Lists of Figures; Abbreviations; Note on Transliteration; Acknowledgements; Introduction: The Past’s Present; 1. Beyond ‘Tribes’ and ‘Sects’: On Concepts and Terms; 2.The First Moment: 1830s: The Germs of Competing Ethno-Religious Visions; 3. The Second Moment: The Tan??m?t’s Long Waves: Politicising Ethno-Religious Differences; 4. The Third Moment: From Ethnocentric Drives to a New Millet System; 5.Balfour’s ‘Pattern’; 6. The Racialisation of Middle Eastern People; 7. Beyond ‘Artificiality’: Borders, States, Nations; Conclusion: The Present’s Past; Index.