The Ottoman Sultans Were Not Very Turkish

The Ottoman Empire ruled over what is now Turkey and a large portion of the eastern Mediterranean world from 1299 until 1923. The rulers, or sultans, of the Ottoman Empire had their paternal roots in Oghuz Turks of Central Asia, also known as the Turkmen.   The History of Concubine Mothers However, most of the sultans mothers were concubines from the royal harem — and most of the concubines were from non-Turkic, usually non-Muslim parts of the empire. Much like the boys in the Janissary corps, most concubines in the Ottoman Empire were technically members of the slave class. The Quran forbids the enslavement of fellow Muslims, so the concubines were from Christian or Jewish families in Greece or the Caucasus, or were prisoners of war from further afield. Some residents of the harem were official wives, as well, who might be noblewomen from Christian nations, married to the sultan as part of diplomatic negotiations. Although many of the mothers were slaves, they could amass incredible political power if one of their sons became the sultan. As valide sultan, or Mother Sultan, a concubine often served as de facto ruler in the name of her young or incompetent son. Ottoman Royal Genealogy The Ottoman royal genealogy begins with Osman I (r. 1299 - 1326), both of whose parents were Turks. The next sultan likewise was 100% Turkic, but beginning with the third sultan, Murad I, the sultans mothers (or valide sultan) were not of Central Asian origins. Murad I (r. 1362 - 1389) was 50% Turkish.  Bayezid Is mother was Greek, so he was 25% Turkish.   The fifth sultans mother was Oghuz, so he was 62.5% Turkish. Continuing in the fashion, Suleiman the Magnificent, the tenth sultan, had about 24% Turkish blood.   According to our calculations, by the time we get to the 36th and final sultan of the Ottoman Empire, Mehmed VI (r. 1918 - 1922), the Oghuz blood was so diluted that he was only about 0.195% Turkic. All of those generations of mothers from Greece, Poland, Venice, Russia, France, and beyond really drowned out the sultans genetic roots on the steppes of Central Asia. List of Ottoman Sultans and their Mothers Ethnicities Osman I, TurkishOrhan, TurkishMurad I, GreekBayezid I, GreekMehmed I, TurkishMurad II, TurkishMehmed II, TurkishBayezid II, TurkishSelim I, GreekSuleiman I, GreekSelim II, PolishMurad III, Italian (Venetian)Mehmed III, Italian (Venetian)Ahmed I, GreekMustafa I, AbkhazianOsman II, Greek or Serbian (?)Murad IV, GreekIbrahim, GreekMehmed IV, UkrainianSuleiman II, SerbianAhmed II, PolishMustafa II, GreekAhmed III, GreekMahmud I, GreekOsman III, SerbianMustafa III, FrenchAbdulhamid I, HungarianSelim III, GeorgianMustafa IV, BulgarianMahmud II, GeorgianAbdulmecid I, Georgian or Russian (?)Abdulaziz I, RomanianMurad V, GeorgianAbdulhamid II, Armenian or Russian (?)Mehmed V, AlbanianMehmed VI, Georgian