This article explores the development of the concept of Orientalism in Western Europe and its interaction with Enlightenment-era political thought. Drawing upon the monographs of Alexander Bevilacqua and Noel Malcolm, it analyzes Europe's perception of the Islamic East, the study of Arabic sources, and how these shaped the evolution of European political ideas. The article also provides a critical reading of Edward Said’s "Orientalism" thesis within this historical context.

Orientalism, Enlightenment, European political thought, Bevilacqua, Malcolm, Islam, Ottoman Empire, Edward Said.

Bayle, Pierre. Dictionnaire historique et critique. Rotterdam, 1697.

Bevilacqua, Alexander. The Republic of Arabic Letters: Islam and the European Enlightenment. Harvard University Press, 2018.

Gibbon, Edward. The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. London, 1776–1788.

Herbelot de Molainville, Barthélemy d’. Bibliothèque orientale. Paris, 1697.

Malcolm, Noel. Useful Enemies: Islam and The Ottoman Empire in Western Political Thought 1450–1750. Oxford University Press, 2019.

Montesquieu, Charles de. Lettres persanes. Paris, 1721.

Said, Edward W. Orientalism. Pantheon Books, 1978.

Voltaire. Mahomet ou le Fanatisme. Paris, 1741.

Voltaire. Essai sur les mœurs et l'esprit des nations. Geneva, 1756.