Orientalism in early modern France

Orientalism in early modern France refers to the interaction of pre-modern France with the Orient, and especially the cultural, scientific, artistic and intellectual impact of these interactions, ranging from the academic field of Oriental studies to Orientalism in fashions in the decorative arts.

The first attempts to study oriental languages were made by the Church in Rome, with the establishment of the Studia Linguarum in order to help the Dominicans liberate Christian captives in Islamic lands. The first school was established in Tunis by Raymond Penaforte in the 12th and early 13th century. In 1311, the Council of Vienne decided to create schools for the study of oriental languages in the universities of Paris, Bologna, Oxford, Salamanca and Rome.

From the 16th century, the study of oriental languages and cultures was progressively transferred from religious to royal patronage, as Francis I sought an alliance with the Ottoman Empire. Ottoman embassies soon visited France, one in 1533, and another the following year.

Guillaume Postel became the first French Orientalist after 1536, when he went to Constantinople as a member of the 12-strong French embassy of Jean de La Forêt to the Turkish sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. Postel brought back numerous books in Arabic, either religious or scientific in content (mainly mathematics and medicine), to France.

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