Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Turkiyat Mecmuasi, cilt.30, sa.2, ss.699-733, 2020 (Scopus)
Sri Lanka, an island country which has been known as Serendib and Ceylon in the past and which was named the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka in the 20th century, has been one of the most important actors of international trade along the busy maritime routes of West Asia, China and the Far East throughout history. Relations between Sri Lanka and the Ottoman State, which has a deep-rooted history and an interesting network of relationships that are important in terms of Ottoman history as well as world history, date back to the last quarter of the 19th century in general, however, the history of some of the Muslims on the island has been enriched by a much older collective socio-cultural path. Political and economic processes on this small island country have been the basis for the relations of the Ottoman Empire with the region in the last quarter of the 19th century and the new appointments that Abdulhamid II would make to Ceylon Island, which had already been contacted in the context of consulship, would consist of choices that could penetrate the sociocultural hierarchy of the region. The local activities of the consuls contributed to the affinity of Ceylon Muslims for the Ottoman State in the second half of the 19th century, when the expectations of South Asian Muslims regarding the Ottoman State peaked. In fact, it can be argued that the affinity of Moor Muslims, one of the most populous minorities of modern Sri Lanka, that is still ongoing for the Ottoman State, has been fostered by the works carried out during this period. This article focuses on a different geographical section of the policies of the Ottoman State regarding South Asian Muslims in the Indian ocean, especially in the context of the Pan-Islamist character of the policy of Abdulhamid II in the region. In this context it will deal with the relations between Sri Lanka [Ceylon] and the Ottoman State, which constitute a geographical area that has not undergone an in-depth examination to date. The consulship processes and subsequent political careers of the individuals and families that the Ottoman State had appointed as representatives specific to Ceylon, will be discussed in the context of the affinity and friendship for Turks that is older than the Ottoman State.