Turn My Head to the Caucasus: The Biography of Osman Ferid Pasha

by Aydin Osman Erkan

The compelling story of Osman Ferid Pasha begins in the mid 19th century as a child fighting―and losing―against Russian incursions in the Caucusus, through the mass migrations to Istanbul and then his successes and failures in the Ottoman military. The war in the Caucusus, the struggles of Imam Shamil of Chechnya and the fall of the Ottoman Empire are all spotlighted as we come to admire this intriguing figure of the Caucasian Pasha.

Genres: Russia

288 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2009

Reviews

[Merna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Turn My Head to the Caucasus, as a title, could imply multiple things. Basically, the book is a retelling of the life of Osman Ferid Pasha, hence, when the title is read, one might think that he's either looking in the direction of the Caucasus as he lived in Diaspora, or he's looking away from the Caucasus (turn my head on the Caucasus) to focus on the present and future of his own life. My mind kept going back and forth with those two thoughts, until I made it to the last chapter, where the title is explained. And boy, I got goosebumps down my spine.

Part I of the book is the best way to start such biography, making it my favorite part.
It is filled with the tragic events that took place in the Caucasus in the last 20 years of the Russian-Circassian war. It is also filled with norms taken directly from the Circassian folklore "xabze" that we fail to see nowadays.

The second part is a bit of a disappointment, as it displays exactly what our ancestors went through with the integration into Diaspora (not only Turkey). The major disappointment was reading that Osman Ferid wrote a note to himself in Turkish, as opposed to using Adigabze, as he boarded the ship leaving the Caucasus.
Also, the rare use of words in Adigabze throughout the book (I believe Thae is the only word used). On top of that, Osman Ferid's children were taught Turkish, Arabic and French, and never mentioning that they spoke Circassian. Technically, this puts the blame on our ancestors and not parents for the scarcity of the mother tongue use in the latter generations.

All in all, this biography is a good read to get a hint of our history and what our ancestors have done since making their way to the Ottoman Empire.

(It's quite a surprise that the book is yet to be read and rated on Goodreads.)

[Paulo · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an amazing character. He reminded me that one from "The Orientalist" . I realized that I appreciate intense biographies. I recomend this book as a lesson of life , perseverance. Osman Ferid was born to be a hero , a great warrior. His family , the traditions of Circassians , defending their lands against the russians over 150 years and the last battle , forcing to a exile in the Ottoman empire.There , Osman Ferid built a brilliant career , defending the sultans , and this part of the lecture allows to understand more about that empire. Finally ,another exile to Arabia and the following battles against beduins tribes show other unknown reality. Reading this book , I could understand a little bit more about the reasons of the actual conflicts between russians and the other caucasian ethnic group - the chechens .Besides ,the descriptions of Caucasus are as a travel by themselves.

[Tra May · Rating 4 out of 5]

The ending is the best part of it.