Merzifon kazâsı dâhilinde Vâ’ize (Fâ’ize) köyünden İsmâil bin Hasan bin Ömer’in mahdûmudur. 1272’de doğdu. 1288’de Amasya’ya gelip Mehmed Paşa Medresesinde ikâmetle Gürcü el-Hâc Osmân Efendi’nin halka-i tedrîsine mülâzemet ederek mücâz ve ders-i âm oldu.
Üstâdı müftü oldukta kemerbaşı, Mehmed Paşa Câmii imâm ve hatîbi şeyhü’l-kurra Hâfız el-Hâc Mehmed Efendi’nin vefâtında mahlûlünden [777] câmi-i mezbûra imâm ve kürsî şeyhi olduğu halde 1337’de vefât etdi. Âlim vâ’iz, halûk, kara yağız bir zât idi. Oğulları İstanbul’da iskân kalemi mümeyyizi Osmân Feyzi Bey ile kunduracı İsmâil Efendi’dir.
In Modern English
He was the son of İsmâil, son of Hasan, son of Ömer, from the village of Vâize (Fâize) in the district of Merzifon. He was born in 1272 [1855-56]. In 1288 [1871-72] he came to Amasya and stayed at the Mehmed Pasha Madrasa. He attended the teaching circle of Gürcü Hacı Osman Efendi, received his license (icazet), and became qualified to give public lessons (ders-i âm).
When his teacher became mufti, he became kemerbaşı. On the death of Hâfız Hacı Mehmed Efendi, imam and preacher of the Mehmed Pasha Mosque and head of the Qur'an reciters, he took over the vacated post and, as imam and kürsü şeyhi of that mosque, died in 1337 [1918-19]. He was a learned man and preacher, gentle in character and dark-complexioned. His sons are Osmân Feyzi Bey, an inspector in the resettlement office in Istanbul, and İsmâil Efendi, a shoemaker.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- mahdûm: son
- mülâzemet: attending a teacher's lessons regularly
- mücâz: one who has received a license and is authorized to teach
- ders-i âm: an official who gives public lessons in mosques
- şeyhü'l-kurra: head of the scholars of Qur'an recitation (qirāʾa)
- mahlûl: a vacated post, left empty by death or departure
- câmi-i mezbûr: the mosque mentioned
- halûk: gentle, of good character
- mümeyyiz: inspecting official
- kemerbaşı: the text does not explain this post; it may have been a student role in the teaching circle, but its exact meaning could not be verified
What a Kürsü Şeyhi Is
Hüsameddin writes that Ahmed Efendi was "imam and kürsü şeyhi" at the Mehmed Pasha Mosque. The kürsü is the raised seat, usually reached by steps, from which sermons or lessons are given in mosques and madrasas. Preaching to the large congregation after the Friday prayer was a long-established Ottoman custom. Since the Friday sermons (hutbe) were then recited in Arabic, preachers would explain the sermon after the prayer and give the people advice. The post was called "Friday preacher" (cuma vâizliği) or "kürsü şeyhliği," and a salary was paid from endowment revenues.
In the great mosques of Istanbul these officials followed a ladder of promotion. At the bottom stood the preachership of the Eyüp Sultan Mosque, and at the top the kürsü şeyhliği of Hagia Sophia (Ayasofya). Those who held the post were often also sheikhs of a Sufi lodge, which is why they were called "şeyh." The sources state that kürsü şeyhs were appointed by the office of the şeyhülislam. The same preachers are also seen holding other posts together with this one, such as müderris, ders-i âm, mufti, and imam. No information was found on how the title "kürsü şeyhi" was conferred at a neighborhood mosque in Amasya. Hüsameddin's wording shows that Ahmed Efendi served as both imam and preacher. The name "Kara Vâ'iz" in the heading agrees with the description "kara yağız" (dark-complexioned) in the text.
The Mehmed Pasha Mosque and Madrasa
Some sources say the following about the Mehmed Pasha Mosque, to which Ahmed Efendi was attached as both student and imam: the building stands on the right bank of the Yeşilırmak, a little downstream from the Bimarhane; the inscription over its main door bears the date 891 (1486); and its founder was Mehmed Pasha, a deputy of Bayezid II during his governorship of Amasya. This information was taken from a page whose full text could not be read, so it could not be verified. According to the same source, the madrasa opposite the mosque has been completely demolished. According to Hüsameddin, Ahmed Efendi lived at the Mehmed Pasha Madrasa in 1288 [1871-72], which shows that the madrasa was still housing students in the last quarter of the nineteenth century.
The Last Müderrises of Amasya
It is known that Amasya had more than forty madrasas. Since the Seljuk period the city had been an important educational center of the region, and in Ottoman times it was called the "City of Princes." Under Abdülhamid II (1876-1909) biographical information on members of the ilmiye (the learned class) was recorded in the Meşîhat Archive. A study based on this archive finds that the chain of teachers in the licenses (icazetname) of Amasya's müderrises converges on Ebû Saîd Muhammed el-Hâdimî and continues from there in two lines, one going back to Buhârî and the other to Ebû Hanîfe. Ahmed Efendi's statement that he "received his license" belongs to this tradition. Ahmed Efendi is not among the eight müderrises examined in the study.
In Other Sources
No information was found in other sources about Ahmed Efendi of Vâize village, his family, or his teacher Gürcü Hacı Osman Efendi.
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 6, p. 240–240. amasya.bel.tr
Academic studies
- "Kürsü", TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/kursu
- "Ayasofya Kürsü Şeyhliği", TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/ayasofya-kursu-seyhligi
- "Cuma Vâizliği", TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/cuma-vaizligi
- Hasan Telli, "Meşihat Arşivi'ne Göre Amasya Müderrisleri", Kocatepe İslami İlimler Dergisi, 2024, https://acikerisim.aku.edu.tr/xmlui/handle/11630/12210
Other sources