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83-488: Located to the south of Mall Road, Lalkurti Rawalpindi is a bazaar and a residential area from the British colonial era . The Lalkurti Bazaar area, formerly known as B I Bazaar (British Infantry Bazaar), is one of the busiest shopping areas of Rawalpindi cantonment. The importance of Lalkurti in the history of Rawalpindi and Pakistan lies in its once being the hub of Pakistan's military and political activities, especially in

166-409: A funduq , khān , samsara , or wakāla . They could serve a variety of functions including an inn for travelers and merchants, a manufacturing center, a trade venue, or a warehouse. In Iran and Central Asia, the permanent bazaar is likewise in the centre of a city and had common architectural elements. These bazaars acted as financial centers of the city and were traditionally overseen by

249-514: A metonym for, and coterminous with, the continent of Asia – loosely classified into Southwest Asia , Southeast Asia , South Asia , Central Asia , East Asia , and sometimes including the Caucasus . Originally, the term Orient was used to designate only the Near East , but later its meaning evolved and expanded, designating also Central Asia, Southwest Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, or

332-575: A pejorative , particularly when used as a noun. John Kuo Wei Tchen , director of the Asian/Pacific/American Studies Program and Institute at New York University , said the basic criticism of the term began in the U.S. during a cultural shift in the 1970s. He has said: "With the U.S.A. anti-war movement in the '60s and early '70s, many Asian Americans identified the term 'Oriental' with a Western process of racializing Asians as forever opposite 'others ' ", by making

415-674: A Painter in the Atlas and the Anti-Atlas published in 1922 Types of markets, bazaars and souks: Markets and retail in general: Oriental The Orient is a term referring to the East in relation to Europe , traditionally comprising anything belonging to the Eastern world . It is the antonym of the term Occident , which refers to the Western world . In English, it is largely

498-710: A book of travels titled From the Black Sea through Persia and India. Other notable painters in the Orientalist genre who included scenes of street life and market-based trade in their work are Jean-Léon Gérôme Delacroix (1824–1904), Alexandre-Gabriel Decamps (1803–1860), Frederic Leighton (1830–1896), Eugène Alexis Girardet 1853–1907 and William Holman Hunt (1827–1910), who all found inspiration in Oriental street scenes, trading and commerce. A proliferation of both Oriental fiction and travel writing occurred during

581-576: A couple of churches ( St. Joseph's Cathedral and Christ Church ) in the locality. The Christian minority and the Muslims have always lived in exemplary cohesion. There are a few temples in Lalkurti which are a reminder of the Hindu population that lived here before partition. These temples are now in disuse and have been annexed into the neighbouring houses. The only temple being used for worship by

664-606: A cultural term, large parts of Asia— Siberia most notably—were excluded from the scholarly notion of "the Orient". Equally valid terms for the Orient still exist in the English language in such collocations as Oriental studies (now Asian Studies in some countries). The adjectival term Oriental has been used by the West to mean cultures, peoples, countries, Asian rugs, and goods from the Orient. "Oriental" means generally "eastern". It

747-549: A distinction between "Western" and "Eastern" ancestral origins. This is particularly relevant when referring to lands and peoples not associated with the historic "Orient": outside of the former Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire and Sasanian Empire (Persia), including the former Diocese of the Orient , as well as others lands sharing cultural legacies with the Oriental Orthodox churches and Oriental Catholic Churches . In contrast, regions of Asia further East, outside of

830-457: A meaning in Western thought that transcends geography. By the mid-20th century, Western scholars generally considered "the Orient" as just East Asia, Southeast Asia, and eastern Central Asia. As recently as the early 20th century, the term "Orient" often continued to be used in ways that included North Africa. Today, the term primarily evokes images of China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Mongolia, and peninsular Southeast Asia. "The Orient" being largely

913-566: A permanent structure containing shops. English place names usually translate "çarşı" (shopping district in a downtown or downtown itself) as "bazaar" when they refer to an area with covered streets or passages. The word "souk" in the Arabic-speaking world is roughly equivalent to "bazaar". The Arabic word is a loan from Aramaic "šūqā" ("street, market"), itself a loanword from the Akkadian "sūqu" ("street"). The Arabic word sūq

