A historical sociological analysis on the discussions of Ottoman state and social structure in Turkish history of thought

This paper aims to clarify different ideas on Ottoman state and social structure discussions in Turkish history of thought through analyzing these ideas systematically. With regards to this aim, it expected to enlighten the discussion by examining fundamental studies impressed by their own contemporaries from different disciplines. This study is a descriptive research and document analysis technique is used in the research. In this context, the analyses developed on Ottoman state and social structure discussions in Turkish history of thought is discussed in historical sociological frame and reviewed considering the constraints in its own era. In this study, first a discussion on what kind of a historical sociological perspective is necessary to understand Ottoman social structure is made and based upon this, the Ottoman Empire's foundation phase, state structure and production mode were examined considering the views of different intellectuals. Therefore, in the study, the terms of feudalism, oriental despotism, and Asiatic mode of production used to explain the social structure of Ottoman Empire were compared. In this context, the historians, sociologists, economists and political scientists' views about the Ottoman state and social structure are evaluated in this study. Keywords: Asiatic Mode of Production, Oriental Despotism, Feudalism, Ottoman Social Structure, Historical Sociology