during the 19th and 20th centuries, the term orientalism was used to describe the effects of the orient’s influence on art, literature, and architecture fields. it was also used to label the academic study done by philologists (people who study the history of language) who were focused on the oriental languages and the understanding of ancient oriental texts. this knowledge was thought to be enough to understand oriental civilizations. there was no interest to the day-to-day life of these oriental communities and their heterogeneous customs and traditions.