The Ottomans from Nomadism to Settlement: A Study on the Rise of the Ottoman Emirate

Abstract

The paper deals with the nomadic origins of the Ottomans and the role of the tribal system in this, especially during the reign of Osman Ghazi and Orhan Ghazi, during whose the tribal systems that the Turks brought with them from Central Asia to western Anatolia without much change are evident. The paper is divided into four sections. The first is about the hypothesis of Gaza (Jihad) and the reality of the early Ottomans' conversion to Islam. The second deals with the effect of Mongol pressure on the Turkish nomadic tribes' rush from eastern to western Anatolia; the third studies the tribal roots of the early Ottomans. The fourth sheds light on transforming from a nomadic to a settled society. It concludes that the tribal-nomadic tendency was the most important feature of early Ottoman activity, as it does not depend on unity of origin, but on common political interests. Therefore, the early Ottoman conquests against the Byzantines were not motivated by religion, but rather by the need of the nomadic tribe to dissolve and integrate into the settled society. The early Ottomans were able to fight their Muslim neighbors and combine with the Byzantines because their organization was essentially tribal, allowing them to accommodate diverse individuals and groups.