The Ottoman Empire was one of the most significant forces in world history and yet little attention is paid to its rich cultural life. For the people of the Ottoman Empire, lyrical poetry was the most prized literary activity. People from all walks of life aspired to be poets. Ottoman poetry was highly complex and sophisticated and was used to express all manner of things, from feelings of love to a plea for employment. This collection offers free verse translations of 75 lyric poems from the mid-fourteenth to the early twentieth centuries, along with the Ottoman Turkish texts and, new to this expanded edition, photographs of printed, lithographed, and hand-written Ottoman script versions of several of the texts--a bonus for those studying Ottoman Turkish. Biographies of the poets and background information on Ottoman history and literature complete the volume.
Walter G. Andrews holds a research professorship in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilization at the University of Washington. Najaat Black is a poet and fiction writer. Mehmet Kalpakli is assistant professor of Ottoman culture and literature at Bilkent University in Ankara, Turkey.
Preface to the 2006 Expanded Edition Acknowledgments Poet's Preface A Note on the Pronunciation and Transcription of Turkish Ottoman Lyrics: Introductory Essay The Gathering of Desire Nesimi 1. Oh my idol Ahmed-I Dai 2. The torture of the beloved Sheyhi 3. Your sun-face 4. It's the season of spring Ahmet Pasha 5. Ask about my wailing The Mejlis: Gathering of Desire 6. Is there any heart Nejati 7. Those glances rain down arrows 8. The heart is pleased 9. Those tulip-cheeked ones 10. Spiraling, the sparks Iskender/Alexander, Hizir, and the Fountain of Eternal Life Mihri Hatun 11. I opened my eyes 12. At times, my longing 13. My heart burns Zeynep Hatun 14. Remove your veil Revani 15. What do you say Lamii 16. Yesterday I saw Zati 17. Oh heavens, why do you cry The Pleasantries of Zati Hayreti 18. We are not the slaves of Suleyman Figani 19. My sad heart is burnt black The Cosmos and the Earth 20. Your kiss does not satisfy Fevri 21. The arrow of your glance Hayali 22. They do not know how to search 23. We are among those 24. When dawn hennas her hands The Story of Leyla and Mejnun Fuzuli 25. Oh God, don't let anyone 26. If my heart were a wild bird 27. For long years 28. The pointed reproach of the enemy Husrev, Shirin, and Ferhad Nisayi 29. We are the Mejnun Fabulous Birds Nevi 30. We don't need the cup of pleasure 31. Help me, oh sapling Baki 32. That tyrant 33. Oh beloved, since the origin 34. The fountain of my spirit 35. If only the bud would open 36. Sparks from my heart 37. Your rebellious glance Yahya Bey 38. Come wander through the city 39. Poetry holds the written veil Ruhi 40. Curse the thorns of fate Sheyhulislam Yahya 41. Saki, offer the cup 42. Let the hypocrites 43. Is there no heart The Down on Your Cheek Nefi 44. That black drunken eye 45. Those who painted my portrait 46. The heart is both the cup and the wine Sheyhulislam Bahayi 47. Oh cry, what are you doing Nabi 48. When we watch the spinning of the sky 49. In the garden of time and destiny 50. At the gathering of joy Rumi's Mirror Naili 51. We are the snake 52. My tears became desire 53. Since the thunderbolt of disaster 54. What witch are you Poetic Parallels Neshati 55. We are desire 56. You're gone - I'm alone 57. The sky's face has turned dark Nedim 58. At the gathering of desire 59.When the east wind 60. As the morning wind blows 61. Take yourself to the rose-garden 62. Delicacy was drawn out Koja Ragib Pasha 63. Dark thought is revealed Rasih Bey 64. Don't lower your languid eyes Fitnat Hanim 65. In a heart Esrar Dede 66. In the ruins 67. You left, but don't forget The Indian Style Sheyh Galib 68. You are my effendi 69.I won't abandon you 70. To me, love is the flame Sunbulzade Vehbi 71. Oh east wind, come Enderunlu Vasif 72. The gazelles have bound their hearts Izzet Molla 73. Everyone knows 74. I am a nightingale Yenishehirli Avni 75. Don't think we came to ask Notes The Poets Ottoman Turkish Texts Ottoman Script Texts
New photographs of original manuscripts enhance this collection of free verse translations of 75 lyric poems presented with the Ottoman Turkish texts
"This is the finest literary translation of Ottoman Turkish lyrics ever done and will shape the reception of the poetry from now on. The selection is excellent--aesthetically superior, historically representative, and stylistically coherent." Victoria Holbrook, Ohio State University "Andrews has teamed up with a first-rate philologist (Kalpakli) and a talented poet (Black), and together they have tried to ... break down resistance to Ottoman poetry and show it forth in something like its native glory." International Journal of Middle East Studies