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996-772: A pictograph of the sun rising behind a tree ) and " The Land of the Rising Sun " to refer to Japan. In Arabic, the Mashriq literally means "the sunrise", "the east", the name is derived from the verb sharaqa (Arabic: شرق "to shine, illuminate, radiate" and "to rise"), from sh-r-q root (ش-ر-ق), referring to the east, where the sun rises. Historically, the Mashriq was the southern part of the Eastern Roman Empire. Many ancient temples, including pagan temples , Hindu temples , Buddhist temples , Jain temples , and

1079-657: A result of its prolonged use in the region, since the 18th century it was used in reference to the inhabitants of the Banda Oriental , the historical name of the territories that now compose the modern nation of Uruguay. In German, Orient is usually used synonymously with the area between the Near East and East Asia, including Israel , the Arab world , and Greater Persia . The term Asiaten (English: Asians) means Asian people in general. Another word for Orient in German

1162-567: A significant minority of Christians and a very small number of Hindus also reside at Lalkurti. The building hosting the National University of Sciences and Technology, Pakistan (NUST), situated at the junction of Tameez-ud-din road (formerly called the Church road) and Mamoo Jee Road (now called Lalkurti Road), has a special historical significance. The road was named after prominent Rawalpindi businessman Mamoo Jee Hakimjee and it

1245-648: A small presently existing Hindu population is the Balmik temple. Bazaar A bazaar or souk is a marketplace consisting of multiple small stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East , the Balkans , Central Asia , North Africa and South Asia . They are traditionally located in vaulted or covered streets that have doors on each end and served as a city's central marketplace. The term bazaar originates from Persian , where it referred to

1328-500: A social function as being a place for people to meet in, in addition to its commercial function. In pre-Islamic Arabia, two types of souks existed: permanent urban markets and temporary seasonal markets. The temporary seasonal markets were held at specific times of the year and became associated with particular types of produce. Suq Hijr in Bahrain was noted for its dates while Suq 'Adan was known for its spices and perfumes. In spite of

1411-527: A town's public market district. The term bazaar is sometimes also used to refer collectively to the merchants , bankers and craftsmen who work in that area. The term souk comes from Arabic and refers to marketplaces in the Middle East and North Africa. Although the lack of archaeological evidence has limited detailed studies of the evolution of bazaars, the earliest evidence for the existence of bazaars or souks dates to around 3000 BCE . Cities in

1494-482: A veil was a particularly tempting subject because she was hidden from view, adding to her mysterious allure. Notable artists in the Orientalist genre include: Jean-Léon Gérôme Delacroix (1824–1904), Alexandre-Gabriel Decamps (1803–1860), Frederic Leighton (1830–1896), Eugène Alexis Girardet 1853-1907 and William Holman Hunt (1827–1910) who all found inspiration in Oriental street scenes, trading and commerce. French painter Jean-Étienne Liotard visited Istanbul in

1577-512: A whole make up approximately 9.3% of the population within the United Kingdom, and people of an ethnically South Asian background comprise the largest group within this category. "Orientals" refers exclusively to people of East and Southeast Asian origin, who constitute approximately 0.7% of the UK population as a whole. Of these, the majority are of Chinese descent. Orient is also a word for

1660-526: Is Al Mirbid just outside Basra , also famed for its poetry competitions in addition to its storytelling activities. Temporary souks tended to become known for specific types of produce. For example, Suq Hijr in Bahrain was noted for its dates while Suq 'Adan was known for its spices and perfumes. Political, economic and social changes have left only the small seasonal souks outside villages and small towns, primarily selling livestock and agricultural products. Weekly markets have continued to function throughout

1743-700: Is a traditional designation (especially when capitalized) for anything belonging to the Orient or "East" (for Asia), and especially of its Eastern culture . It indicated the eastern direction in historical astronomy, often abbreviated "Ori". In contemporary American English, Oriental usually refers to things from the parts of East Asia traditionally occupied by East Asians and most Central Asians and Southeast Asians racially categorized as " Mongoloid ". This excludes Jews , Indians, Arabs , and most other South or West Asian peoples. Because of historical discrimination against Chinese, Korean and Japanese, in some parts of

