Money without a State: Currencies of the Orthodox Christians in the Balkan Provinces of the Ottoman Empire (17th-19th Centuries)

International audienceThe paper presents a historical and theoretical analysis of the issue of local currency (coins and paper money), undertaken in various forms by the Orthodox Christians in the Balkan provinces of the Ottoman Empire (XVII \textendash XIX centuries). The paper has two main goals. The first is to enrich the discussion on the diversity and complexity of monetary practices in historical perspective by including experience of the Ottoman Empire. The second is to contribute to a better understanding and rethinking of the economic and social processes in the Ottoman Empire which helped its centuries-long resilience and vitality. In fact, the monetary architecture of the Ottoman Empire was relatively complex. Despite the tension between its different monetary areas and layers, on the whole it managed to ensure flexibility, sustainability, and efficiency in the long-run. \textcopyright 2014, Springer Science+Business Media New York