DEVELOPMENTS IN EDUCATION DURING THE MODERNIZATION ERA OF THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE AND THE EDUCATIONAL STATUS OF OTTOMAN BUREAUCRATS FROM PRISTINA
DEVELOPMENTS IN EDUCATION DURING THE MODERNIZATION ERA OF THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE AND THE EDUCATIONAL STATUS OF OTTOMAN BUREAUCRATS FROM PRISTINA

Summary/Abstract: At its inception, when the Ottoman Empire was still a frontier principality, it had set its direction to the West due to its geographical location. This naturally necessitated a struggle with the states in the Balkans and Europe, particularly the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire. The Ottoman Empire, due to its geographical location and the fact that it was the flagbearer of Islam, considered the territories it referred to as Rumili - territories that mostly bring the Balkans to mind - important and prioritized. This prioritization was evident in its actions. During its periods of strength, the Ottoman Empire gave precedence to the West, investing in these regions to establish permanence and root in the lands it conquered. In times of decline, it continued similar activities to retain its existing territories. During the Tanzimat Era, reforms were implemented across political, social, economic, military, administrative, cultural, and other domains. Administratively, the provinces (vilayets) replaced the former state (eyalet) system. When the administrative system transitioned to provinces, the Danube Province (Tuna Vilayeti) was established as a pilot region, where a series of reforms were carried out. The Ottoman Empire also prioritized Rumili in its transportation projects, initiating the construction of railways and telegraph lines in the region. While these projects aimed to prevent the loss of these territories, it should not be ignored that the powerful Western states seeking to influence the Balkans had the demands for reforms in Rumili. The modernization efforts initiated in the imperial center were also extended to the provinces as resources allowed. Among the reforms deemed necessary for the Ottoman Empire's prosperity, education came to the forefront. It was realized that the key to modernization in all fields and at every level was the projects to be carried out in education. Within its financial means, the Ottoman governments first carried out educational reforms in the imperial center, later extending them to the provincial regions. The first idadi school(Ottoman high school) in the provinces was established in 1875 in Yeniúehir (Larissa) in the Peloponnese region of the Balkans. The administrators who founded the Yeniúehir Idadi School in Yanina, which provided mixed-gender education, likely intended to raise loyal individuals to the state in line with the Ottomanism policy. There was consensus among the administrative cadres that no progress or innovation could occur without education.The Kosovo region in the Balkans holds an important place in Ottoman geography. The city of Pristina stands out for having been the central sanjak of Kosovo Province and for currently serving as the capital of the Republic of Kosovo. Pristina was the center of Kosovo Province from its establishment until 1888. Under Ottoman rule, many ethnic groups lived in Kosovo Province, including Muslim groups such as Turks, Albanians, and Bosnians, and Christian groups such as Bulgarians, Serbs, Macedonians, Greeks, and Vlachs. In the Sanjak of Pristina, as in the entire Kosovo Province, emphasis was placed on the development of modern education. In Pristina, as throughout the Ottoman Empire, efforts were made to transform traditional primary schools (Sibyan schools) into schools operating under the new system, along with the establishment of new primary schools, Rushdiye, Idadi, and Teacher Training Schools. This study aims to examine the educational activities in Pristina during the modernization period of the Ottoman Empire. By examining the archive records in the Presidential Ottoman Archive, which include the registry records of Pristina-born Ottoman officials in the Ottoman bureaucracy, the traces and impacts of educational reforms in Pristina, as a provincial city, were traced and analyzed.

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