Sex and Transcultural Connections in Early Modern Istanbul

Early modern Istanbul was a vibrant and culturally diverse space. Where previous generations of scholars often argued that the city was divided along religious and cultural boundaries that were breached only rarely and then with difficultly, more recent scholarship has highlighted the dynamically co...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Studi e materiali di storia delle religioni
Main Author: Dursteler, Eric R. 1964- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Morcelliana [2018]
In: Studi e materiali di storia delle religioni
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Istanbul / Ottoman Empire / Venetians / Interpersonal relationship / Interculturality
Further subjects:B Merchants
B Venezia
B Scholarships
B Diplomacy
B Religion
B Sociability
B diplomazia
B Venice
B mercanti
B Istanbul
B sexual relationships
B Interpersonal Relations
B relazioni sessuali
Description
Summary:Early modern Istanbul was a vibrant and culturally diverse space. Where previous generations of scholars often argued that the city was divided along religious and cultural boundaries that were breached only rarely and then with difficultly, more recent scholarship has highlighted the dynamically connected nature of the city and the wide range of spaces and modes of interaction that characterized it, including trade, sociability, work, and common religious practices. This essay will address this gap through an examination of cross-cultural sexual relations in the city, and in particular within the expatriate Venetian community. Sexual relationships were commonplace between Venetians and Ottomans: merchants established long-term ties with local women while members of the diplomatic mission had more transitory relationships with both men and women in the immediate vicinity of the Venetian embassy. These intimate links played an important role not only in individual connections that transcended religious and cultural boundaries, but they also had implications for broader diplomatic and political relations between the early modern Venetian and Ottoman polities. (English)
ISSN:2611-8742
Contains:Enthalten in: Studi e materiali di storia delle religioni