The President of the Republic of Macedonia Dr. Gjorge Ivanov addressed at the ceremonial opening of the International Congress “Evliya Celebi’s Balkans”, dedicated to the 400th anniversary since the birth of the famous Ottoman world travel writer. The Congress, being held under the auspices of President Ivanov, is organized by the Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts (MASA) and the Center for Civilizations Studies at the Bahceshehir University (MEDAM) from Turkey.

“How Has Evlija Celebi Seen Us”

Distinguished President of the Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Academician Kambovski, Esteemed Participants, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Welcome to the Republic of Macedonia, welcome to the city of Skopje. The ancient biographer Diogenes Laertius, in the biography of Pythagoras, talks about the song which was supposedly devoted by the famous philosopher to the ancient inhabitants of this city - Skopijads. It is a song that starts with a very important lesson Pythagoras learned from the inhabitants of the city: “Do not be blatant to anyone”. We could say that even today, this thought is informal motto of Skopje.

I believe that almost all travelers and travel writers who came to Macedonia and visited Skopje were aware of this unwritten rule. Today we are here to talk about one of the most famous world travel writers, the man who left in legacy the civilization traces of our, the Balkan past - Evliya Celebi.

Ladies and Gentlemen,
UNESCO declared last year as Evliya Celebi’s year, in honor of the 400 anniversary of his birth. This year we mark 330 years since his death. Indeed, that is yet another reason to open this international conference on Evliya Celebi’s Balkan, here in Macedonia. I will take this opportunity to share with you my thoughts on the great traveler.

His views, which are sometimes burdened with prejudice, however, allow us to understand his and the general Ottoman views on the Balkans in the 17th century. Evliya Celebi, during his travels, inevitably met with non-Muslim and neo-ottoman values and concepts, ideas and customs, which he partially recorded in his scripts. Thus, the writer of travel books contributed to building understanding between peoples, cultures and civilizations.

Although with his creative imagination, Celebi sometimes dramatizes, and therefore some of his descriptions should be taken with caution, however, his writings are important sources not only for history and geography, but for ethnography and anthropology, economics and architecture in our region, the Balkans, Macedonia, Skopje. Visiting Skopje in 1660, he wrote:

”[In the Bazaar] there are 2,150 stores. There are squares and markets, with arches and domes. Of all, the best are: the Bazaar of cotton works, umbrella makers, shoemakers, painters, weavers. These are huge bazaars constructed according to the plan. The lanes are clean and paved. Each store is decorated with hyacinths, violets, roses, basil, lilacs and lily in vases and pots. With their smell, they simply call for the attention of the visitors and traders. There are many educated and honest people. During summer heat, the markets in Skopje look like Baghdad shadows, for all its bazaars are with twisted shutters and arches as in Sarajevo and Aleppo”.

Similar impressions he shared for other Macedonian and Balkan centers he visited during his travels. This inevitably raises the question: What is the secret of the wealth of Skopje, Macedonia, and at the Balkans in general? The wealth which is depicted in our eyes by Celebi. What is the reason for the economic, cultural and social progress in the Balkans in the past? I believe that the secret lies in the open space. Space which created favorable conditions for trade, exchange of ideas, beliefs and views, for people with open minds.

Distinguished Guests,
Only 29 years after Evliya Celebi visited Skopje, the beauty of the city was confirmed by the Austrian general and contemporary of Celebi, Ennio Silva Piccolomini. But unlike the famous travel writer who left Skopje in hope, the famous military commander left the city in ashes.

After the defense of Vienna in 1683, Austria, along with the other countries of the Holy League, launched a counteroffensive attack, deeply entering the territories of the Ottoman Empire, up to Macedonia. Piccolomini with the army arrived in Skopje, where there was a raging cholera epidemic. In his letter of October 31, 1689, to Emperor Leopold I, Piccolomini wrote the following:

”Skopje is a spacious city, not much smaller than Prague or maybe its size. I found it abandoned, without jewels, richly supplied with the products [...] Now I have decided, but very reluctantly, to bury the city in ash. I was sorry for the buildings I have not seen alike in this war, for the mosques of marble and porphyry with thousands of lamps and gilded ornaments that one would paid attention to in Rome, beautiful houses, gardens and nurseries ... large livelihood supplies, all of that I had to surrender to the flame. [...] The smoke darkened the sun on October 26, and the next day. We stood on a high hill and under the sounds of military instruments watched the fire in this beautiful place, really, not without trouble and sorrow, while the thought came into my head that the beautiful suburbs of Vienna suffered the same fate”.

