In addition to supporting the Journal of the Ottoman and Turkish Studies Association, OTSA membership helps support prizes, awards, and scholarships issued to students and scholars on an annual basis.

Call for Submissions to 2023 OTSA Awards and Prizes

The Ottoman and Turkish Studies (OTSA) is pleased to announce its annual award and prize competitions for 2023. Ten award competitions are listed in this announcement the last four of which are administered by the American Association of Teachers of Turkic Languages (AATT). Please read the instructions for each carefully, noting the deadlines and details for the submission of materials. OTSA encourages scholars and students to apply for awards and invites teachers to encourage their students to apply as well!


Please note the brand new OTSA Award for Digital Ottoman and Turkish Studies, which is sponsored by Miletos, Inc., the company behind Muteferriqa. Muteferriqa is a searchable database of Ottoman Turkish printed books, journals, and newspapers, which are held at the Seyfettin Özege Collection at Atatürk University and the Hakkı Tarık Us Collection at Beyazıt State Library. OTSA hosted an online demonstration of an earlier version of Muteferriqa at the inaugural session of the OTSA Co-Op in July 2021 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LaTM4nFHec). The new version, which is currently available for trial at several research institutions worldwide, includes all the holdings of both collections, as well as transliteration into modern Turkish, translation into English, and image search, in addition to full-text search functionality that was already available in the earlier version the database of which was limited with a small selection of the two collections.

  1. OTSA BOOK PRIZE ($1000)
  2. OTSA ARTICLE PRIZE ($300)
  3. OTSA GRADUATE STUDENT PAPER PRIZE ($200)
  4. OTSA UNDERGRADUATE SCHOLARSHIP ($1500)
  5. THE OTSA VANGELIS KECHRIOTIS MEMORIAL TRAVEL GRANT ($500)
  6. THE OTSA AWARD FOR DIGITAL OTTOMAN AND TURKISH STUDIES ($5,250)
  7. THE JAMES W. REDHOUSE STUDENT PRIZE COMPETITION FOR BEST PROGRESS IN THE TURKISH LANGUAGE
  8. AATT WALTER G. ANDREWS OTTOMAN TURKISH TRANSLATION AWARD
  9. AATT NORMAN ITZKOWITZ TURKISH SHORT STORY AWARD
  10. WALTER G. ANDREWS GRADUATE STUDENT OTTOMAN LANGUAGE SUMMER SCHOOL TUITION SCHOLARSHIP 

1. OTSA BOOK PRIZE ($1000)

An annual prize awarded to the most outstanding book in the field of Ottoman and Turkish studies published in the previous year (copyright date of 2022), sponsored by the Ottoman and Turkish Studies Association with the generous support of our dues-paying membership. Nominations may be made by the author, colleagues, publisher, or friends. Translated books, edited volumes, fiction, and textbooks are not eligible. English and Turkish are the preferred languages of submission.

Conditions for submission:

  • Three copies of the nominated book should be provided.
  • A copy to each one of the reviewers listed below, along with the address, phone number, and e-mail of the author. Nominations will be acknowledged by the chair of the committee via e-mail upon receipt of all the three copies.
  • No additional materials will be considered as part of the submission.

Postmark deadline: no later than May 15, 2023
Copies of the books and nominations should be sent to the following addresses:

Prof. Murat Metinsoy
İstanbul Üniversitesi
İktisat Fakültesi Ek Bina II
Siyaset Bilimi ve Uluslararası İlişkiler Bilimi
Beyazıt, İstanbul, Türkiye

Prof. Virginia Aksan
603-120 Duke Street
Hamilton, ON
Canada, L8P4T1

Assoc. Prof. Burak Gürel
Koç Üniversitesi
İnsani Bilimler ve Edebiyat Fakültesi
Kat: 2 Ofis: 253
Rumelifeneri Mahallesi
Sarıyer, İstanbul Türkiye

2. OTSA ARTICLE PRIZE ($300)

The biennial prize is awarded for an outstanding article in the field of Ottoman and Turkish Studies. The prize is awarded in odd‐numbered years to articles published in the previous two-year period (Jan. 2021-Dec. 2022 for the 2023 prize). Only ONE submission may be made per author. Eligible submissions include peer-reviewed journal articles and peer-reviewed chapters in edited volumes. This prize is sponsored by the Ottoman and Turkish Studies Association with the generous support of our due-paying membership.

Nominations may be made by the author, colleagues, publisher, or friends. Applicants must submit the following in an e-mail:

  • The recommender’s name, address and e‐mail address
  • The address, e‐mail address, and phone number of the author
  • An electronic copy (as a pdf) of the article or the book chapter

No additional materials will be considered as part of the submission

Materials should be e-mailed to Dr. Milena Methodieva at milena.methodieva@utoronto.ca with “OTSA Article Prize” in the subject line of the e-mail message.

Deadline for receipt of materials: no later than May 15, 2023.

3. OTSA GRADUATE STUDENT PAPER PRIZE ($200)

An annual prize for the best paper in Turkish or Ottoman studies written by a graduate student in Turkish or Ottoman studies during the preceding academic year (2022-23 for the award given in 2023). This award is sponsored by the Ottoman and Turkish Studies Association with the generous support of our due-paying membership. The winning paper will be considered for publication in the Journal of the Ottoman and Turkish Studies (JOTSA).

Applications should include:

  • a PDF copy of the paper. It must be a separate, stand-alone paper (15-35 pages) with bibliography. A dissertation chapter that has not been reworked as a separate paper or that does not fall within the page range will not be accepted.
  • the institutional affiliation, address, phone number, and e-mail of the author
  • the name and email address of the author’s academic advisor
  • No additional materials will be considered as part of the submission.

