Ottoman Passports: Security and Geographic Mobility, 1876-1908 - Paperback

by Ilkay Yilmaz (Author)

In Ottoman Passports, Ilkay Yilmaz reconsiders the history of two political issues, the Armenian and Macedonian questions, approaching both through the lens of mobility restrictions during the late Ottoman Empire from 1876 to 1908. Yilmaz investigates how Ottoman security perceptions and travel regulations were directly linked to transnational security regimes battling against anarchism. The Hamidian government targeted "internal threats" to the regime with security policies that created new categories of suspects benefiting from the concepts of vagrant, conspirator, and anarchist. Yilmaz explores how mobility restrictions and the use of passports became critical to targeting groups including Armenians, Bulgarians, seasonal and foreign workers, and revolutionaries. Taking up these new policies on surveillance, mobility, and control, Ottoman Passports offers a timely look at the origins of contemporary immigration debates and the historical development of discrimination, terrorism, and counterterrorism.

Author Biography

Ilkay Yilmaz is a DFG (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft) funded research associate at Friedrich-Meinecke-Institut at Freie Universität Berlin. Her articles have appeared in several publications, including the Journal of Historical Sociology, Middle Eastern Studies, and the Journal of Ottoman and Turkish Studies.