The ottoman travellers’ perceptions of the far east in the early twentieth century

The Ottoman interest towards the Far East has recently begun to be examined in the literature of the disciplines of history and international relations. This article focuses on the relatively under-researched sources, namely the Ottoman travelogues on the Far East in order to analyze the Ottoman perception of this particular region. The Ottoman travellers to the Far East classified local people with regard to their level of development, and they perceived the Japanese, the Chinese and the Koreans differently in terms of their physiognomy and characteristics. Moreover, they vividly described the intense colonial rivalry over the Far East and especially criticized the missionary activities in the region. Finally, the projects for establishing a “unity of the East” were mentioned in these travelogues. These projects resulted in the emergence of “Eastern-ness” as a component of Ottoman identity besides its Ottoman, Turkishand Islamic dimensions. Therefore, racial taxonomy, anticolonial mode of thinking and the emphasis on the Eastern dimension of Ottoman identity make these travelogues extremely important sources for understanding the Ottomanperceptions of the external world.

Ottoman Empire ,

travelogue ,

Far East ,

the unity of the East ,

anti-colonialism ,

Japan ,

China ,

Korea ,