Edited by Ebru Boyar, Kate Fleet
Ottoman Women in Public Space
Using a wealth of primary sources and covering the entire Ottoman period, Ottoman Women in Public Space challenges the traditional view that sees Ottoman women as a largely silent element of society, restricted to the home and not seen beyond the walls of the house or the public bath. Instead, taking women in a variety of roles, as economic and political actors, prostitutes, flirts and slaves, the book argues that women were active participants in the public space, visible, present and an essential element in the everyday, public life of the empire. Ottoman Women in Public Space thus offers a vibrant and dynamic understanding of Ottoman history.
Ebru Boyar, Ph.D. Cambridge University, is an Associate Professor at the Middle East Technical University, Ankara. Her publications include Ottomans, Turks and the Balkans: Empire Lost, Relations Altered (London, 2007) and A Social History of Ottoman Istanbul (Cambridge, 2010).
Kate Fleet, Ph.D. SOAS, London University, is Director of the Skilliter Centre for Ottoman Studies, University of Cambridge. Her publications include European and Islamic Trade in the Early Ottoman State (Cambridge, 1999) and A Social History of Ottoman Istanbul (Cambridge, 2010).
