Alain Mikhail

Paperback

9780226638881

The Ottoman Empire, Egypt and Environmental History

Osman, the founder of the Ottoman Empire, had a dream in which a tree sprouted from his navel. As the tree grew, its shade covered the earth; as Osmans empire grew, it, too, covered the earth. This is the most widely accepted foundation myth of the longest-lasting empire in the history of Islam, and offers a telling clue to its unique legacy. Underlying every aspect of the Ottoman Empires epic historyfrom its founding around 1300 to its end in the twentieth centuryis its successful management of natural resources. Under Osmans Tree analyzes this rich environmental history to understand the most remarkable qualities of the Ottoman Empireits longevity, politics, economy, and society.

The early modern Middle East was the worlds most crucial zone of connection and interaction. Accordingly, the Ottoman Empires many varied environments affected and were affected by global trade, climate, and disease. From down in the mud of Egypts canals to up in the treetops of Anatolia, Alan Mikhail tackles major aspects of the Middle Easts environmental history: natural resource management, climate, human and animal labor, energy, water control, disease, and politics. He also points to some of the ways in which the regions dominant religious tradition, Islam, has understood and related to the natural world. Marrying environmental and Ottoman history, Under Osmans Tree offers a bold new interpretation of the past five hundred years of Middle Eastern history.

Contents:

Introduction: The Global Environmental History of the Middle East

Part One: Water

1. Irrigation Works

2. History from Below

3. Silt and Empire

Part Two: Work

4. Rural Muscle

5. Expert Measures

Part Three: Animal

6. Animal Capital

7. Brute Force

Part Four: Elemental

8. Food and Wood

9. Plague Ecologies

10. Egypt, Iceland, SO2

Conclusion: Empire as Ecosystem