Magic in interaction: Occult practices in Ottoman Bosnia
Monday, 16 November 2026 at 17:00
Centre for the Study of Islam Monday Majlis Series
Event details
This talk explores the world of talismans, amulets, healing rituals, and protective magic in Ottoman Bosnia. Drawing on the collection from the National Museum as well as (multilingual) Ottoman manuscripts and historical narratives, it examines how Muslims and Christians alike confronted illness and uncertainties of everyday life through shared occult ideas and practices. Situating magic at the intersection of religion, medicine, and everyday life, it discusses a rich culture of interaction that both diffused and reinforced confessional boundaries.
Amila Buturović is Professor of Humanities and Religious Studies at York University in Toronto. Originally from Sarajevo, she earned a B.A. in Arabic Language and Literature from Sarajevo University and an M.A. and a Ph.D. in Islamic Studies from McGill University. Her research explores the intersection of religion and culture in premodern Islamic societies, with a particular focus on the cultural history of Ottoman Bosnia. She has authored Stone Speaker: Medieval Tombstones, Landscape, and Bosnian Identity in the Poetry of Mak Dizdar (2002), Carved in Stone, Etched in Memory: Death, Tombstones, and Commemoration in Bosnian Islam (2016), and co-edited with I. C. Schick, Women in the Ottoman Balkans: Gender, Culture, and History (2007), published also in Turkish (2008). Her current research investigates the written and material culture of health, magic, and herbalism in Ottoman Bosnia. Amila is collaborating with the National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina on an exhibition showcasing the museum’s collection of magical objects and artifacts associated with the esoteric traditions of Ottoman Bosnia and is co-authoring a book with Bink Hallum on the remarkable 100×100 talismanic charts from this collection.
Professor Buturović is in possession of appropriate expertise in handling magical objects safely online. In the unlikely case of jinn escape, Luna, her specially trained tornjak (Bosnian shepherd dog) will capture them. Be advised, she is an adorable jinni who casts a love spell on everyone she meets.
Register please on this link: https://Universityofexeter.zoom.us/meeting/register/zqw1os5FQqawcqWZ0bIzTA
In the spirit of the label ‘Majlis’ and also to make the talks even more interesting, our speakers present the topic discussed as embedded in their own journey. You can watch the previous Majlises here https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8YRkUahFj_81oJzCSDLTx4kVQQgeHLc-.
However, we don’t record the Q&A in order to keep the discussion free. Please come and enjoy the talks and the discussions : ) If you’d like to be included in the CSI (Centre for the Study of Islam, Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, University of Exeter) mailing list, please write to me (I.T.Kristo-Nagy@ex.ac.uk).
Organiser
Centre for the Study of Islam
Location
Online