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Ce livre se propose d'eclairer l'une des periodes les moins connues de l'histoire de l'Egypte musulmane, le XVIe siecle, a travers son pan le moins etudie: le monde rural. Une fois l'Egypte conquise (1517), les Ottomans ont porte un interet majeur aux campagnes, premiere source de revenus de l'Etat; leur souci d'en dresser l'inventaire a produit un ensemble exceptionnel d'archives, partiellement conservees. Elles reglementent ou enregistrent les statuts fonciers, l'organisation fiscale et la repartition des pouvoirs et de l'autorite au sein des villages et font percevoir la large autonomie dont jouissaient les communautes rurales. Cependant l'apparente uniformite du monde des villages et de la societe paysanne que transmettent les archives masquait des inegalites et une diversite considerables. Premier siecle dont sont conserves les registres, le XVIe siecle eclaire retrospectivement le regime anterieur, mamelouk, et permet de comprendre les evolutions ulterieures de l'epoque ottomane. This book aims at studying the history of Islamic Egypt during a little-known time period (the 16th century) through the lens of its rural world, an even lesser-known reality. Following their conquest of Egypt in 1517, the Ottomans developed a lasting concern for the countryside, as it represented a major source of state income. Their attempt to assess and harness its resources brought about an exceptional set of archival records, part of which remain extant to date. These archives retain information on land regimes and fiscal organisation as well as shedding light on the distribution of power and authority within rural societies. Despite giving evidence on the wide-ranging autonomy that local peasant communities could enjoy, such records still impart uniformity to highly diverse and unequal societies. Studying 16th-century Egypt in this way is thus insightful to understand its former Mamluk history as well as its evolutions to come during Ottoman times.