Istanbul As A Multicultural And Multireligious Center In The Light Of Evliya Çelebi s Seyahatname

With regard to the informations in his Seyahatname being preserved and transmitted up to now, Evliya Çelebi, who lived in 17 th Century, is an extraordinarily important witness of Istanbul s past days, namely Istanbul as a capital city for a multitude of cultures, ethnicities, and religions. Volume I, as being the Seyahatname s most sizable volume, is completely dedicated to Istanbul. The significance of these writings, which had taken the author nearly ten years, is indisputable. After roving and researching his Maskat-ı res (place of birth) Istanbul on this occasion for ten years and not leaving out one single spot, he began to travel to other places in 1640: to Bursa, Izmit, Trabzon, and Kırım. He never neglected Istanbul and considered its political, economical, and cultural developments broadly and frequently. Staying away from Istanbul for a long period of time he roamed almost the whole of Anatolia. While travelling with various objectives he visited Iran, Irak, Syria, Palestine, the Balkans, Hungary, which then was one of the most important centers under Ottoman rule in Central Euorpe, Erdel and some places within the borders of today s Austria. During the Tartar s invasions, Evliya Çelebi obtained the occasion to get to know a broad geography until Poland, Sweden, and the Netherlands. Very colourful is his depiction of Vienna, a place he visited accompanying the ambassador s committee. Being together with Pashas (Melek Ahmed Paşa, Derviş Mehemmed Paşa, Köprülü Fazıl Ahmed etc.) entrusted with duties on behalf of the State made it much easier to see all those places. As one of his last journeys he made the Hac (Pilgrimage) all on his own as it seems, but it is also known that he made use of some written documents. After his Hac he tackled Egypt, Sudan, and Habeşistan in a broad way. It is known that he completed his travelling in Egypt, which is another important center with respect to cultural diversity. The observations and remarks on nations living in regions outside the Ottoman Empire can be accepted as a testimonial being worth investigation in view of common life experiences. In this context the remarks concerning Istanbul s multicultural and multireligious life have to be taken into consideration especially.