Factors Affectıng Women's Marrıage Decısıons In Ottoman Socıety (Early 17th Century to Late 18th Century)

Abstract

Marriage is a union established to last a lifetime unless there are conradictory circumstances. However couples may be exposed to many influences on the way to achieving this union. The legal kings, culture and mentality of the society in which we live affect the behavior and attitudes of the person. Thererfore, individuals who want to choose a spouse or start a family exhibit attitudes according to factors that affect them. These factors may vary depending on time, place and person. In this study, the answer to the question of what factors affected women’s marriage decisions in the 17th and 18th centuries in the Ottoman Empire will be sought. After these effects are identified, their basis will be tried to be determined.The conditions under which women made their marriage decisions in Ottoman society is an extremely important issue in terms of understanding their position in society.The marriage decision is the most special area in which men and Women should have the right to choose. Even though this is the case, women may be exposed to some factors in their marriage decision. For this reason, it was aimed to determine the factors in question by analyzing this issue through examples from various regions of the Ottoman Empire. The aim is to shed light on the issue of whether women decided to marry of their own will in the Ottoman Empire in line with the examples identified. The primary issue that is emphasized here is whether or not women’s rights are respected in which cases. Thus, by evaluating Ottoman women from different perspectives, different sections of their lives will be presented, which may conribute  to beter understanding of Ottoman women.