Liuben Stoicho Karavelov was a Bulgarian intellectual, who called for political, social and cultural reforms. He was a firm convert to eighteenth century western socio-political philosophies of representative government, as well as to individual and national freedoms--a devotee of liberte, egalite, fraternite--who became the clarion voice of the south Slav and Bulgarian liberation movements on the Balkan peninsula during the latter half of the nineteenth century (1867-1879). Although little is known about him in the western, especially the English-speaking world, this Russian-educated Bulgarian journalist, publicist, revolutionary and literary figure, occupies a special place in the annals of modern Bulgaria. This dissertation examines the role of Liuben Karavelov in the final phase of the Bulgarian and south Slav liberation from the Ottoman empire, as a persistent proponent of unity among the south Slavs and their federation with the neighboring Christian nations on the peninsula. Native Bulgarian, Russian and Serbian sources are used. A brief historiographic and bibliographic essay introduces a study of Liuben Karavelov's background and educational preparation (1834-1866), his political and literary reform efforts in Serbia (1867-1868), his revolutionary propaganda contributions as the fiery editor of Svoboda Freedom and Nezavisimost Independence , Bulgarian language newspapers published in Bucharest, Romania (1869-1874), and his international efforts as foreign correspondent (1867-1868) and as war correspondent of the Russian newspapers Golos The Voice , Moskovskie Vedomosti Moscow Register , and Odesskii Vestnik Odessa Journal during the Serbo-Turkish war of 1876 and the Russo-Turkish war of 1877-1878.

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Conversion to Islam in the Ottoman Balkans initially followed a pattern similar to the one established by Bulliet for the regions incorporated in the course of the seventh and eighth centuries into the Islamic realm. By the early eighteenth century, close to forty percent of the Balkan population belonged to the Muslim community. However, Islamization came to a sudden halt in most of the Balkan lands in the second quarter of the eighteenth century. / I have sought an explanation for this phenomenon in kisve bahasi petitions, which reflect the unique economic and social conditions in the Ottoman Empire during the period 1670s--1730s. The transformation from religious syncretism to religious conservatism in the second part of the seventeenth century changed the nature of conversion by introducing ceremonies and documentation of conversion. I argue that the practice of granting kisve bahasi evolved into an institution of conversion, which substituted to a certain extent for the devsirme institution. For the socially weak, the kisve bahasi institution served as a form of social welfare. Conversion to Islam for the new Muslims converted through the kisve bahasi institution was, therefore, primarily a pragmatic rather than spiritual affair. I also argue that the process of conversion in the Balkans was cut short by a premature "laggards" stage in the period 1670s--1730s. This development, which points to the uniqueness of the process of conversion in the Balkans, may have been due to the rise of a more prosperous class of non-Muslims as a result of the Ottoman Empire's integration into the world economy.

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The main premise of this thesis is to demonstrate how the Gypsies, (Roma)---both Muslim and Christian, both settled and nomadic---were marginalized by the Ottoman State and society in Rumelia (Rumili) and Istanbul during the "Classical Age" of this tri-continental Islamic Empire. / The Ottoman state and the society's attitudes towards this marginal group are analyzed through the examination of the Muhimme Registers of the second half the sixteenth century and four major Kanunnames concerning the Gypsies issued in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Travelers' accounts and Turkish oral traditions have also been used to explore the social status of the Gypsies in Ottoman society, as well as their image in Ottoman popular culture. / The history of people who were marginal and voiceless in their societies is not just important for its own sake but for what it reveals about the nature of the societies in which they lived. Thus, this present work not only sheds light upon the history of the Gypsies but also attempts to open new grounds for further discussions on the functioning of the "Plural Society" of the Ottoman Empire.

This dissertation explores the factors shaping American foreign policy toward secessionist crises since the end of the Cold War. The main research puzzle is the following: Why is it that, facing the resurgence of secessionist movements in the last 15 years, the United States reacted to it by supporting the territorial integrity of central states in some cases (Serbia, Somalia, Moldova), while recognizing the independence of secessionist states in other cases (Croatia, Eritrea, East Timor)? How can this apparent inconsistency be explained? This dissertation argues that regional stability is the main U.S. interest when responding to secessionism. It asserts that, when facing a secessionist crisis, the American government will choose the option (i.e. supporting state integrity or secessionism) that provides the greatest expected gain of regional stability depending on the evolution of the crisis. This explains why the American government's response to secessionism fluctuates from one case to another. / The performed qualitative analysis, which includes cases taken from two regional settings, the Balkans and the Horn of Africa, confirms the effect of the regional stability factor on the formulation of U.S. foreign policy. It shows that the fluctuation of the U.S. response is not caused by political inconsistency but by a coherent set of regional stability interests. The research also proceeds to the measurement of two competing arguments---namely ethnic politics and business interests. Case studies show that these domestic arguments fail to account for the research puzzle under investigation and that the regional stability argument consistently offers better explanations and predictions. Thus, this dissertation challenges liberal claims that domestic politics define foreign policy.

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The dissertation investigates the social, economic and religious aspects of Jewish life in the Balkan provinces of the Roman Empire between the 4th century BCE and 8th century CE. This is the first study, which studies the social and religious life of the Jewish communities in the Balkans, as recoded in the epigraphic and archaeological material, and will provide scholars with much needed basis for further research in the field. The primary focus of my research is a historical analysis of the epigraphic and archaeological evidence regarding the Jewish communities in the Roman provinces of Pannonia Inferior, Dalmatia, Moesia, Thracia, Macedonia, Achaea and Crete. The work is arranged in the form a corpus of inscriptions with additional entries on the archaeological and literary evidence. The intention has been to include all Jewish inscriptions and archaeological remains from the Balkans, which are likely to date from before c.700 CE. The analysis concentrates on the language and content of the available inscriptions, the onomastic repertoire employed, the historical context of the Jewish archaeological remains and their relation to the non- Jewish archaeological material from the region. The results of my research are important for understanding the involvement of Jews in the city life and their civic status, the cultural interaction between Jews and their non-Jewish neighbours and may define the local community organisation and background of Jewish settlement in the Balkan provinces of the Roman Empire. In my commentaries I suggest that the social system of the Jewish communities in the Balkans was dependent upon the local public and economic situation in the Roman city but not determined by it.