State formation in the 15th century and the Eurasian canvas : problems and opportunities

Introduction to the volume Trajectories of State Formation across Fifteenth-Century Islamic West-Asia — Eurasian Parallels, Connections and Divergences, arguing for the importance of pursuing more 'entangled' and connected historical as well as historiographical trajectories to conduct inquiries into the concept, practice, institution and appearance of 'the state'. This introduction clarifies the theme and approach of the volume, explains and contextualizes its focus on the particular time and space of fifteenth century Muslim West-Asia, and provides an overview of the different components of the volume. It consists of three parts, that move from the general to the specific, as is also suggested by the titles of these three parts: ‘Whither Eurasian State Formation? Claims, pitfalls, and opportunities’; ‘Whither the 15th century: Muslim West-Asia’s trajectories of state formation in context’; ‘Whither This Volume: Muslim West-Asia’s trajectories of state formation in focus’.Introduction to the volume Trajectories of State Formation across Fifteenth-Century Islamic West-Asia — Eurasian Parallels, Connections and Divergences, arguing for the importance of pursuing more 'entangled' and connected historical as well as historiographical trajectories to conduct inquiries into the concept, practice, institution and appearance of 'the state'. This introduction clarifies the theme and approach of the volume, explains and contextualizes its focus on the particular time and space of fifteenth century Muslim West-Asia, and provides an overview of the different components of the volume. It consists of three parts, that move from the general to the specific, as is also suggested by the titles of these three parts: ‘Whither Eurasian State Formation? Claims, pitfalls, and opportunities’; ‘Whither the 15th century: Muslim West-Asia’s trajectories of state formation in context’; ‘Whither This Volume: Muslim West-Asia’s trajectories of state formation in focus’.B