About Academy

TÜBA has published the book  “Halil İnalcık Hayatı Bizzat Tarih”, which comprehensively examines the life, scholarly work, and historical legacy of the late Prof. Dr. Halil İnalcık (1916–2016), one of the most prominent figures in Turkish and world historiography and an Honorary Member of TÜBA. Published as the eighth volume in the TÜBA Biography Series, the book not only recounts the life story of a great historian but also sheds light on the development of Turkish historiography, the shift in methodology in Ottoman historical research, and the place Türkiye has earned in the international academic community.

Written by Dr. Bülent Arı, the book covers a wide range of topics, spanning Halil İnalcık’s childhood and educational background, his academic career and influence in international scholarly circles, his research methods and works, and the generations of scholars he mentored. Published on the 10th anniversary of İnalcık’s passing, the book goes beyond documenting the life of a scholar, transmitting his intellectual world and the scholarly legacy he bequeathed to Turkish historiography to future generations.

A scholarly biography prepared using 30 years of archival research
One of the book’s most striking aspects is the comprehensive documentary research conducted during its preparation. Dr. Bülent Arı, a student of Halil İnalcık who remained close to him for many years, compiled his private archive, including academic documents, photographs, letters, correspondence, and published works, gathered over approximately 30 years into this volume.

Over the 18 years he spent at his teacher’s side, Arı closely followed his academic activities, congresses and conferences, the preparation processes of his works, and his relations with the scientific community. He also drew on the private and official documents İnalcık gave him during his lifetime, as well as on interviews, each lasting about two hours, in which İnalcık described the background of his academic work. The work, which emerged after a compilation and preparation process spanning approximately five years, examines the historian’s life within a chronological framework while also documenting his academic circle, the scholars with whom he collaborated, and the prominent historians of his era. In his preface, Bülent Arı states that he undertook this project with the intention of introducing İnalcık’s works to a new generation of researchers, emphasizing that his mentor’s academic output has expanded significantly over time and that his international influence has become increasingly prominent. Arı explains that the book serves as a general introduction to İnalcık’s body of work and aims to serve as a resource for more in-depth research in the future. The author’s approach in this work goes beyond merely listing İnalcık’s scholarly achievements. His work ethic, meticulousness in research, relationships with his students, academic courtesy, and dedication to the scholarly life are also conveyed through various documents and memoirs. Thus, the work presents not only the scholarly legacy of a great historian but also a portrait of an academic life worthy of emulation.

TÜBA President Şeker: “He established a school of thought that subsequent generations have followed”
TÜBA President Prof. Dr. Muzaffer Şeker notes in the book’s foreword that Halil İnalcık was among the leading figures who strongly represented Turkish historiography in the international academic community. Emphasizing that İnalcık brought Turkish historical research up to international standards by grounding it in scientific criteria, Şeker highlighted that by analyzing geography, law, economics, and sociology through archival documents, he established a school of thought that subsequent generations have followed.

Stating that İnalcık’s greatest contribution to the scholarly literature was filling a significant gap in Ottoman historical research, Şeker underscored the importance of reexamining Ottoman history using its own sources and contemporary historical research methods. Noting that the methods and terminology developed by İnalcık have become part of the common language of Ottoman studies worldwide today, Şeker noted that his pioneering work has made lasting contributions to the global literature in terms of sources, methods, and concepts. Prof. Dr. Muzaffer Şeker stated that TÜBA views preserving İnalcık’s scientific legacy as a duty of gratitude, citing the TÜBA-TESEP Halil İnalcık Special Award as a concrete example of this commitment. Explaining that the award, given to high-quality original works in Turkish prepared at the university level in the fields of social and humanities, encourages young researchers to produce original works, Şeker emphasized that the evaluations take into account not only the work itself but also the effort behind it, the use of sources, and the research process. Expressing his hope that the work would serve as a guide for young researchers and provide a foundation for new studies on the Halil İnalcık corpus, Şeker thanked Dr. Bülent Arı for his dedication and hard work in preparing the book.

Beyond a biography: a comprehensive perspective on historiography
The most significant feature distinguishing this work, published as part of the TÜBA Biography Series, from similar biographical studies is that it does not treat Halil İnalcık’s personal life and academic output as separate entities. In the book, the turning points in İnalcık’s life are evaluated in conjunction with the changes that the discipline of history has undergone in Türkiye and around the world. Thus, while following the development of a scholar, the reader also bears witness to the formation of modern historiography in Türkiye and the transformation of Ottoman studies into an international field of scholarship.

In the book, Prof. Dr. İnalcık’s work is examined under various headings, including the publication of primary sources, political history, social and economic history, legal history, urban history, commercial history, literary and cultural history, and interdisciplinary studies. His work on the scientific evaluation of Ottoman archival documents, the incorporation of tahrir registers and shari’a court records into historical research, and the examination of the Ottoman legal and administrative systems are discussed in detail. The most significant shift in İnalcık’s approach to history was his move beyond the traditional perspective, which viewed Ottoman history solely through the lens of wars, conquests, rulers, and political developments. By evaluating archival documents through the lens of various disciplines such as geography, law, economics, and sociology, İnalcık placed state institutions, production and trade relations, the tax system, cities, and social structure at the center of historical research. With this approach, he reevaluated Ottoman history through its own original sources and made lasting contributions to the international literature. Through his research on the reign of Mehmed the Conqueror, Ottoman conquest and settlement policies, the timar system, the Ottoman legal order, and social and economic structures, he opened up new fields of study in various areas of historical science. In particular, his archival-based studies and the conceptual framework he developed served as a model for subsequent researchers. The fact that his works are among the fundamental reference sources at the world’s leading universities demonstrates the extent to which his scholarly influence extends beyond Türkiye’s borders.

Inalcık, who received honorary doctorate degrees from 23 universities, was awarded numerous honors, including membership in prestigious academic institutions such as the Turkish Academy of Sciences (TÜBA), the British Academy, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, as well as the Presidential Culture and Arts Grand Award, the Turkish Grand National Assembly Honorary Award, and the internationally renowned King Faisal Prize. He was named among the 2,000 leading social scientists of the 20th century by the Cambridge International Science Center.