Imagining China:Khatayname And The Political Culture Of The Ottoman Empire In The 16^th Century

The Khatayname was written in the early sixteenth century in Istanbul,the capital of the Ottoman Empire,and was originally written in Persian.It was presented to Sultan Selim I and his son Suleyman I of the Ottoman Empire.According to the author of the book,he came to the Ming Dynasty during the reign of the Emperor Wuzong.The book describes many aspects of Chinese society in the Ming Dynasty.However,it has long been thought that the author probably did not come to China because much of what he wrote in the book did not correspond to the actual situation of the Ming dynasty at that time,and that the so-called "China" situation was based on his hearsay.Thus,the book was considered to be of low historical value and was not given much attention.However,this book is not a travelogue intended to reflect the real situation of the Ming Dynasty.It is essentially a political work tailored to the political realities of the Ottoman Empire in the early sixteenth century.The book proposes its own solutions to the political dilemmas of the Ottoman Empire,using "China" as a point of reference.This book,"Khatayname," can be considered as a work of "Nasihatname".It describes the situation in so-called "China" in order to compare it with the political reality of the Ottoman Empire and to point out the problems.He also uses "China" as an example to advise the ruler.It is hoped that the ruler will follow the example of his utopian China and thus solve the problems facing the Ottoman Empire.The core of the author’s solution is"law," which means not only law in the modern sense,but also an institution or a custom that has been in place since ancient times.The author’s "China" is an orderly country where everyone obeys the "law".In the 1680 s,the book was translated into Ottoman Turkish and was officially collected by the Ottoman Empire as a law book under the title "The law of China".During the same period,inter-religious and inter-regional apocalyptic thinking and messianic expectations prevailed in the sixteenth century in Asia and Europe.Against this backdrop,regional monarchs were engaged in an ideological competition,trying to create their own "messianic" identity through a variety of political discourses.The constant emphasis on "law"that appears in the "China Chronicle" is also a reflection of this trend.At the same time,the "China" described in the book is a state governed by a group of professionals,or professional bureaucrats.After the book was presented to Suleyman I,the Ottoman Empire also initiated a reform of centralization and professionalization of bureaucrats.Not only the Ottoman Empire,but many countries throughout Asia and Europe undertook similar reform efforts during this period.The source of these reforms did not necessarily originate directly in China,but the group of texts represented by the Chinese Chronicle at least reflects the imagination of intellectuals of the time about China,which had the most complete bureaucratic system in the world.It also reflects the fact that global exchange during this period was not limited to material culture,but also to spiritual culture and even political institutions.This group of texts,represented by Khatayname,served as a cultural link between the whole of Asia and Europe.