Dissent and Heterodoxy in the Ottoman Empire: Reformers, Babis and Baha'is, 1844-1928

This monograph of the religious life of the late Ottoman Empire covers several significant features of the Turkish religious landscape. Beginning with the westernizing reforms at the turn of the nineteenth century, Alkan notes the role of the ulema in this reform before considering Sultan Abdülmecid and the Tanzimat Period. He then traces the early growth of the Babis from the rule of Necib Pasha in Iraq and the opposition to the Babis. The role of Iran in the growth of the Babi faith, focusing on the activities of Baha’u’llah characterizes the Ottoman Reform Elite. The development of Baha’i in the context of the Young Ottomans and other "fathers" of Ottoman constitutionalism is explored and Alkan considers the Iranian reformers as well as the Young Turks in relation to the Babis in nineteenth-century Istanbul. ‘Abdu’l-Baha in the Ottoman context of the turn of the century and the Kemalist reform round out the discussion. Indispensable for historians of Islamic breakaway religions, Alkan’s monograph fills a gap in many accounts of emergent religions.