An Overview of Türkiye Travelogues Written in Urdu and the First Urdu Travelogue About Türkiye: Aina-i Frang
Arzu ÇiftsürenTravelogues are not only a genre in literature but are also closely related to many branches of science. Travelogues written as a result of travels made for commercial, political, and cultural reasons undoubtedly contain historical information about the period in which they were written. Istanbul is one of the cities about which hundreds of travelogues have been written. The city has hosted many civilizations, has spiritual importance for Christians and Muslims, and has attracted the attention of many civilizations from the East and the West. The number of travelers increased in the Indian subcontinent, especially after the increase in seafaring travel. Some travelers came to İstanbul on the way back from their trips to Europe, others came after seeing Islamic countries such as Egypt and Damascus, and others still came to see Istanbul in particular. They first published their experiences and observations in newspapers before publishing them as travelogues. Nawab Mohammad Umar Ali Khan came to Istanbul on his return from Europe, stayed there for four days, and wrote a travelogue about Istanbul and the other cities and countries he had visited. This travelogue, titled Aina-i Frang, was published in 1885 and is the first travelogue written in Urdu about Turks. It also contains general information about Istanbul, in addition to general information about the Turkish islands he had seen during his voyage by ship, as well as about İzmir and Çanakkale.
Urdu Dili İle Yazılmış Türkiye Seyahatnamelerine Genel Bir Bakış ve Türklerle İlgili Yazılmış İlk Seyahatname: Aine-i Freng
Arzu ÇiftsürenSeyahatnameler edebiyatta bir tür olmasının yanında pek çok bilim dalıyla da yakından ilgilidir. Ticarî, siyasî ve kültürel sebeplerle yapılan seyahatler sonucunda kaleme alınan seyahatnameler hiç şüphesiz yazıldığı dönemle ilgili tarihî bilgiler de içermektedir. Hıristiyanlar ve Müslümanlar için ruhanî öneme sahip, pek çok medeniyete ev sahipliği yapmış İstanbul Doğu’dan Batı’ya pek çok medeniyetin ilgisini çekmiş, hakkında en çok seyahatname yazılan şehirlerin başında gelmiştir. Alt kıtada özellikle gemi seferlerinin artmasıyla seyyahların sayısı da artmıştır. Bunun sonucu olarak da bazı seyyahlar Avrupa seyahati dönüşü, bazı seyyahlar Mısır, Şam gibi İslam beldeleriyle birlikte İstanbul’a uğrarken kimi seyyahlar da hususi olarak İstanbul’a gelmişlerdir. Bu seyyahlar deneyim ve gözlemlerini önce gazetelerde neşretmişler sonrasında da seyahatname olarak yayınlamışlardır. Nevvab Muhammed Ömer Ali Han Avrupa dönüşü İstanbul’a uğramış dört gün burada kalmış ve diğer gezdiği ülkelerle birlikte buraya dair gözlemlerine seyahatnamesinde yer vermiştir. 1885 yılında seyahatname kitabı olarak yayınlanan Aine-i Freng Urdu dilinde Türklerle ilgili yazılmış ilk seyahatnamedir. İstanbul (bugünkü Sur içi), Beşiktaş ve Üsküdar olmak üzere İstanbul’u üç kısım halinde ele almıştır. Bu üç kısmı gezmiş, burada bulunan yapılarla ilgili ana hatlarıyla bilgi vermiştir. Ayasofya Camii yazarın özellikle zikrettiği yerler arasındadır. Bayramlarda top atma geleneği, mezar taşları ve başlıkları ile mezarlıklardaki servi ağaçları, vapur ve teknelerin çokluğu Ömer Ali Han’ın İstanbul’da bulunduğu süre zarfında dikkatini çeken hususlar arasındadır yer alır. İstanbul’u dünyanın en ilgi çekici şehri olarak tanımlamıştır. Ayrıca yazar Yeşilköy’e ve oradan Edirne’ye gitmiş, burada Türk raylı sistemini incelemiştir.
As a literary genre, travelogues are related to many branches of science. Although they are written from the author’s perspective, a travelogue certainly contains information in many fields, from history, literature, daily life, and cultural life to politics and education. The tradition of writing travelogues in the Urdu language started with Yusuf Khan Kambalpush’s (1837) Ajaibat-i Frang. Travelogue writing also gained importance with the increase in travel to Europe and Islamic countries as a result of various factors.
Türkiye undoubtedly has a very important place in travelogues written in the Urdu language. One Urdu travelogue about Türkiye was first written by Nawab Umar Ali Khan in 1885 under the title Aina-i Frang and was followed by some other very important travelogues such as Safarnam-e Rom u Misr u Sham by Shibli Naumani (1894), Bilad-i Islamiyya by Abdurrahman Amritsari (1905),Maqam-ı Khilafat by Shaikh Abdulqadir (1906), Safarnama-i Europe by Munshi Mahboob Alam (1908), Sair-i Europe by Nazli Rafia Sultan (1908), Safarnama-i Qustantiniya by Hameedulah Khan Sarbuland Jang (1911), Duniya Aik Aurat ke Nazar main by Akhtar Hamdiyya Bagum Sarbuland Jang (1911) and Sayahat-i Sultani by Shah Banoo (1915). More than 100 travelogues about Türkiye were written in Urdu from 1885 till the present. Some travelogues are about only Türkiye, and others mention Türkiye alongside all the other European countries the traveler had visited. Some travel books written by travelers who’d set out to ensure coordination in Islamic countries during the Ottoman period, particularly in the first period, included Türkiye alongside Islamic countries such as Egypt and Damascus.
According to current research, the first travelogue in Urdu about Turkey was written by Nawab of Basoda, Umar Ali Khan Wahshi, and titled Aina-i Frang. This book includes his trips to London, Paris, Italy, Spain, Austria, Switzerland, Türkiye, and Egypt. He made his journey in 1883 and published his observations and experiences as a travelogue in 1885. The travelogue consists of 109 pages, with the part about Türkiye being around 15 pages. He visited the cities of Istanbul, Çanakkale, and İzmir and wrote his observations about these cities. Umar Khan only stayed for four days in Istanbul, which is why he gave general information about the places he had visited. Because he couldn’t visit many places in such a short time.
He described Istanbul in three parts as Üsküdar, Istanbul, and Beşiktaş. The places and things he wrote about Istanbul involved such things as the mosques, embassy buildings, the rail system, palaces, and mansions, as well as the 21 ball salutes for special days, fire extinguisher towers, and ferries. He went to Edirne by train to examine Turkish railway system. He also made mention of Bakırköy, Yeşilköy, Yedikule, Davutpaşa, and Samatya train stations, with gravestones and cypress trees in graveyards being among the things that had attracted his attention. He mentioned the Galata and Beyazid towers, which were used as fire towers at that time, and described Istanbul as the most interesting city in the world.
Although he wanted to meet with Lord Duffer, the British ambassador at the time, this meeting could not take place due to a lack of time. He also stated in his travelogue that Hobart Pasha was the head of the Turkish navy at that time.
In addition to general information about the Turks, he also criticized bad management and short-sighted managers in his travelogue.
After the criticism, he added that Turks are now in close contact with England, so they will be in a better situation from now on. The author also made various recommendations and suggestions in his travelogue to those who want to travel. Although it does not contain much detail compared to other travelogues written in the following period about Turks, it is important in terms of being the first travelogue about Türkiye and Turks.
