Ottoman Algeria in Western Diplomatic History with ... - Bibliothèque

themselves borrowed the term berber, indicating the natives of North Africa,
from Greek and Latin. 39
A second view, however, closely links the word
‘barbary’ to the Latin word barbaria (noun) meaning barbarian. Originally
meaning “one non-Greek or non-Roman,” by the 15 th century, it came to mean
“a savage, a person belonging to some uncivilized race, one destitute of pity or
humanity;” 40 and when used as an adjective it means rude, uncivilized, savage,
cruel, and inhuman.
1. 2. 2. Ideological Interpretation
Whatever the origin of the term ‘barbary’ is, one is inclined to say that,
in content, it remains in essence ideological. Largely used at a time when
animosity between Islam and Christianity reached a zenith and when the
struggle for supremacy was raging between two antagonist supreme powers—
Ottoman and Habsburgs—the term ‘barbary’ undoubtedly reflected a whole
system of beliefs, values, and ideas that predominated at that time among
Europeans. The ‘Turk’, who was also Muslim, was responsible for the
crumbling of a Greco-Roman civilization twice millenary and was threatening
the very heart of Europe; 41 therefore, he could not be perceived positively. That
same “Turk” was also present in North Africa: he stopped Christian designs of
conquest and defended Islam in the region. Further, the Turk corsair of Algiers
was a high seas fierce fighter who spread both fear and loathing among
39 Monlaü, Etats barbaresques, p. 8.
40 “Barbarian,” The Concise English Dictionary, p. 87.
41 At its height, Muslim power reached central Europe. In 1453, Constantinople, heir of the Greco-
Roman civilization and capital of the Byzantine Empire fell to the Ottomans; and in 1529, the Turkish
forces besieged Vienna, capital of the mighty Habsburg’s empire but failed to take it.
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