Anatolia in the Byzantine Period

493 pp, color figures, pb, in Turkish/English bilingual.

After the death of Emperor Theodosius I in 395, the vast Roman lands stretching from the shores of the English Channel to the borders of Iran were divided into two realms, western and eastern. Although the western part of the empire faded away in the second half of the 5th century, the Roman Empire continued to exist in its eastern territories until 1453. The name “Byzantine” was used for the first time by the German humanist and philologist Hieronymus Wolf in the 16th century for this empire, whose capital was moved from Rome to the city of Byzantion (with its new name, Constantinople) and became Christian over time. This term became widespread in the 19th century and later.

However, the people that this book is about have always called themselves “Roman” and their state the “Roman Empire”, while their neighbors also knew them as “Romans”.

The Byzantine Empire that ruled for about 11 centuries is one of the states whose reign lasted the longest in Anatolia. Anatolia was the geographical, demographic, and economic cradle of this predominantly Greek-speaking Christian population and its culture. The loss of Anatolia as of the 14th century led to the end of the empire in a short time. The cry of Emperor Theodore II Laskaris – “Holy land, my mother, Anatolia!” – in one of his letters from the mid-13th century shows how vital these lands were for the empire.

This book aims to present both Byzantine culture and, more specifically, Byzantine Anatolia, through 32 articles by Turkish and foreign Byzantologists, who are experts in their respective fields. While the articles on political, bureaucratic, military, economic and religious life focus on the state apparatus and social structure, articles on literature, health, art, and material culture remains provide valuable information about daily life. In the articles that constitute the last part of the book, the reader is invited to a historical journey through different geographical regions of Byzantine Anatolia.