Materials should be emailed to Dr. Sarah Fischer at sarah.fischer@marymount.edu 

Deadline for receipt of materials:  June 15, 2023

4. OTSA UNDERGRADUATE SCHOLARSHIP ($1500)

The annual scholarship from the OTSA Undergraduate Scholarship fund created by the generous donations of our members (especially the late Dr. Nathan Altshuler) over the years provides an introduction to Turkey for qualified undergraduate students who have not had extensive prior experience in Turkey or in Turkish studies. The award is to be used for travel to Turkey and expenses while there, to supplement participation in a program in Turkish language, a study-abroad program, a work internship, or for study or research in any aspect of Turkey’s history, culture or society.

  • Applications should be submitted to Dr. Nilüfer Hatemi at nhatemi@princeton.edu
  • Applicants must currently be enrolled in a degree program at an institution of higher education, but may be a graduating senior.
  • Applicants must also be citizens or permanent residents of the United States or Canada.

Travel may take place anytime between the announcement of the award and September 30, 2024.

Application Requirements:

1. Statement of Purpose, which should include:

  • how the proposed time in Turkey connects to the applicant’s experiences, interests, and goals;
  • the proposed dates of stay in Turkey and specifics of the program/internship/study, including the sponsoring institution/organization, contact name and numbers

2. current Curriculum Vitae
3. the most recent Official Academic Transcript. It should be sent directly by the university to Dr. Nilüfer Hatemi at nhatemi@princeton.edu, no later than June 15, 2023.
4. Two Letters of Recommendation:  Referees should address letters directly to the OTSA Undergraduate Scholarship Selection Committee and submit them to Dr. Nilüfer Hatemi at nhatemi@princeton.edu, no later than June 15, 2023.
5. No additional materials will be considered as part of the submission.

5. THE OTSA VANGELIS KECHRIOTIS MEMORIAL TRAVEL GRANT ($500)

This grant will be awarded in memory of Professor Vangelis Kechriotis (1969-2015) to a doctoral candidate undertaking a research trip for his/her dissertation. The grant is sponsored by the friends and colleagues of Professor Kechriotis who raised funds in his memory that are maintained by OTSA for this grant.

The grant recipient will be selected by a panel of scholars based on the relevance and potential contribution of the proposed work to the fields and concerns important to Professor Kechriotis, such as the history of Ottoman non-Muslims, Greek-Ottoman and Greek-Turkish relations, or Ottoman Balkan Studies. The selected applicant will be expected to acknowledge the Vangelis Kechriotis Memorial Travel Grant in his/her dissertation and in any subsequent publications that result from the research supported by this grant.


Applicants for the grant are asked to submit the following:

  • a current CV
  • a copy of the applicant’s dissertation proposal
  • a description of the specific research trip to be undertaken
  • a working budget, including what other funds have already been secured
  • a letter of recommendation from the applicant’s dissertation advisor, addressing the applicant’s qualifications and the significance of the research they will be undertaking.
  • Letters should be on official stationary and submitted as an attachment to email.
  • No additional materials will be considered as part of the submission.

Materials should be emailed to Dr. Yaşar Tolga Cora at tolgacora@gmail.com with
“KECHRIOTIS TRAVEL GRANT” in the subject line of the email message.

Extended deadline for submission of materials: August 1, 2023

6. THE OTSA AWARD FOR DIGITAL OTTOMAN AND TURKISH STUDIES ($5,250)

With the generous support of Miletos, Inc., the company behind Muteferriqa, OTSA has established a new annual prize to support promising scholarship in the field of Digital Ottoman and Turkish Studies by early career researchers. This award is meant to support work by promising advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and scholars who have completed their Ph.D. within the last three years (no earlier than July 2020). The award will consist of three annual payments of $1,750 for a total of $5,250. The award will be given to the applicant who can best demonstrate potential for a major scholarly contribution using available tools and methods of digital Ottoman and Turkish Studies. This award is not meant for the development of new digital tools – the end product should be a work of scholarship, either a dissertation, book, journal article, book chapter, or other analytical scholarly contribution.


Applicants should submit the following to Dr. Chris Gratien, the chair of the Award
Committee, at dos2023@virginia.edu by August 1, 2023:

  • A Current CV
  • A written description of the scholarly work to be undertaken with the support of this award, no longer than five double-spaced pages, 12-point font.
  • A sample of academic writing that employs digital tools and methods. This may be a published or unpublished work, including a journal article, term paper, or book chapter, not exceeding 20,000 words.
  • The institutional affiliation, address, phone number, and e-mail of the applicant.
  • If the applicant is currently enrolled as a student, the name and contact information of their academic supervisor.


The awardee will be expected to share brief reports about their work at the end of the first, second, and third years and to acknowledge the award in their publications that grow from their work supported by this award.


The Following four awards and prizes are administered by our sister association, the American Association of Teachers of Turkic Languages (AATT). All deadlines are June 30, 2023. Please follow the embedded links for further information.

7. THE JAMES W. REDHOUSE STUDENT PRIZE FOR BEST PROGRESS IN THE TURKISH LANGUAGE

8. AATT WALTER G. ANDREWS OTTOMAN TURKISH TRANSLATION AWARD

9. AATT NORMAN ITZKOWITZ TURKISH SHORT STORY AWARD

10. WALTER G. ANDREWS GRADUATE STUDENT OTTOMAN LANGUAGE SUMMER SCHOOL TUITION SCHOLARSHIP