M?NA2507 – Gunpowder Empires: Ottomans, Safavids and Mughals
Course content
What is today the vast region of the Middle East, the Balkans, Caucasus, Central Asia, Pakistan, India and all the way to Bangladesh, was long dominated by large Islamic empires. Especially important because of their size and contemporary influence were the Ottomans, the Safavids, and the Mughals. These early modern Islamic realms shared cultural reference points, texts, technologies and techniques of ruling. Together they formed the economic, cultural and political centre of the precolonial Eurasian world. And together they formed a cultural area that still significantly shapes the successor states. Of course, there were also crucial differences. Today they are largely ignored in thinking about world history.
In this course you will learn about the main features of these empires. The emphasis will be on the Ottomans, Safavids and Mughals during the 16th and 17th centuries. We will emphasise the interconnectedness of these realms, the circulation of scribes, intellectuals and artists, and also the war-making practices. We aim to give you historical depth for understanding of the dynamism and flexibility of this centre of the Eurasian world before European hegemony.
Learning outcome
The primary objective of the course is to familiarise you with the main political and cultural features of early modern Islamic empires from the Balkans to Bengal. The aim is to realise that they represent much more than a stagnant backwater waiting to be expanded upon and colonised. The secondary perspective is to provide you with a historical depth that can be used to contextualise contemporary legitimacy claims and the use of imperial history in contemporary politics. The course does this by focusing on providing knowledge of a rich Islamic tradition that shaped and brought together a wide geographic area - one that is markedly different from what is typically emphasised in courses on political Islam.
After having followed this course, you will have:
- gained familiarity with the main developments and institutions of the Ottoman, Safavid and Mughal empires
- acquired a grasp of historiographical and social-scientific approaches to explain the rise, legitimacy and fall of early modern Islamic empires
- acquired the knowledge and tools you need to understand what ties these empires together historically, and to see contemporary politics in light of these commonalities
- learnt structured reading and essay writing and to categorise and distil academic literature
Admission to the course
Students who are admitted to study programmes at UiO must each semester register which courses and exams they wish to sign up for?in Studentweb.
If you are not already enrolled as a student at UiO, please see our information about?admission requirements and procedures.
Recommended previous knowledge
One of the?M?NA-courses at 1000 level (i.e. M?NA1000 - Introduksjon til Midt?sten og Nord-Afrika: historie, samfunn, religion, politikk or M?NA1505 - Midt?stens moderne historie).?
- Relevant history or political science courses that can compensate for lack of area studies.
A good knowledge of English is recommended.
Teaching
The course is taught through a combination of lectures and seminars organised as 14 classes of 2 hrs each (normally 7 lectures and 7 seminars).?The course is based on segments, each devoted to specific topics and each with a dedicated set of readings, lecture and seminar.
The lectures will focus on selected topics and seek to give an overview of history and historiography. The seminars will enable reading, joint discussions, and facilitate essay writing based on selected readings from the syllabus.?
Compulsory activities
- Compulsory attendance:?You are required to attend 80% of the seminar teaching. In this course, you must attend at least 11 out of 14 seminars/lectures
- Six reflection papers.
- You must submit six reflection papers based on the syllabus texts during the course of the term. There will be one for each segment.
- The specific question for your reflection paper may vary but mostly it will be to write a small ‘book review’ of a specific syllabus text and should be 400?600 words long (approx. one single-spaced A4 page).
Information about the reflection papers and the deadlines will be given during class and in Canvas. You must submit the reflection papers within the given deadlines, and you are responsible for familiarizing yourself with the requirements for the compulsory activities.
The approved compulsory activities remains valid for the two following semesters in which the course is offered. However, exceptions may arise if the course undergoes changes in its assessment format, teaching, or other significant modifications.?
All compulsory activities must be approved to qualify for the exam. It is your responsibility to verify that you have obtained approval for all compulsory activities.?
Absence from compulsory activities:?
It is important that you familiarize yourself with the rules regarding absence from compulsory activities, to prevent being excluded from teaching and losing your eligibility to take the exam.?
More information on compulsory activities at the University of Oslo:?
Access to teaching:
A student who has completed compulsory instruction and coursework and has had these approved, is not entitled to repeat that instruction and coursework. A student who has been admitted to a course, but who has not completed compulsory instruction and coursework or had these approved, is entitled to repeat that instruction and coursework, depending on available capacity.?
Examination
4-hour school exam
Detailed information regarding the school exam will be announced on Canvas.
You must submit the exam in Inspera - see guides for digital exams.?
You are personally responsible for familiarizing yourself with the requirements and deadlines for the exam.?
All compulsory activities must be completed and approved in order to take the exam.?
You can find more information about the exam on the semester page of the course.?
Examination support material
No examination support material is allowed.
Language of examination
You may write your examination paper in Norwegian, Swedish, Danish or English.
Grading scale
Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F?is a fail. Read more about?the grading system.
More about examinations at UiO
- Use of sources and citations
- How to use AI as a student
- Special exam arrangements due to individual needs
- Withdrawal from an exam
- Illness at exams / postponed exams
- Explanation of grades and appeals
- Resitting an exam
- Cheating/attempted cheating
You will find further guides and resources at the web page on examinations at UiO.