This article explores the so far little explored animal dimension of the significant social, economic, and ecological transformations that occurred in Western Anatolia in the late Ottoman Empire. It focuses on how the use of the hybrid, one-humped “Turcoman” camel transformed the way in which trade and transport operated in the region. In light of Ottoman, Turkish, and European sources, it suggests that the camel was a visible yet often underestimated actor in the incorporation of Western Anatolia into global markets and integrating the camel as important history-shaping actor into the historical narrative allows us to better grasp the complex relationships that existed between humans, nature, and technology and to change the way we think about the Ottoman Empire.

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Ottoman port-cities, because of their privileged position at the interface of two or more distinct economic systems, cultures, and environments, have long fascinated historians. In their studies, they have primarily dealt with the processes and developments that linked these cities to the centres of global economy. 1 On the other hand, historians have also studied Ottoman port-cities within the framework of city-country relations for quite some time. 2 They have, however, focused principally on the ways cities exercised influence over the countryside and often viewed transformations in the hinterlands as results of impact of the city on the country. Historical interplay between port-cities and their hinterlands has remained a rather neglected aspect of Ottoman history. This paper aims to fill a gap in our understanding of the complex relationship between port-cities and hinterlands in the Ottoman Empire and give an environmental perspective on the subject through the study of interactions between Izmir and Western Anatolia in the nineteenth century. 1 For a theoretical and methodological framework on Ottoman port-cities and their role in the integration of Ottoman Empire into the expanding world-economy, see:

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