Should Europe be looking into Turkey’s Byzantine past to discover its own future?

This paper wishes to draw attention on Turkey’s Byzantine past, especially after the fall of Western Roman Empire. The Empire of “Romaei”, as the Byzantines used to call themselves, was Christian till XIV century, inheriting most of the Western Roman Em- pire’s culture. Its society was multiethnic, where being a foreigner was considered as a re- source, both in commerce and in the army. Its geographic position was a natural hinge be- tween future Europe and Islam. Throughout centuries, Constantinople became a cultural melting pot, where it was possible to study Christian, Greek, Latin and pagan classics. Many Roman law codes were translated into Arabic (for Christian communities, fallen un- der Islam) for consultation and application. The cultural and commercial exchange be- tween Eastern and Western Mediterranean areas was the norm. A new European citizen- ship should consider the lesson coming from this common past.