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1826-589: Is known due to the lack of archaeological evidence. During the 18th and 19th centuries, Europeans conquered and excavated parts of North Africa and the Levant. These regions now make up what is called the Middle East, but in the past were known as the Orient. Europeans sharply divided peoples into two broad groups – the European West and the East or Orient ; us and the other. Europeans often saw Orientals as

1909-530: Is mid-century example of the genre. Byron's Oriental Tales, is another example of the Romantic Orientalism genre. Although these works were purportedly non-fiction, they were notoriously unreliable. Many of these accounts provided detailed descriptions of market places, trading and commerce. Examples of travel writing include: Les Mysteres de L'Egypte Devoiles by Olympe Audouard published in 1865 and Jacques Majorelle 's Road Trip Diary of

1992-475: Is more widely used to refer to the works of the many 19th-century artists who specialized in "Oriental" subjects and often drew on their travels to North Africa and Western Asia. Artists, as well as scholars, were already described as "Orientalists" in the 19th century. In 1978, the Palestinian-American scholar Edward Said published his influential and controversial book, Orientalism , and used

2075-918: Is the Khan al-Mirjan in Baghdad, built in 1359 as part of a larger architectural complex. Muhammad's prohibition against constructing permanent buildings and levying taxes in the market began to be disregarded as early as the Umayyad period (7th to 8th centuries). The Umayyad caliphs Mu'awiya I and Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik both built structures in the market of Medina and levied taxes there, while purpose-built markets were built in early Islamic cities further abroad such as Basra in Iraq , Fustat in Egypt, and Kairouan in Tunisia. This process seems to have accelerated during

2158-1278: The Far East . The term oriental is often used to describe objects and people coming from the Orient/eastern Asia. The term "Orient" derives from the Latin word oriens , meaning "east" (lit. "rising" < orior " rise"). The use of the word for "rising" to refer to the east (where the sun rises) has analogues from many languages: compare the terms "Arevelk" in Armenian : Արեւելք (Armenian Arevelk means "East" or "Sunrise"), " Levant " (< French levant "rising"), "Vostok" Russian: Восток (< Russian voskhod Russian: восход "sunrise"), " Anatolia " (< Greek anatole ), "mizrah" in Hebrew ("zriha" meaning sunrise), "sharq" Arabic : شرق (< Arabic yashriq يشرق "rise", shurūq Arabic : شروق "rising"), "shygys" Kazakh : шығыс (< Kazakh shygu Kazakh : шығу "come out"), Turkish : doğu (< Turkish doğmak to be born; to rise), "xavar" Persian : خاور (meaning east), Chinese : 東 ( pinyin : dōng ,

2241-535: The Ottoman Empire (14th to 20th centuries), the construction of commercial buildings in and around the bazaar was often sponsored by sultans, ruling elites, or by members of the Ottoman royal family . The revenues generated by these buildings were typically earmarked to support the upkeep of religious complexes sponsored by these same patrons, through the legal framework of a waqf (legal endowment). In

2324-669: The Selimiye Mosque complex in Edirne or the Sultanahmet Mosque complex in Istanbul. The Spice Bazaar or Mısır Çarşısı ('Egyptian Market') in Istanbul is also one of the largest and best-known examples. The han is similar in function to other khān or caravanserai buildings elsewhere, with a courtyard enclosed by two storeys. The ground floor was usually used for storage and for stabling horses, while

2407-582: The gold souk , the texitle souk, the spice souk, the leather souk, the booksellers' souk, etc. This promotes competition among sellers and helps buyers easily compare prices. Merchants specialized in each trade were also organized into guilds , which provided support to merchants but also to clients. The exact details of the organizations varied from region to region. Each guild had rules that members were expected to follow, but they were loose enough to allow for competition. Guilds also fulfilled some functions similar to trade unions and were able to negotiate with

