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The Society of
Algiers
When you travel, you wonder: What are the people like? ; and What will I eat? ; and What do I wear there? For you, of course, these questions have answers set in the past, in the time of the Ottoman Algiers...
Social Classes:
The Ottoman empire to which Algiers belonged organized itself socially into two general groups. The Osmanli was the ruling class, and the Rayas were all the non-rulers seen as simply subjects of the empire, the "'protected flock' of the sultan" ("Turkey and Ancient Anatolia" Britannica Online). The social structure was not static, and movement between the two classes could easily be achieved ("Turkey and Ancient Anatolia" Britannica Online).
To be part of the ruling class was not a difficult task, for one only had to meet three basic requirements. A member of the ruling class had to swear allegiance to his sultan and the empire, acknowledging the sultan's complete power over him; second, he had to profess the Muslim faith and follow all Islamic guidelines on behavior and life; and third, he had to be informed and endorse the "Ottoman Way" of life: the codes, laws, and systems of the Ottoman empire ("Turkey and Ancient Anatolia" Britannica Online). These were the defining requirements for membership in the ruling class; people could become part of the class by attaining these three requirements, and, just as easily, people could lose their status by losing any of the three requirements. Once part of the ruling class, one became the absolute slave of the sultan, and one's life, possessions, and beings belonged entirely to him. The goal of the class was to defend the empire, uphold the Islamic tradition, and gain wealth for both the sultan and the empire as a whole. The rayas were the main source of wealth from the ruling classes because they went out and earned the money from which they paid taxes to the ruling class. It was the merchants, traders, and farmers who were responsible for a lot of the economic gain in the empire. ("Turkey and Ancient Anatolia" Britannica Online)
The ruling class was divided into four major groups. The mülkiye, or imperial institution, directed the other sub-classes and the Ottoman Way as a whole. The seyfiye, or military institution, was in charge of defense. The kalemiye, or administrative institution, was in charge of the empire's treasury. Finally, the ilmiye, or religious institution, which was made up of the ulama and the ulema (see religion), upheld religious laws (known as Shari'ah), religious beliefs, and religious teachings. ("Turkey and Ancient Anatolia" Britannica Online)
The most important feature of the ruling class was the mukâta'a. This institution was the organization in which the ruling class gained control of a portion the sultan's wealth to use for different reasons depending on the specified unit of organization. The mukâta'a was organized into three main units-- the timars, the emanet, and the ilitizam. The timars worked for the empire and in return were rewarded with economic gain from their specific areas of work. The emanet, a less common unit of the mukâta'a, involved a member of the ruling class called a emin (trustee) who worked not for full personal profit from a single source of revenue, but for a salary, handing all the profits over to the empire. These trustees were monitored regularly to ensure that they worked to gain the empire profits rather than to fulfill the necessary time to be paid their salary. A combination of the timars and the emanet, the iltizam was the most common type of mukâta'a. The actual members of the ruling class serving this function, known as mültezins were tax collectors who got to keep a part of the taxes that they collected after bringing the correct amount to the sultan's treasury. This form of the mukâta'a was most widely used due to the expenses of the army, navy, and decoration of the court which were all financed through taxation. ("Turkey and Ancient Anatolia" Britannica Online)
Although the ruling class covered much of the affairs in the Ottoman
empire, some parts were left out from their duties. The remaining aspects
of Ottoman life were handled by the subject class, which organized itself
into two main ways. Religiously, the different religious followers of the
subject class were organized into millets (see religion),
and economically they were organized into trade-specific guilds (see economy). The society of Algiers, as a part of the
Ottoman empire, was organized in these ways. ("Turkey and Ancient Anatolia"
Britannica Online).
Food:
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The food of Algiers was of the Turkish style, as it was part of the Ottoman Turk empire. Turkish food in general was very simple and yet involved a variety of ingredients, a combination of purity and diversity which made for "delicious meals" ("Turkish Cuisine"). Although the food was a point for pride for the Ottomans, speaking of food or writing about it was looked down upon ("The History of Turkish Cuisine").
Appetizers consisted of yogurts, soups, salads, and vegetable dishes. Yogurt and soup were often combined to create the Yogurt Çorbasi, the yogurt soup ("Turkish Cuisine: Hünkar's Healthy and Delicious Turkish and Ottoman Food Recipes"). The vegetable dishes were mostly heavy in olive oil, a favorite condiment of the Ottomans, and this subclass of dishes was known as Zeytinyaglilar ("Turkish Cuisine: Hünkar's Healthy and Delicious Turkish and Ottoman Food Recipes" ; "Turkish Cuisine"). Pilkai, or kidney beans, dolma, or grapevine leaves stuffed with vegetables or meat, and Zeytinyagli Enginar, or artichokes, were all vegetable dishes cooked in olive oil ("Turkish Cuisine: Hünkar's Healthy and Delicious Turkish and Ottoman Food Recipes"). Dolma was also the term used to describe any Turkish dish containing grape leaves, green peppers stuffed with rice, or cabbage ("Turkish Cuisine"). Other vegetable dishes usually were made with Aubergine, including Imam Baylildi, or stuffed Aubergine, and Patlican Ve Kabak Kizartma, or fried Aubergine with fried zucchini ("Turkish Cuisine: Hünkar's Healthy and Delicious Turkish and Ottoman Food Recipes"). Salads, too, included Aubergine, like the Patlican Salatasi, the Aubergine salad. The other main salad of the Ottoman cuisine was Kisir, the Bulgur salad ("Turkish Cuisine: Hünkar's Healthy and Delicious Turkish and Ottoman Food Recipes").
