What would happen if the Ottomans (or another Islamic group) invented the Printing Press One Hundred years before the Europeans?
WI: Muslims invent the Printing Press?
- Thread starter Prime Minister
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Technically the Chinese invented the printing press, gutenberg just found a new way to do it.
This is true. But I was going for the Muslims inventing something like the Gutenberg Printing Press, maybe printing the "Ghazal Quran"?
Well I suppose it would be a great way to avoid the loss of important texts, like those that were lost when the mongols burned baghdad. Simply because there would be more copies of texts around and surely nobody could destroy them all.
Almost a century too late to save anything lost thanks to Hugalu, though.
Delvestius
Banned
I don't see why a Golden Age printing press is out of the question. If done early enough, perhaps many more regions of this world would be speaking Semitic languages.
"The mirror image of each letter (rather than entire words or phrases), was carved in relief on a small block. Individual letters, easily movable, were put together to form words; words separated by blank spaces formed lines of type; and lines of type were brought together to make up a page. Since letters could be arranged into any format, an infinite variety of texts could be printed by reusing and resetting the type."
Would that work as well with Arabic? Assuming the technology exists and the demand exists (the printing press was developed in response to "
The extension of literacy among laypeople and the greater reliance of governments and businesses upon written records created a demand for a less-costly method of reproducing the written word. The import of paper from the East as well as "block-books" (see above), were major steps in transforming the printing of books. However, woodcuts were not sufficiently durable as they tended to split in the press after repeated use. Furthermore, a new block had to be carved for each new impression, and the block was discarded as unusable as soon as a slightly different impression was needed.")
http://www.historyguide.org/intellect/press.html
.http://www.historyguide.org/intellect/press.html
Im not sure how well it would work with the language itself. But the Islamic golden age saw a massive spike in literacy rates all over the Muslim world, so there would be a demand for sure.
Would love to see a source for that. Not arguing, but a much of the Muslim world is areas that are already urban and literate and such.
Delvestius
Banned
Not to mention, the society was essentially founded on the language, in both the Islamic and Pre-Islamic age. If someone had the opportunity and right circumstances there during that time, I bet they would have found a way at least nominally efficient.
Delvestius
Banned
He's right, literacy increased notably under the court of Harun Al-Rashid and his founding of the House of Knowledge in Baghdad.
Again: I would love to see a source for that. I'm not saying it's wrong, but I'd like to see the basis other than "some guy on the internet who I don't really know said it".
I read something to that effect in a book by Albert Hourani, I'm going to check it.
The 'language' is OK. The naskhi script, however, is not exactly the best system in the world to start printing press with. Letters tend to be tied to each other, and lack of some ties can be a distinctive trait. Moreover, many letters slightly change their shape according the place they have in the word.
Of course, this does not mean it is impossible. But in OTL printing press was adopted relatively late in most islamic countries, basically after 1750, and really took off only when litography spread.
Delvestius
Banned
The first printing press in the middle east was introduced to Egypt during the French Invasion of 1799
Thanks. One of my not-so-new mini-projects is learning more about the Muslim world and its development (and then lack of), so this would be very useful.
Earlier if you count Turkey. Check out for one Ibrahim Muteferrika.
And printing press in Arabic was known to Lebanese Christians, I think since the late 1600s but I should check.
Cannot find it in Hourani.
It is a quite generally accepted point in the field, but I am not able to quickly find hard data.
There are some sources that amount to the whole urban population receiving at least basic literacy (including females). It is implied by Biancamaria Scarcia, "Un altro medioevo. Il quotidiano nell'Islam", p. 191. The book is in Italian. She quotes the following sources, in English: A. Giladi, "Children of Islam: Concepts of Childhood in Medieval Muslim Society" and Patricia Crone, "Pre-Industrial Societies".
I cannot find anything more detailed on the spot.
Good enough for answering my question.
But if you run into something more detailed later (no pressure, just that you probably have books I don't), please share.