2490-683: The kedkhoda in Istanbul or the amir-i bazariyan in Delhi . In the Maghreb (northwestern Africa), the muḥtasib also shared responsibilities with other officials such as the qadi or the hakim . Permanent bazaars were established in urban zones, usually within the city walls and close to the heart of the city. In much of the Middle East and North Africa, the bazaar is a network of interconnected spaces, including streets and buildings, with diverse architectural forms. Its boundaries are not sharply defined and can vary according to circumstance, as

2573-635: The "oriental" and "occidental" provinces of Mindoro and Negros in the Philippines, and the French département of Pyrénées-Orientales . Since the 19th century, "orientalist" has been the traditional term for a scholar of Oriental studies ; however, the use in English of "Orientalism" to describe academic "Oriental studies" is rare: the Oxford English Dictionary cites only one such usage, by Lord Byron in 1812. " Orientalism "

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2656-679: The 17th century and painted pastels of Turkish domestic scenes. British painter John Frederick Lewis who lived for several years in a traditional mansion in Cairo, painted highly detailed works showing realistic genre scenes of Middle Eastern life. Edwin Lord Weeks was a notable American example of a 19th-century artist and author in the Orientalism genre. His parents were wealthy tea and spice merchants who were able to fund his travels and interest in painting. In 1895 Weeks wrote and illustrated

2739-462: The 1800s, India, and to a lesser extent China, began to displace the Levant as the primary subject of Orientalist research, while the term also appears in mid-century works to describe an appearance or perceived similarity to "Oriental" government or culture, such as in Tolstoy 's 1869 novel War and Peace , in which Napoleon , upon seeing the "oriental beauty" of Moscow, calls it "That Asiatic city of

2822-481: The 18th and 19th centuries, Western interest in oriental culture led to the publication of many books about daily life in Middle Eastern countries. Souks, bazaars and the trappings of trade feature prominently in paintings and engravings, works of fiction and travel writing. Shopping at a bazaar or market-place remains a central feature of daily life in many Middle-Eastern and South Asian cities and towns and

2905-505: The 1960s, when Rawalpindi served as the interim capital of Pakistan. The first session of the third National Assembly of Pakistan was held on 8 June 1962 at Ayub Hall, Lalkurti. Lalkurti has a population of around 200,000, which includes a majority of Punjabis / Pothoharis and a minority of Urdu speaking Mohajirs , Kashmiris and Pathans . A significant proportion of population has roots in East Punjab. Besides Muslim majority,

2988-935: The Arab world. Most of them are named from the day of the week on which they are held. They usually have open spaces specifically designated for their use inside cities. Examples of surviving markets are the Wednesday Market in Amman that specializes in the sale of used products, the Ghazl market held every Friday in Baghdad specializing in pets; the Fina’ Market in Marrakech offers performance acts such as singing, music, acrobats and circus activities. In tribal areas, where seasonal souks operated, neutrality from tribal conflicts

3071-666: The East, however many artists relied heavily on their everyday experiences for inspiration in their artworks. For example, Charles D'Oyly , who was born in India, published the Antiquities of Dacca featuring a series of 15 engraved plates of Dacca [now Dhaka, Bangladesh] featuring scenes of markets, commerce, buildings and streetscapes. European society generally frowned on nude painting – but harems, concubines and slave markets, presented as quasi-documentary works, satisfied European desires for pornographic art. The Oriental female wearing

3154-591: The Jewish Temple in Jerusalem, were built with their main entrances facing the East. This tradition was carried on in Christian churches . The opposite term " Occident " derives from the Latin word occidens , meaning west (lit. setting < occido fall/set ). This term meant the west (where the sun sets) but has fallen into disuse in English, in favour of " Western world ". Territorialization of

3237-473: The Middle East and in the Indian subcontinent. In North American and Europe, the English word "bazaar" can denote more generically a shop or market selling miscellaneous items. It can also refer in particular to a sale or fair to raise money for charitable purposes (e.g. charity bazaar ). In Turkish , the word was borrowed as pazar , but it refers to an outdoor market held at regular intervals, not

