Places of Islamic memory in Hungary: Jakováli Hasszán and the Gazi Kasim mosque in Pécs.

This paper examines the history of civilisational exchanges between Hungary and the MENA region based on the concept of places of memory. The concept was proposed by French historian Pierre Nora, who describes sites of memory as ‘places where the memory of a nation is concentrated, systematised and crystallised. According to Pierre Nora, places of memory are ‘material and immaterial places where national memory has taken shape and influenced people's behaviour or consciousness, or where it has taken on special signs and symbols over the centuries’. Applying this concept, this paper examines the historical relationship between Hungary and the Ottoman Empire, focusing on the ‘sites of memory’ that were formed in the course of the interaction between Europe's ‘central country’ and the Middle East, as well as between Christian and Islamic civilisations. In particular, the paper goes beyond simply examining the ‘historical facts’ of the relationship between Hungary and the Ottoman Empire to examine the ‘sites of memory’ that allow us to see the ‘mutual influences and cultural blending’ between Hungary and the Ottoman Empire and the Ottoman Empire and Hungary.