YTB Launches Three Important Projects in Bosnia and Herzegovina That Will Shed Light on Balkan History

The Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB) is organizing an introductory meeting in Bosnia and Herzegovina for three important projects that shed light on Balkan history and unearthing architectural heirlooms.

The Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB) is organizing introductory meetings in Bosnia and Herzegovina for the “Book of Turkish Works Converted into Churches”, “Project for Periodicals in the Balkans” and “Ottoman Istimalet (the Policy of Tolerence) Policy: Book of the 15th and 16th Centuries” that it has prepared specifically for the Balkan countries. These works, prepared in cooperation with think tanks, analysis centers, and NGOs that have been carrying out important work in the Balkan countries for years, shed light on all aspects of Balkan history and bring architectural works and heritage from the Ottoman legacy to light.

Turkish Works Converted into Churches

The book “Turkish Works Converted into Churches” consisting of 3 volumes and 1.425 pages, examines architectural structures in 19 countries that were originally Turkish but were later converted into churches. The first volume covers Albania, Azerbaijan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Algeria, Armenia, Southern Cyprus, Georgia, Croatia, Montenegro, Kosovo and North Macedonia, while the second volume covers Hungary, Moldova, Romania, Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine. The third volume of the study focuses solely on structures in Greece.

The launch program of the three-volume work in Bosnia and Herzegovina will be held on Thursday, September 5, 2024, at 13:30 at the Gazi Husrev Bey Library.

 Periodicals in the Balkans

The “Periodicals in the Balkans: The Adventure of Islamic Thought, 1918-2018” project is another important work prepared by YTB specifically for the Balkan countries. The project examines the ideas (Bosnian, Turkish, Albanian) that emerged in the Balkans (Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia, Serbia, North Macedonia, Albania, Kosovo, Greece, Bulgaria and Romania) in the contemporary period through magazines and newspapers. The project covers the periods 1918-1945, 1946-1990, and 1990-2018. The periodicals in which Islamic thought was expressed, produced, and discussed during these periods are examined in detail within the scope of the project. The first part of the project focuses between 1918, which began with the withdrawal of the Ottoman Empire from the region, and 1945, which marked the end of World War II. The other sections focus on the socialist period of 1945-1990 and the democratization period of 1991-2018.

The Periodicals in the Balkans Promotion Program will also be held at Gazi Husrev Bey Library on Thursday, September 5, 2024, at 16:00.

Ottoman Istimalet (the Policy of Tolerence) Policy: XV and XVI. Century Book

Dr. Sedad Beşliya, who is the head of the Balkans Research and Analysis Center in Bosnia and Herzegovina, translated his Bosnian book titled “İstimalet - Bosna u Osmanskoj Političkoj Strategiji: 15. i 16. stoljeće” into Turkish with the support of YTB under the title “Ottoman Istimalet (the Policy of Tolerence) Policy and Bosna XV. ve XVI. Yüzyıl”. The book “Ottoman Istimalet (the Policy of Tolerence) Policy and Bosna: XV and XVI. Yüzyıl”, which examines Tolerance policy in with its military, political, economic, religious, and cultural dimensions, was also completed and published.

 The launch event of this important work, prepared with the support of YTB, will be held on Friday, September 6, 2024, at 11:00 at the University of Sarajevo.