A Moveable Empire: Ottoman Nomads, Migrants, and Refugees

Acknowledgments

ix Acknowledgments I t is impossible to properly acknowledge the support I received from many people and institutions as I worked on this book, but I must try. The origins of the book go back to leisurely conversations I regularly had with a handful of people, all of whom I first met many years ago when I was a student in Turkey. In particular, I would like to mention Çağlar Keyder , Şevket Pamuk, and Faruk Tabak, who have been crucial in sharpening my ideas over the many years I have known them. Sadly, Faruk Tabak did not live to see the end of this project. In the time I was writing this book, I cooperated with Sibel Bozdoğan on several other projects, through which she helped me see many things differently. Most important, she taught me how to appreciate modernity. I am fortunate to have her as a friend. In Seattle, having Joel Migdal and Daniel Chirot as good friends and colleagues has broadened my vision and made me a much better scholar and teacher. I am also grateful to Selim Kuru for his feedback on earlier drafts and for his help in deciphering some of the archival documents. In the last two decades I have had the good fortune of having a stellar group of graduate students, most of whom are members of our Turkish Circle at the University of Washington. I hope that one day they, too, will have the x Acknowledgments opportunity to discover how inspiring it can be to be close to such a hardworking and enthusiastic group of young scholars. The Social Science Research Council, the University of Washington’s Graduate School, and the Simpson Center for Humanities at the University of Washington provided funding at crucial points in this project. I am happy to acknowledge their support, without which most of what is included here would have been impossible. Over the years, writing this book became such an intense activity that it was almost like a part of our family. In a way Kathie and I brought the project up together. I cannot list all the ways in which she made this a much better book, but I want to express my heartfelt gratitude. Finally, when I became a father I was concerned that I would not have the time to finish the book. Melis turned out to be such a source of joy that her presence actually helped speed things up. To her I dedicate this book. A MOVEABLE EMPIRE ...