Science in the Ottoman Empire

Abstract

Scientific activities observed within the borders of the Ottoman Empire throughout the six centuries of its history displayed a unique course of development. Ottoman scientific tradition was initially formed under the influence of the experiences of earlier Islamic centres of science and culture. Ottoman science was established on the scientific heritage of the Seljuk state and on the foundation of the educational and scientific institutions that were established in the Anatolian cities in that period. The Muslim and Jewish scholars who came from Andalusia made another interesting contribution that was discovered recently in the Ottoman scientific literature. The formation of the classical period Ottoman literature was generally realized in the madrasa environment and in the fields of religious subjects, mathematics, medicine and astronomy. Ottoman Turkish became the basic language frequently used in the transfer of modern sciences both to the students of new institutions of learning and to the public.