3320-508: The Middle East, the bazaar is considered to be "the beating heart of the city and a symbol of Islamic architecture and culture of high significance." Today, bazaars are popular sites for tourists and some of these ancient bazaars have been listed as world heritage sites or national monuments on the basis of their historical, cultural or architectural value. The Medina of Fez , Morocco , which includes numerous long market streets (e.g. Tala'a Kebira ) and bazaar areas (e.g. Kissariat al-Kifah ),

3403-654: The Orient , corresponding roughly to the region of Syria . Over time, the common understanding of "the Orient" has continually shifted eastwards, as European people travelled farther into Asia. It finally reached the Pacific Ocean, in what Westerners came to call "the Far East". These shifts in time and identification sometimes confuse the scope (historical and geographic) of Oriental Studies. Yet there remain contexts where "the Orient" and "Oriental" have kept their older meanings (e.g., "Oriental spices" typically are from

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3486-702: The Roman term Orient occurred during the reign of emperor Diocletian (284–305), when the Diocese of the Orient ( Latin : Dioecesis Orientis ) was formed. Later in the 4th century, the Praetorian prefecture of the Orient ( Latin : Praefectura Praetorio Orientis ) was also formed, including most of the Eastern Roman Empire , from the Thrace eastwards; its easternmost part was the original Diocese of

3569-636: The Spanish corruption socco is often used as in the Grand Socco and Petit Socco of Tangiers . In Israel , the term shuk or shuq ( Hebrew : שׁוּק , romanized :  šūq ) shares a common Aramaic origin of the Arabic souk , and holds a prominent role in everyday life. Markets such as Mahane Yehuda in Jerusalem are often covered rows of stalls much like those seen elsewhere in

3652-469: The United Kingdom have been issued with guidelines to encourage political correctness where oriental should be avoided because it is imprecise and may be considered racist or offensive. "Asian" in Great Britain sometimes refers to people who come specifically from South Asia (in particular Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives, Iran, and Afghanistan), since British Asians as

3735-540: The United States, some people consider the term derogatory. For example, Washington State prohibits the word "Oriental" in legislation and government documents and prefers the word "Asian" instead. In more local uses, "oriental" is also used for eastern parts of countries such as Morocco's Oriental Region . "Oriental" may also be used as an synonym of "eastern", especially in Romance languages . Examples include

3818-418: The ancient Middle East appear to have contained commercial districts. Later, in the historic Islamic world , bazaars typically shared in common certain institutions, such as the position of the muḥtasib , and certain architectural forms, such as roofed streets and courtyard buildings known in English as caravanserais . The exact details of their evolution and organization varied from region to region. In

3901-399: The bazaar is closely integrated with its urban surroundings and with other important institutions of the city. Although there is great variety among the bazaars of this region, there are three recurring elements, in addition to the general network of market streets. One element is the individual shops or booths that line each side of a market street. The shops are usually small spaces open to

3984-577: The bazaar remains the beating heart of West Asian and South Asian life; in the Middle East, souks tend to be found in a city's old quarter. Bazaars and souks are often important tourist attractions. A number of bazaar districts have been listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites due to their historical and/or architectural significance. The origin of the word "bazaar" comes from New Persian bāzār , from Middle Persian wāzār , from Old Persian wāčar , from Proto-Indo-Iranian *wahā-čarana . The term spread from Persian into Arabic, now used throughout

4067-554: The bazaar to economic life and the prominence of marketplace terminology in the Quran , not much is known about the early history of bazaars and it remains a topic of ongoing research. Most of the surviving urban commercial structures in the Islamic world date from the 16th century or later, though some preserved urban caravanserais (commonly known as a funduq , khān , or wakāla ) date from earlier periods. The oldest of these

4150-434: The centrality of the Middle East in the history of souks, relatively little is known due to the lack of archaeological evidence. However, documentary sources point to permanent marketplaces in cities from as early as 550 BCE. According to traditional Muslim narratives, Muhammad established a market place ( sūq ) in Medina shortly after arriving there during the Hijrah in 622 CE. He designated an open, unbuilt space as

