Transforming of Ethos and Developing New Norms and Institutions

Part II discusses the transformation of education from traditional to modern through developing new institutions, introducing new cultural content. Legal identity and autonomy of the Darülfünun and its financial well-being, the evolution of modern scholarly literature and terminology, and the tradition of academic research are explained in detail. This part sheds light on an important and pioneering experiment involving both Islamic and Western cultures. It tracks the multifaceted transformation at work in İstanbul during the transition from classical to modern modes of scientific education. The Ottoman administrators themselves occupy the focus of my study, as they were the ones who set the terms for the new ethos that came to undergird the modern norms and institutions of the empire. In doing so, this study situates the establishment of the Darülfünun within the general context of Ottoman modernization.

Genesis, Development, and Closure of the Darülfünun

Part I explains the emergence of the educational tradition and the idea of a darülfünun [House of Sciences]. There had been several attempts to build a university, and each attempt had failed for different reasons. Part I discusses the socioeconomic reasons of such attempts and their failures. As far as education was concerned, the Ottomans inherited the academic institutions and traditions that had proliferated under the rule of their political predecessors, the Seljuk Turks (1037–1194). These charitably funded centers of learning had been in continuous existence since the founding of the Ottoman Empire until its end in the first quarter of the twentieth century. Until the nineteenth century, the Ottomans continued to seek answers to their most pressing intellectual and practical problems from within Islamic culture and its institutions of learning. It was only after the Ottoman government was compelled to face the political advance of Europe that Ottoman administrators turned their attention westward for scientific and pedagogical inspiration.

An Analytical Overview of the Foundation of Darülfünun

In this Epilogue the history of the Darülfünun is analytically discussed from the Ottoman modernization point of view started by Tanzimat reforms and as a pinnacal element of its public education policy. Attention is drawn to a noticeable parallel between the development of the Ottoman University and the process of the evolution of European university to industrial development posited by Fritz K. Ringer; accordingly the establishment of Darülfünun belongs to an “early industrial phase.” However, as was the case in Europe during the early industrial phase, there was in fact little connection between higher education and economic life. The Ottoman case followed a pattern of development similar to that in France and Germany, where the educational system served the needs of growing government bureaucracies, and these bureaucracies eventually did take an interest in both technological programs and economic development.

The Legacy of Darülfünun

Part III highlights the impact of the Ottoman University outside the Ottoman domain. The Darülfünun in İstanbul inspired various leaders in the other parts of the Muslim world. Students trained at the Darülfünun became influential advocates for the new Arab nationalism by providing the necessary infrastructure for national universities throughout the Arab-speaking provinces. Out of this intellectual ferment, a new Ottoman Turkish scientific language developed, the terminology from which served as a convenient vehicle for expressing and teaching modern science throughout the empire. This is perhaps the first monograph study of the development of such a language.