Book Review: The Kizilbash/Alevis in Ottoman Anatolia: Sufism, Politics and Community

Authors : Aviva Butt

Pages : 305-309

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Publication Date : 2020-08-25

Article Type : Bookreview

Abstract :The academic monograph The Kizilbash/Alevis in Ottoman Anatolia recently published in the Edinburgh University Press series "Edinburgh Studies on the Ottoman Empire,” has all of 400 pages. The book’s Turkish-born author Ayfer Karakaya-Stump is at present a university professor at William and Mary University, Williamsburg Virginia, USA. It is apparent from her book that she has meantime visited Turkey in her quest to understand the current beliefs and ritual of the Alevi Turkish community in the now secularized state of Turkey. She attempts to trace the origins of the Alevis and why they are currently known as "Alevi” (followers of Ali, the Prophet’s cousin and son-in-law), but were earlier on known as "Kizilbash.” She ultimately describes the Kizilbash as "followers of Shah Ismail.”
Keywords : Alevis, Ottoman Anatolia, Sufism, Community, Kizilbash