4233-415: The cities that developed under the Ottoman Empire, there was generally one central bazaar area, known in Turkish as the çarşı . The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul , known locally as the Kapalıçarşı ('covered market'), is a famous example. Additionally, several types of market structures were common: the bedesten , the arasta , and the han (Turkish cognate of khān ). The Ottoman bedesten

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4316-492: The cultural domination of Abrahamic religions, do not share these same historical associations, giving way for the term "oriental" to have different connotations. In 2016, President Obama signed New York Congresswoman Grace Meng 's legislation H.R. 4238 replacing the word with Asian American in federal law. The Chinese word 东方 is translated as "oriental" in the official English names of several entities, e.g. Oriental Art Center , Oriental Movie Metropolis . In other cases,

4399-470: The early modern period. Many English visitors to the Orient wrote narratives around their travels. British Romantic literature in the Orientalism tradition has its origins in the early eighteenth century, with the first translations of The Arabian Nights (translated into English from the French in 1705–08). The popularity of this work inspired authors to develop a new genre, the Oriental tale. Samuel Johnson's History of Rasselas, Prince of Abyssinia, (1759)

4482-416: The early modern period. Many of these works were lavishly illustrated with engravings of every day scenes of Oriental lifestyles, including scenes of market places and market trade. Artists focused on the exotic beauty of the land – the markets, caravans and snake charmers. Islamic architecture also became favorite subject matter. Some of these works were propaganda designed to justify European imperialism in

4565-569: The existence of market districts in ancient Mesopotamia . Markets centers must have existed in Egypt to conduct international trade, but no archeological evidence for them has been found. In Achaemenid Persia (550–330 BCE), documents indicate that crafts were sold in markets close to Persepolis. A network of bazaars had sprung up alongside ancient caravan trade routes. Bazaars located along these trade routes, formed networks, linking major cities with each other and in which goods, culture, people and information could be exchanged. Sources from around

4648-463: The government on behalf of merchants or represent their interests when needed. Though each neighbourhood within the city would have a local souk selling food and other essentials, the main bazaar was one of the central structures of a large city, selling durable goods, luxuries and providing services such as money exchange. Workshops where goods for sale are produced (in the case of a merchant selling locally-made products) are typically located away from

4731-416: The growing importance of the suburbs and the commercial districts resulted in most of them being enclosed within newly expanded city walls. From the 10th century onward, the bazaar became the financial center of a city and was heavily patronized and developed by ruling elites. The grouping of a bazaar, citadel, and Friday mosque also became more common. In the Mamluk Sultanate (13th to 16th centuries) and in

4814-407: The innumerable churches, holy Moscow!", while in 1843 the American historian William Prescott uses the phrase "barbaric pomp, truly Oriental" to describe the court life of Aztec nobility in his history of the conquest of the Aztec Empire . As late as 1957 Karl Wittfogel included Rome and the Incan Empire in his study of what he called Oriental Despotism , demonstrating the term still carries

4897-462: The lustre of a fine pearl . Hong Kong, a former British colony, has been called "Pearl of the Orient" along with Shanghai. In the UK, and much of the commonwealth, it is not considered a pejorative term, with many East Asian people choosing to use it themselves - notably in the names of East Asian businesses such as restaurants and takeaway outlets. People in the United Kingdom from Southwest Asia , Asia Minor and Near East are often referred to by

4980-414: The market and carried on trade, while the men remain at home weaving cloth. He also described The Babylonian Marriage Market . Sassanid rule in Iran was an important period for the development of urbanization and commerce. In Sassanid Iran, the bazaar was usually the heart of a town or city, where it spread outwards and affected the development of other neighbourhoods. The bazaar usually contained, or

5063-404: The market area and forbade both the construction of permanent structures and the levying of taxes in this area. Eight years later, he is said to have appointed a market inspector ( 'āmil 'alā l-sūq ), a position that likely evolved into the later muḥtasib in Islamic cities, an official in charge of overseeing public morality and regulating weights and measures. Despite the importance of

