Event and News-Medieval Arabic Cosmography and its Ottoman Reception

14. September 2017, 18:00 Uhr - 20:00 Uhr

Orient-Institut Beirut

Public research seminar by Feray Coşkun

Thursday, 14 September 2017, 6-8pm, Orient-Institut Beirut
῾Ajā’ib al-makhlūqāt wa gharā’ib al-mawjūdāt by al-Qazwīnī and the Kharīdat al-‘ajā’ib wa farīḍaṭ al-gharā’ib by al-Wardī were among the most popular medieval Arabic cosmographies in the Islamicate societies. They were widely read and translated into other languages and even inspired Persian and Ottoman scholars to compose similar works.
Including a vast amount of material from travel literature, history, folklore and natural sciences, they intended to provide a general view of the cosmos and extensively dealt with its wondrous and curious entities.
In this presentation, Feray Coşkun will concentrate on the visual and contextual aspects of the ῾Ajā’ib al-makhlūqāt and the Kharīdat al-‘ajā’ib copies extant in the manuscript libraries of Istanbul with a particular focus on how the genre of ‘ajā’ib and gharā’ib literature is related to the diversity of the cosmos, divine omnipotence and wisdom.