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aCknowleDGments tHe researCH anD writinG that have gone into this book would not have been possible without the patient support of friends and family. Almost twenty years ago my wife, Meg, and I embarked on our first trip to Turkey; since then Meg has shared my enthusiasm for understanding Turkish history and culture. This has meant living a more transient life than we would have liked. Nevertheless, in the midst of her own busy life as a mother and teacher Meg has willingly offered constant encouragement and help, for which I will be forever grateful. Our three wonderful children were born during my time as a doctoral student, and sharing in their lives the past fourteen years has been a source of great joy and fulfillment. Not only have Esther, Rosie, and Malcolm graciously put up with the demands that “the book” has placed on our lives, but they have contributed to the project in more ways than they realize. It is my sincere hope that their own lives have been richer as a result of this process in which we have all been engaged. My parents, Andrew and Margaret Brockett, provided me with the upbringing and education that were so critical to helping me thrive in the academic world. Over the years they have lovingly supported our family and provided constant encouragement even as this project has dragged on for longer than ought to have been the case. My father meticulously edited the final manuscript. My parents-in-law, Greg and Shay Foster, were responsible in no small degree for encouraging my early interest in how people lived and experienced the past—and they have warmly encouraged me even as I have pursued an area of research that they never would have anticipated. In the course of my research I have also benefited from friendship and assistance offered by so many people in Turkey. In some cases they went out of their way to help me locate obscure sources, while in others they patiently helped me to understand the significance of my sources and the larger contexts of Turkish history. Many warmly extended hospitality to me. No doubt I have failed to record some names, but they include Rifat Bali, Kemal Bülbül, Yılmaz Büyükerşen, Menderes Çınar, Ismail Kara, Asım Karaömlerioğlu, Uygur Kocabaşoğlu, Necmettin Özçelik, Mustafa Sungur, Mete Tunçay, Üstün Ünüğür, Bülent Varlık, Ahmet Yıldız, Tuncer Yılmaz, and Ahmet Yüksel. I am especially grateful for the friendship and generous help provided over xvi how happy to Call oneself a turk the years by Atilla Aydın, Cem Erdoğan, and Ibrahim Özdemir. Others beyond Turkey have provided invaluable advice in the course of my research , including Catherine Audard, Gary Leiser, and Horst Unbehaun. My research has depended on the resources provided by many institutions in Turkey. These include the American Research Institute in Turkey, the Millî Kütüphane, the Türkiye Büyük Millet Meclisi Kütüphanesi , the T. C. Başbakanlık Devlet Arşivleri in Ankara, the Türk Tarih Kurumu, the Atatürk Kitaplığı, the Beyazit Devlet Kütüphanesi, the Istanbul Üniversitesi Kütüphanesi, the Islam Araştırmaları Merkezi , the Basın Müzesi in Istanbul, the Eskişehir Il Halk Kütüphanesi, and the Samsun Il Halk Kütüphanesi. In North America my work has been supported generously by research grants from Simon Fraser University, the Division of the Humanities and the Center for Middle East Studies at the University of Chicago, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, and the Research Office at Wilfrid Laurier University. I am grateful for the support and encouragement offered me by colleagues in the history departments at both the University of Northern British Columbia and Wilfrid Laurier University. Dawn Zambonini and Lynne Doyle have provided administrative support, in particular with regard to preparing the illustrations for publication. Pam Schaus prepared the map with careful attention to detail. I am also indebted to the library staff at the University of Chicago, the University of Northern British Columbia, Wilfrid Laurier University, and the Center for Research Libraries. I was fortunate to receive recognition of my work in the form of first a fellowship from the Mrs. Giles Whiting Foundation in New York in 2002 and then the Malcolm H. Kerr Dissertation Award in the Social Sciences from the Middle East...

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