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5146-412: The most prestigious and profitable trades such as jewelry, perfumes, and textiles. In order to protect these goods, the entrances to this area could be closed and locked at night or in times of danger. The other recurring element is the presence of courtyard buildings entered via a single large doorway. Often translated into English as a caravanserai , this type of building is known in different regions as

5229-435: The opposite of Western civilization; the peoples could be threatening- they were "despotic, static and irrational whereas Europe was viewed as democratic, dynamic and rational." At the same time, the Orient was seen as exotic, mysterious, a place of fables and beauty. This fascination with the other gave rise to a genre of painting known as Orientalism . A proliferation of both Oriental fiction and travel writing occurred during

5312-448: The region, selling produce, spices, halvah , and even clothing. Scholar Mohammad Gharipour has pointed out that in spite of the centrality of bazaars in Persian history, relatively little is known due to the lack of archaeological evidence. Historical records document the concept of a bazaar existing in Iran as early as 3000 BCE, where some large cities contained districts dedicated to trade and commerce. Archeological data also suggests

5395-444: The regions extending from the Middle East to sub-continental India to Indo-China). Travellers may again take the Orient Express train from Paris to its terminus in the European part of Istanbul , a route established in the early 20th century. In European historiography , the meaning of "the Orient" changed in scope several times. Originally, the term referred to Egypt, the Levant , and adjoining areas as far west as Morocco. During

5478-440: The reign of Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik ( r.  724–743 ) in particular. Markets that sold the most important or expensive goods were usually located near the city's central Friday mosque . In some cities, such as Cairo and Aleppo, the main bazaar was initially focused along one important street and then progressively grew and branched off into the surrounding streets. During the Islamic period in Iran, bazaars developed along

5561-411: The same era also indicate that ancient Greeks regulated trade in areas at the center of their cities around stoa buildings. The ideas of Greek city planning were spread to the Middle East during the Seleucid period, following the conquests of Alexander the Great . The Greek historian, Herodotus , noted that in Egypt, roles were reversed compared with other cultures and Egyptian women frequented

5644-407: The same lines as those of the Sassanid period. Up to the 11th century, the bazaar developed more commonly in the suburbs outside the city walls that enclosed the shahristān , the formal city. This was especially true in Central Asia, though there were exceptions in some regions where the bazaar was grouped with the citadel and the city's Friday mosque inside the city walls. After the 11th century,

5727-410: The same word is more literally translated as "eastern", e.g. China Eastern Airlines . The official name of Uruguay is Oriental Republic of Uruguay, the adjective Oriental refers to the geographic location of the country, east of the Uruguay River . The term Oriental is also used as Uruguay's demonym , usually with a formal or solemn connotation. The word also has a deep historical meaning as

5810-501: The souk itself. Historically, in Islamic cities, the muḥtasib was the official in charge of regulating and policing the bazaar and other aspects of urban life. They monitored things such as weights and measures, pricing, cleanliness, noise, and traffic circulation, as well as being responsible for other issues of public morality. They also investigated complaints about cheating or the quality of goods. The equivalent official could be known by other titles in different regions, such as

5893-522: The state. Some Iranian bazaars are organized around one long market street from which other market streets branch off (e.g. in Isfahan or Tehran), while others are large rectangular zones with a grid-like network of parallel and intersecting streets (e.g. as in Tabriz). The streets are lined with structures of one or two storeys that contain spaces for shops. The streets are typically roofed with brick vaults, pierced by skylights to allow for light and air circulation. The shops are often adjacent or connected to

5976-421: The street and occupied by merchants. They are typically equipped with large shutters which can be closed and locked when the shopkeeper is away. Another element is a more secure market area, usually centrally located and consisting of streets that were covered or roofed. This complex is variably known as a qayṣariyya , bedesten , or khān , depending on the city or historical period. It usually hosted

6059-489: The term to describe a pervasive Western tradition, both academic and artistic, of prejudiced outsider interpretations of the Arab and Muslim worlds that has been shaped by the attitudes of European imperialism in the 18th and the 19th centuries. In British English , the term Oriental is sometimes still used to refer to people from East and Southeast Asia (such as those from China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia and Singapore). Judges in

