Historicizing Hagia Sophia: The Conception of Hagia Sophia in Early Classical Ottoman Chronicles (1451–1512)

This study explores the historicization of Hagia Sophia in the early classical Ottoman chronicles and examines how its perception evolved in the half-century following the conquest. Focusing on the works of Yazıcıoghlu Aḥmed Bīcān, Ṭūrsūn Beg, Oruç Beg, Idrīs Bitlīsī, İbn Kemāl, and the Anonymous Tevārīkh-i Āl-i‛Othmān, it analyzes the ways in which Ottoman historiography represented Hagia Sophia through architectural and historical frameworks. By examining chronicles written between 1451 and 1512, this research investigates how Ottoman authors conceptualized Hagia Sophia as an architectural entity and situated it within a broader historical narrative. The post-conquest engagement between the Ottomans and Hagia Sophia generated diverse interpretations, shaped not only by political transformations but also by the patronage networks and intellectual affiliations of the chroniclers. Ottoman historiography actively engaged with legendary Byzantine narratives, incorporating and reshaping them to fit an emerging Ottoman-Islamic perspective. Descriptions of the monument were constructed through a dynamic and nonlinear network of meanings, reflecting a complex interplay of historical, architectural, and ideological factors. Additionally, this study situates Hagia Sophia within the broader context of Ottoman architectural and historiographical developments, particularly in relation to the construction of monumental structures such as the Fātiḥ Mosque. By tracing its reception across various chronicles, it also evaluates the influence of Byzantine sources, such as the Diegesis (9th century), on Ottoman historical writing. This analysis reveals how Ottoman authors appropriated and reinterpreted Byzantine narratives, embedding them within an Ottoman-Islamic historiographical framework.