Melik-i müşârün-ileyh Sunkur (Sunkûr) Hân, esbak Anadolu hükümdârı Sultân İsmâ'il Hân ibni Dânişmend Ahmed Hân'ın mahdûmu olup amcası Sultân İbrâhim Hân'ın vefâtını müte'âkib Amasya vâlîsi Fetih Hân Bey'in gayretiyle Niksâr'dan da'vet olunarak Amasya'da memleket-i Dânişmendiye hükümdârı olduğu taharriyât-ı kaydiyyeden anlaşılır. Çünkü 517'de Amasya hâkimi "Melik-i mu'azzam Mecdeddîn Sunkur bin İsmâ'il ve atabegi Şücâ'u'd-Devle Fetih Hân bin Kılıç ve kadısı Ebû Nasr Muhammed el-Harezmî" olduğu kayden bulunmakdadır. [316]
Amasya hükümdârı Sunkur Hân'ın tefâsîl-i ahvâline dâ'ir ma'lûmât-ı târîhiyye bulunamadı. Ancak halefi olan amcası Melik Muhammed Gâzi Bey'in 529'da cülûsu mu'ayyen olduğuna bakılırsa hükümdâr-ı müşârün-ileyhin Amasya'da on dokuz sene kadar hükûmet etdiği zann olunur. Amasya'da şimdiki Bozahâne ve Çeribaşı Mahalleleri'nin nâm-ı kadîmi "Sunkur Mülkü" olduğu ve Çeribaşı Mahallesi'nin müntehâ-yı garbîsinde kâ'in sokak içinde bir yar dibinde görülen seng-i mezârın baş tarafında hatt-ı girift-i kûfî ile "Hâzâ Kabrü'l-Meliki'l-mu'azzam Sunkur" şeklinde bir kitâbe bulunduğu tedkîk olunursa, müşârün-ileyhin Amasya'da mevki'i, mevcûdiyeti ta'ayyün eder.
In Modern English
The said melik Sunkur (Sunkûr) Han is the son of Sultan Ismail Han ibn Danishmend Ahmed Han, who was earlier ruler of Anatolia. Research in the records shows that, upon the death of his uncle Sultan Ibrahim Han, he was summoned from Niksar through the efforts of Fetih Han Bey, the governor of Amasya, and became ruler of the Danishmendid realm in Amasya. For the records state that in 517 [1123-24] the authorities of Amasya were "the great melik Mecdeddîn Sunkur ibn Ismail, his atabeg Şücâ'u'd-Devle Fetih Han ibn Kılıç, and his kadı Ebû Nasr Muhammed el-Harezmî."
No historical information on the detailed circumstances of Sunkur Han, the ruler of Amasya, could be found. However, since it is certain that his successor, his uncle Melik Muhammed Gâzi Bey, took the throne in 529 [1134-35], it is thought that this ruler reigned in Amasya for about nineteen years. The old name of today's Bozahâne and Çeribaşı Quarters in Amasya was "Sunkur Mülkü" (Sunkur's Domain). If one examines the gravestone seen at the foot of a bluff in a street at the western end of Çeribaşı Quarter, whose head carries an inscription in intricate Kufic script reading "Hâzâ Kabrü'l-Meliki'l-mu'azzam Sunkur" (an Arabic text meaning "This is the tomb of the great melik Sunkur"), the place and existence of the said ruler in Amasya becomes clear.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- mahdûm: son
- esbak: former, earlier
- taharriyât-ı kaydiyye: research carried out on the records
- tefâsîl-i ahvâl: the details of a life
- halef: successor
- seng-i mezâr: gravestone
- hatt-ı girift-i kûfî: intertwined, tightly packed Kufic script
- yar: a split steep bank of earth or rock
- müntehâ-yı garbî: western end
Sunkur in Other Sources
In the contemporary sources I read, no Danishmendid melik named Sunkur who reigned in Amasya was encountered. In current ruler lists, Danishmend Gazi is followed by Gümüştegin, Emîr Gazi (Melik Gazi), Melik Muhammed and Yağıbasan; the name Sunkur does not appear in this sequence. The order given by Hüsameddin, by contrast, is Ismail, Ibrahim, Sunkur and Muhammed.
The name Sungur appears in the sources in a different context. According to an encyclopedia entry, after the death of Gümüştegin the realm was divided in two; Emîr Gazi governed Sivas and its surroundings, while his brother Sungur took Malatya. The same entry states that Sungur later joined the Anatolian Seljuk state under Kılıçarslan. In addition, in Niksar there is a structure known as the Sungur Bey Tomb; today it stands in part, but has largely lost its architectural features. The sources I read do not state whether these are the same person as Hüsameddin's Sunkur of Amasya, so no connection can be made.
As in the text, the document on which the record of 517 [1123-24] cited by Hüsameddin rests is not stated. The present condition and location of the gravestone with the Kufic inscription in Çeribaşı Quarter are likewise not mentioned in the sources I read.
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 2, p. 327–328. amasya.bel.tr
Academic studies
Other sources