13th through 15th Centuries | 19history includes many diverse peoples who inhabited Anatolia and the Bal-
kans. The diversity of ethnicity and religion of these peoples contributes to the
challenges of understanding identity in the region during this time. Chapter 1
explores how Sufis provided some stability in the chaotic world of medieval Ana-
tolia. Chapter 2 traces depictions of the frontier between Christians and Mus-
lims in epic literature. Chapter 3 explores the fortunes of the Genoese of Galata,
who after the conquest of Constantinople became Ottoman subjects. Chapter 4
follows the career of Mahmud Pasha, one of the most powerful administrators
during the reign of Mehmed II, who became grand vizier although he was born
a Christian. Chapter 5 explores Ottoman historiography to highlight the emer-
gence of a Turkish identity among the Ottoman elite. Chapter 6 analyzes the
emergence of new Sufi orders and their involvement in the politics of succession
struggles between the sons of Mehmed II. All the chapters in part I creatively use
contemporary sources to explore groups’ and individuals’ views of their relation-
ship to the expanding state that became the Ottoman Empire after eliminating
regional rivals.