The fire violently disrupted the flourishing of the city. Many houses and stores were burned to ashes, and the epidemic did not cease. Piccolomini also caught cholera and soon died. And from Skopje, only the stone buildings remained, the Fortress, several mosques, the churches of St. Demetrius and St. Saviour, and the great Caravan - Saray. It took the city two centuries to recover from the tragedy. From 60,000 inhabitants, the population dropped to 10,000. In the next 200 years Skopje was small and unknown town until the mid 19th century when trade and crafts were revived and when new buildings started to be build.

Ladies and Gentlemen,
In 1901, almost 250 years after Evliya Celebi, Macedonia was visited by the Russian publicist Alexander Valentinovich Amfiteatrov. In his book "Land of Strife", Amfiteatrov shared his impressions for the wealth of the country, and among the other things, he said:

"The economic situation of the Macedonian peasant does not sadden the Russian eye: Russian and Bulgarian peasants in the Principality are poorer than the Macedonian. [...] Just walking through and seeing with your eyes the South of Macedonia, you can fully understand why with such ferocity many nations have argued and fought for that region, certainly declaring it as theirs because it is - a garden, a real garden! The villagers do not look neglected, their clothing is colorful and rich, many herds graze around the villages, Slavic language is heard everywhere... Bulgarian villages in the Principality are far dirtier. And I do not dare to speak about our villages."

Amfiteatrov called Macedonia the Land of Strife, the land for which its neighbors are struggling. Celebi left Macedonia in hope, Piccolomini in ashes, Amfiteatrov left it in turmoil, strife and division. That goes for the Balkans as well. In our region, there were two Balkan wars, two world wars, the Cold War and the bloody breakup of the Yugoslav federation at the end of the block division.

All this leads us to a hypothetical question: What would Evliya Celebi say today regarding the Balkans? Balkans which, after the turbulent 90s of the last century, today is still divided and closed, Balkans in which still exist fear and prejudice created by the closed space.

Distinguished Guests,
I suggest for a moment to think of Evliya Celebi, today, in our divided Balkans. Instead of the beauties of the cities and regions he visited, today, Celebi would write about frustrations of the long queues at the border crossings, about many forms and conditions that must be met, about the suspicious glances of the border officials. Instead of kindness, hospitality and generosity of people, he would talk about the efforts of the young generations to leave the century-old homes and go into what is now a synonym for open space - Europe.

All this leads us to another hypothetical, and partially rhetorical question: Would Evliya Celebi in present circumstances exist? We must not forget that he was a chronicler of his time, thanks to the open space in which he traveled, communicated and was educated. Space, in which he almost smoothly traveled, observed, wrote down and shared, space that inevitably leads to communication. And we know that those who communicate become integrated, while those who do not communicate become part of a ghetto.

Evliya Celebi is a product of that open space, the same space he wrote for four decades. As a high Ottoman official, he enjoyed the confidence of the authorities he shared his impressions with, his opinions and perceptions of individuals and peoples, their beliefs and values, habits and customs. Thus, he indirectly altered the perception of his contemporaries and of the later generations reading his lines. Hence, the travel writer contributed to building understanding between peoples, cultures and civilizations. Consequently the dilemma emerged: Who would be the modern Celebi? Are the reports of the European Commission, the Freedom House or the OSCE modern counterparts of his travelogues? Is the Internet modern Celebi?

Mark Twain said: "Travel is fatal to prejudice, fanatism and narrow-mindedness". I believe Celebi very early became aware of this great truth.

Ladies and Gentlemen,
At the end, let me share with you the conviction that new times require new Evliya Celebi, who could successfully fulfill his role only in terms of open space. I believe that this conference will address some of these issues. I wish you a fruitful discussion.

Thank you.