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“Ottoman science” refers to the overall scientific activity carried out within the space and time dimensions of the Ottoman Empire. Scientific activities that took place within the boundaries of the empire over its 600-year history have displayed some characteristic trends. As to historical heritage and tradition, these activities had much in common with those in Muslim societies outside these boundaries. However, they acquired some distinguishing features due to their geographical span and the dynamism of state administration and society. Therefore, though Ottoman science and the science of other Muslim countries shared common elements stemming from a common origin, the former took a leading position with regard to the developments achieved. In its early evolution, the Ottoman scientific tradition drew from the experience of old cultural centers such as Samarkand, Damascus, and Cairo, but not long after, it reached a point where it was capable of influencing these centers in some...

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Correspondence to Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu .

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Ihsanoglu, E. (2016). Ottoman Science. In: Selin, H. (eds) Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-7747-7_8820

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