Amasyalıdır. Bevvâbân-ı şehriyârîden Kapıcı Recep Ağa’nın oğludur. Amasya’da mukaddimât-ı ulûmu görüp İstanbul’a gitdi. Orada ikmâl-i tahsîl ederek Amasyalı Hâce Ömer Efendizâde Kazasker Abdullah Efendi’den mülâzım ve 1052’de müderris olup silsile-i ulemâya girdikten sonra kadı oldu. [552]
1065 senesi rebîülevvelinde Selanik nâibi olup 1071’de Belgrad, Uyvar, Budin kadısı ve silsile-i ulemâda sahn pâyesiyle Vâlide Sultân Müderrisi oldu. 1088 senesi şevvâlinde vefât etdi. Kibâr-ı müderrisînden ve ulemâ-i kudâtdan idi.
In Modern English
He was a native of Amasya. He was the son of Kapıcı Recep Ağa, one of the sultan's gatekeepers. He took the first steps of learning in Amasya and went to Istanbul. There he completed his studies and became a mülâzım under Kazasker Abdullah Efendi, son of Hâce Ömer Efendi of Amasya; in 1052 [1642-43] he became a madrasa professor and, after entering the scholarly hierarchy, a kadı.
In the month of Rebiülevvel 1065 he became kadı of Salonica, and in 1071 kadı of Belgrade, Uyvar and Buda; in the scholarly hierarchy he was Professor of the Vâlide Sultan Madrasa with the rank of Sahn. He died in the month of Şevval 1088. He was one of the great madrasa professors and kadı scholars.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- bevvâbân-ı şehriyârî: the sultan's gatekeepers
- mukaddimât-ı ulûm: the first steps of learning, preparatory lessons
- mülâzım: a madrasa graduate registered as a candidate for a professorship
- silsile-i ulemâ: the series of ranks in the scholarly hierarchy
- nâib: one who administers justice on behalf of the kadı, here a kadı
- pâye: rank, grade
- kibâr-ı müderrisîn: great madrasa professors
- ulemâ-i kudât: scholars who served as kadıs
What the Sahn Rank Means
The phrase in the text, "in the scholarly hierarchy, Professor of the Vâlide Sultan with the rank of sahn," needs explanation for a reader unfamiliar with the grades of the madrasas. According to the entry on pâye in the TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, Mehmed the Conqueror's organizational code graded the madrasas, with the Sahn-ı Semân madrasas (the dâhil status) at the top. If there was no vacant post at the grade to which a professor was to be promoted, the madrasa was deemed by decree to be at that grade and the rank was granted. Thus the professor remained at the same status and received the same salary, and his path of advancement did not appear blocked. It is possible that Kapıcızâde Ahmed Efendi's post at the Vâlide Sultan Madrasa was given with a rank of this kind; Hüsameddin does not describe this detail.
The Sequence of Judgeships
Hüsameddin lists the judgeships of Belgrade, Uyvar and Buda one after another in 1071. But since the fortress of Uyvar was taken by the Ottomans only in 1074 (24 September 1663), the title "kadı of Uyvar" could not have been given in 1071. It therefore appears that the date 1071 applies only to the first post and that the other two judgeships took place later; but the book does not say this explicitly, and it is an inference. The death year 1088 and the professorship date 1052 are known only from Hüsameddin.
No information on this man was found in other sources. No independent record could be found for his teacher Kazasker Abdullah Efendi (son of Hâce Ömer Efendi of Amasya) either.
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 6, p. 172–173. amasya.bel.tr
Academic studies