6142-500: The term, "Middle Eastern". These can include Arabs, Kurds, Turks, Assyrians, West Asian Armenians, Yezidis, Egyptians (including Copts), Syriac Arameans, Mandeans, Shabakis and Turvomans among others. In some specific contexts, for example the carpet and rug trade, the older sense of "oriental" to cover not just East Asia but Central Asia , South Asia and Turkey may still be used; an Oriental rug may come from any of these areas. The term Oriental may sound dated or even be seen as

6225-538: The upper floor housed merchants. A temporary, seasonal souk is held at a set time that might be yearly, monthly or weekly. The oldest souks were set up annually, and were typically general festivals held outside cities. For example, Souk Ukadh was held yearly in pre-Islamic times in an area between Mecca and Ta’if during the sacred month of Dhu al-Qi'dah . While a busy market, it was more famous for its poetry competitions, judged by prominent poets such as Al-Khansa and Al-Nabigha . An example of an Islamic annual souk

6308-448: The workshops where the goods are also produced, so that manufacturing and retail are often concentrated in the same areas, though some production (especially of textiles) was also distributed in other parts of the city. Like the bazaars further west, there were also many khān s (caravanserais) built in the area. They acted as warehouses, production centers, wholesale centers, hostels for merchants, and offices for conducting business. In

6391-445: Was a solid stone building, typically rectangular and roofed by domes, with shops inside. Like the qayṣariyya or bedesten in other regions, it hosted the most important and luxurious trades. The arasta is usually an elongated market structure or market street with shops lining its façades. Arasta s could be independent markets built outside the main bazaar area, such as those built as part of large religious complexes like

6474-542: Was adjoined by, an open-air plaza that served as a forum of socio-economic activity. Historically, bazaars were also held outside cities at locations where incoming caravans stopped and merchants displayed their goods for sale. Bazaars were established at caravanserai , places where a caravan or caravans arrived and remained for rest and refreshments. Since this might be infrequent, souks often extended beyond buying and selling goods to include major festivals involving various cultural and social activities. Any bazaar may serve

6557-571: Was here in NUST's Ayub Hall that the national legislative assembly sessions were held for some time in the 1960s. The capital had been shifted from Karachi to Islamabad , but the building for the National Assembly of Pakistan had not been constructed by then and Rawalpindi served as the interim capital of the country. Ayub Hall has been named after Field Marshal Muhammad Ayub Khan , former president of Pakistan . There are six mosques and

6640-748: Was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981. Al-Madina Souk in Aleppo is the largest covered historic market in the world, with an approximate length of 13 kilometers. It is part of the Ancient Aleppo , a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1986 in Syria . The Bazaar complex in Tabriz , Iran, was listed by UNESCO in 2010. The Bazaar of Qaisiyariye in Lar, Iran , is on the tentative list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites since 2007. Kemeraltı Bazaar in İzmir

6723-435: Was placed on tentative list in 2020. Shopping at a souk or market place is part of daily life throughout much of the Middle East. Prices are commonly set by bargaining , also known as haggling, between buyers and sellers. Bazaars or souks are traditionally divided into specialized sections dealing in specific types of product, each usually housed in a few narrow streets and named after the product it specializes in such as

6806-477: Was then borrowed into English via French ( souk ) by the 19th century. The English word can also be spelled "suq" or "souq". In Modern Standard Arabic the term al-sūq refers to markets in both the physical sense and the abstract economic sense (e.g., an Arabic-speaker would speak of the sūq in the old city as well as the sūq for oil, and would call the concept of the free market السوق الحرّ , as-sūq al-ḥurr ). In northern Morocco,

6889-419: Was usually declared for the period of operation of a souk to permit the unhampered exchange of surplus goods. Some of the seasonal markets were held at specific times of the year and became associated with particular types of produce such as Suq Hijr in Bahrain, noted for its dates while Suq 'Adan was known for its spices and perfumes. In spite of the centrality of the Middle Eastern market place, relatively little

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