Long conversations abroad with people from different cultures, educational backgrounds, and income groups reveal a difficult truth about human relationships. Before people get to know one another as individuals, they tend to see each other as representatives of the worlds to which they belong. When you meet someone for the first time, they do not initially see you as “you.” They first see your country. They see the image your society carries in the world. Before you even begi

Introduction Few cities in world history have been claimed with such persistence, intensity, and moral conviction as Constantinople. Across centuries, the city has stood at the intersection of empire, religion, and civilizational identity. It has been imagined not merely as a strategic location, but as a symbolic center whose possession confers historical legitimacy. These symbolic meanings did not remain abstract. They were repeatedly translated into political claims. In the