How Did Matthew Of Edessa Influence The Culture Of The Turks

As Anatolia shifted from Byzantine to Turkish rule, it engaged in more violent pursuits that reinforced its agenda and policies. Anatolia was a burgeoning place for trade due to its geography. There were lots of roads, trade routes, and natural resources, which the Byzantine Anatolians took advantage of. The transition from Christianity to Islam may have contributed to the drastic change in the Anatolians’ behavior, from active traders to bellicose invaders. When Anatolia was part of the Byzantine Empire, Christianity was the main religion ---people would garden and focus their energy on artistic and agricultural vocations. Under the Turks, who brought Islam to Anatolia, the sole mission of the empire was to conquer and dominate the world.

There was a huge collapse in living standards because of the Arab and Persian invasions,, for more reasons than one. The Turks’ agenda was strictly military, so many manufacturing and construction techniques were abandoned after they took over. Pottery and terracotta lamps, items that were characteristic features of Byzantine Anatolia, stopped being produced. The Turks recolonised and reconstructed cities as military bases to better their military. This military prowess may be why many other societies perceive the Turks as violent. Matthew of Edessa, an Armenian historian, describes the Turks in the following

He also says that as the Turks conquered, there was a decline in population. An increase in enslavement slowed labour, and the lack of labourers led to food scarcity. The Turks, very much like some current Islamic groups, use an interpretation of their religious text, the Qur’an in order to incite and justify their violent actions. The Qur'an says, “Let those fight in the way of Allah who sell the life of this world for the other. Whoso fighteth in the way of Allah, be he slain or be he victorious, on him We shall bestow a vast reward.” In this passage, the Qur'an justifies war and killing with religion. The Qur'an is ingrained in the people, therefore it is ingrained in the culture. Because the Turks made the vast majority of Anatolians practice Islam, they adopted these values and lost the ones they had prior to the