Main courses were either meat dishes or pilavs, which were rice dishes. Pilavs came in many varieties, including Patlicanli Pilav, an Aubergine rice dish, Bulgur Pilav, a Bulgur rice dish, and Domatesli Pilav, a tomato rice dish. ("Turkish Cuisine: Hünkar's Healthy and Delicious Turkish and Ottoman Food Recipes")
Meat dishes were also very important to Turkish cuisine. Lamb was the most common meat used in Ottoman cooking ("Turkish Cuisine"). It is found in such Turkish delights as the sis kebab, also called Sis Kebap, which is lamb on a skewer, and the doner kaba which are rolls of cooked lamb on skewers ("Turkish Cuisine" ; "Turkish Cuisine: Hünkar's Healthy and Delicious Turkish and Ottoman Food Recipes"). Chicken and turkey were also frequently used in cooking in dishes like Güveçte Sebzeli Piliç, a vegetable casserole made with chicken ("Turkish Cuisine: Hünkar's Healthy and Delicious Turkish and Ottoman Food Recipes"). Ottoman sweet meats were made with milk as the main ingredient ("Turkish Cuisine").
Dessert dishes were very appealing. Borek, or pies stuffed with cheese or meat were considered both a dessert and a part of the main meal ("Turkish Cuisine" ; "Turkish Cuisine: Hünkar's Healthy and Delicious Turkish and Ottoman Food Recipes"). Baklava and Kadayif desserts today are the most famous of Turkish cuisine and then were loved by many ("Turkish Cuisine"). Puddings were also dessert dishes, for example the Keskül, almond pudding ("Turkish Cuisine: Hünkar's Healthy and Delicious Turkish and Ottoman Food Recipes"). Apricots were used in some desserts like the Kayis Tatlisi ("Turkish Cuisine: Hünkar's Healthy and Delicious Turkish and Ottoman Food Recipes"). Turkish desserts were and are very popular.
The traditional Ottoman drinks included coffee and ayran, shira, and boza. Alcoholic drinks were not included in the Ottoman diet, as the official religion of Islam prohibits the consumption of alcoholic beverages as an article of faith. The coffee was thick, black, and sweet. In any preparation, it was one of the favorite drinks of the Ottoman empire. ("Turkish Cuisine")
The Islamic holidays brought special meals, especially during Ramadan,
Awwal- Muharram, and Ashura (see religion). After sundown during the Ramadan
celebration, families eat perhaps their best meals of the year that they
have saved for the celebration. This special meal, called the Iftar,
is usually huge as the family has been fasting the entir day. Maslif,
a dish of couscous, sugar, and raisins is a common specialty for Ramadan,
as well as Borek and a dessert. The meals consumed during Awwal-
Muharrem are also special and are thought to bring luck. The special foods
of Ashura are usually nuts and sweets for the children, eaten in memory
of those who have passed on. During the holidays, Turkish food holds great
importance as a way to celebrate, to bring luck, and to remember. ("An
Overview on Algeria")
Clothing:
Algiers, as and Islamic city, followed the Islamic codes for religious dress. All Muslims were required to follow certain regulations for their clothing. Upon entering a mosque, all Muslims had to remove their shoes so that they didn't bring in anything impure from the soles of their shoes. For this reason, gravediggers also had to go without footwear at graves. Any Muslim going on a pilgrimage, like the pilgrimage to Mecca expected of all Muslims at one point in their lives (known as the hajj), had to wear the ihram, the uniform outfit of a beggar. The ihram consisted of two white robes all cut from a single piece of fabric, and veils for women could be added if the women wished, but veiling was not required as it was not an article in the Qur´an. Any Muslim in death wore the same dress of three layers known as the kafan. The first, the izar, was the shroud closest to the skin, a kind of underclothing. The second, the lifafah, went on top of that, and both were covered by an outer shroud. Only martyrs were exempt from this standard uniform; they were buried with their clothes without any washing to maintain their glory thought to be within their clothing and body. ("Sacred Rites and Ceremonies" Britannica Online)
All Muslim men wore turbans which separated them visually as Islamic people. In the Ottoman tradition , these were usually very colorful and accompanied by a skull cap which differentiated it from a Hindu turban. All men were forbidden to wear gold and silver as well in any part of their dress. ("Sacred Rites and Ceremonies" Britannica Online)
The religious officials also had further clothing codes. The ulama, or head religious official under the sultan, presented clarification on required dress. "'Clerical' dress" consisted of a jubbah, a gown reaching all the way to the feet with billowing sleeves, worn halfway buttoned in blue or gray or brown ("Sacred Rites and Ceremonies" Britannica Online). Sometimes, a cummerbund was worn along with the gown. The gown went over a caftan, the underclothing decorated with stripes. On their heads, religious officials wore a qalansuwah made of red felt over white 'imamah, or muslin. ("Sacred Rites and Ceremonies" Britannica Online)
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