Halîmî Ömer Efendi was the grandson of Çelebizâde Ömer Efendi, the well-known professor of the Mehmed Paşa Madrasa in Amasya, and he was trained by the scholar who succeeded his grandfather in that chair. After his studies he took the path of the judiciary, serving as judge in towns and cities from 1143 (1730-31); in 1161 (1748) he was dismissed from the deputy judgeship of Tokat, returned to Amasya and died there some time later. The year of his death is unknown. That he was a scholar, an accomplished man, a man of letters and a poet, together with the names of his sons, is written in the entry Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar devoted to him in Amasya Tarihi. His pen name recalls his father's name: his father was Abdülhalîm Efendi, and "Halîmî" sounds like an echo of it; Hüsameddin does not draw the link, it simply catches the eye when the two names stand side by side.

The Text of the Entry

Amasya'da Mehmed Paşa müderrisi iken 1095'de vefât eden fâzıl-ı meşhûr Ömer Efendizâde Abdulhalim Efendi'nin mahdûmudur. Mütfî-i meşhûr Çorumlu el-Hâc Hâfız es-Seyyid Mehmed Efendi'den ikmâl-i tahsîl edib ders-i âm oldu. 1143'de silk-i kudâta girib kasâbât ve bilâda kâdı oldu. 1161'de Tokat niyâbetinden ma'zûlen Amasya'ya geldikden sonra vefât etdi. Âlim, kâmil, edîb, şâir bir zât idi. Mahdûmları Rahmetullah, Nimetullah Efendilerdir.

In English: He was the son of Abdülhalîm Efendi, son of Ömer Efendi, the well-known scholar who died in 1095 while professor at the Mehmed Paşa Madrasa in Amasya. He completed his studies with the famous mufti Çorumlu Hacı Hâfız Seyyid Mehmed Efendi and became a ders-i âm. In 1143 he entered the judiciary and served as judge in towns and cities. In 1161 he was dismissed from the deputy judgeship of Tokat, came to Amasya and died there. He was a scholar, an accomplished man, a man of letters and a poet. His sons are Rahmetullah and Nimetullah Efendi.

In the printed text the word "müftî" is set as "mütfî"; this is a typesetting error. The date 1095 in the entry's first sentence does not belong to Halîmî either: the man who died that year was his grandfather Ömer Efendi. The sentence introduces Ömer Efendi, Abdülhalîm Efendi is named as his son, and Halîmî is Abdülhalîm's son.

Life and Ties to Amasya

The head of the family, Ömer Efendi, died according to Hüsameddin's chronicle in the first days of Muharrem 1095 (December 1683-January 1684) and was counted among the "famous learned men". The same chronicle records that "the well-known scholar Çorumlu Hâfız es-Seyyid Mehmed Efendi" became professor at the Mehmed Paşa Madrasa in his place. This is the man who taught Halîmî. The grandson was trained in the lessons of the scholar who took over his grandfather's chair, so the bond between the family and the madrasa was not broken.

Ömer Efendi's son Emrî Ali Efendi was also a poet and a judge; Hüsameddin gives his father's name in the same form in his entry. Halîmî's father Abdülhalîm Efendi, by contrast, has no entry of his own. Although Hüsameddin draws no brotherly tie between the two entries, the fact that both lead back to Ömer Efendi, the Mehmed Paşa professor who died in 1095, suggests that Abdülhalîm and Emrî Ali were brothers and that Halîmî was the nephew of Emrî Ali Efendi. Emrî Ali Efendi's biography discusses this possibility at length as well.

The entry gives two dates for his years on the bench. Between his entry into the profession in 1143 (1730-31) and his dismissal from Tokat in 1161 (1748) lie eighteen years as a judge; the towns where he served are not named. His post in Tokat was not a judgeship but a "niyâbet", the office of a deputy who heard cases on the judge's behalf. His return home after dismissal and his death in Amasya show that the family kept its place in the town. Nothing more is said about his sons Rahmetullah and Nimetullah Efendi.

Poetry

We have none of his poems. Behind the words "edîb, şâir" stands no example: Hüsameddin quotes no couplet, and in the list of Metin Hakverdioğlu, who combs the book like a biographical dictionary of poets, the name appears only as "Halîmî Ömer Efendi-Çelebizâde". The same pen name turns up twice more in the ninth volume and may mislead the reader. One is Halîmî of the Ebû Yûsufoğlu family, who presented an Arabic ode to Mehmed II (the Conqueror) and is known for his Persian dictionary; the other is Halîmî Mustafa Efendi-Ganizâde, a judge who died in 1178. All three are different people. Çelebizâde's entry is given, with a glossary, under the title Halîmî Ömer Efendi-Çelebizâde.

Chronology

Muharrem 1095 (December 1683-January 1684): His grandfather, the Mehmed Paşa professor Çelebizâde Ömer Efendi, dies; Çorumlu Hâfız Seyyid Mehmed Efendi succeeds him.

1143 (1730-31): Halîmî enters the judiciary.

1161 (1748): Dismissed from the deputy judgeship of Tokat, he returns to Amasya; he dies some time later.

Bibliography

Primary sources

Online sources