363, and they were educated in the area of science, including medicine, and technology in the institution of Topkapi Palace, known as the Enderun (Fig. 2) (http://www.shareapic.net/324971HISTORY-OF-ANATOLIA.html; http://www.femir.org/ osmanli-kultur-ve-uygarligi-osmanlilarda-egitim-ogretimbilim-ve-sanat.html) [3]. The drawing on the cover of Child’s Nervous System depicts an adolescent boy from newly conquered Christian territories by the practice of “devsirme” for medical training (Fig. 3) (http://www. gezikitap.com/resimler/galeri/muk-2b.jpg). During the Ottoman Empire, the following medical centers were built in the following cities: Amasya Darussifa in Amasya (1308), Yildirim Darussifa in Bursa (1399), Fâtih Darussifa in Istanbul (1470), Leprocy Center and Mental Hospital in Edirne (1488), and Hafsa Sultan Darussifa in Manisa (1522) [4]. In the premodern era, various medical and surgical treatment options were practiced for headache, Childs Nerv Syst (2010) 26:147–148 DOI 10.1007/s00381-008-0797-z