İbrâhim Afîf Efendi — Dânişzâde

In Modern English

He is from Amasya. He is the son of Hacı Mehmed Ağa, one of the notables of Amasya; Mehmed Ağa was the son of Hacı İbrâhim Ağa, who was the son of Hacı Hâfız Mustafa Efendi, who was the son of Dâniş Mehmed Efendi. Since he became known among the statesmen as Afîf İbrâhim Efendi, his biography will follow below under the letter "ayn".

Notes and Research

Old Words in the Text

• eşrâf: the noble, leading families of a city
• mahdûm: son
• ricâl-i devlet: statesmen
• benâm: renowned, famous
• terceme: biography, account of a life
• harf-i 'ayın': the letter "ayn" of the Arabic alphabet; Hüsameddin arranges the biographies by this alphabet, and the name "Afîf" begins with this letter

The Dânişzades and İbrâhim Afîf Efendi

This short entry is a cross-reference. Hüsameddin leaves the person's real biography to the letter "ayn", under the name "Afîf" by which he was known among statesmen, and here gives only his descent. The line of descent is linked to the Dânişzades, one of the old families of Amasya; entry 225 of this volume describes Dânişzâde Hacı Molla Halîl Ağa and his grandsons known as the "İskâtçıoğulları". In entry 227, describing the patronage of Amasyalızâde Hacı İbrâhim Efendi, one of the leading administrators of the Nizâm-ı Cedîd, toward Amasya and statesmen from Amasya, Hüsameddin says "İbrâhim Afîf Efendi is his protégé". Accordingly, the subject of the entry is a member of the scribal service who was raised in Istanbul under the patronage of a statesman from Amasya.

In the reign of Selim III there was a well-known statesman bearing the name İbrâhim Afîf Efendi. When in 1796 the Ottoman state decided for the first time to open permanent embassies in European capitals, Moralı Seyyid Ali Efendi was appointed ambassador to Paris, Giritli Ali Azîz Efendi to Berlin, and İbrâhim Afîf Efendi to Vienna. According to Mehmet Alaaddin Yalçınkaya's study of these first embassies, İbrâhim Afîf Efendi probably lived in a rented residence in Vienna, his chief interpreter was Constantin von Tipaldo, and his retinue included a few interpreters, a few persons of standing and servants. When the Paris ambassador Seyyid Ali Efendi ran out of money during the French occupation of Egypt, the French foreign minister Talleyrand allowed İbrâhim Afîf Efendi in Vienna to help Seyyid Ali Efendi.

A biographical compilation on calligraphers writes that this İbrâhim Afîf Efendi was trained in the divan chancery offices and became kethüda scribe with the rank of hâce; that he went as ambassador to Nemçe (Austria) in 1210 [1795-96] and stayed in Vienna until 1213 [1798-99]; that after returning he became scribe of the artillerymen, in 1221 [1806-07] accountant of Anatolia, and in 1223 [1808-09] defter emini; that on 2 Muharram 1224 [17 February 1809] he was appointed kethüda of the imperial stirrup (rikâb-ı hümâyûn kethüdası) and died suddenly in the spring of the same year, 1809. The same source describes him as a scribe highly skilled in official writing and known for the beauty of his hand, and notes that he is buried in Eyüp near the Küçük Emir Tekke. However, this compilation presents him as a native of Istanbul.

Whether Hüsameddin's Dânişzâde İbrâhim Afîf Efendi of Amasya and the ambassador to Vienna İbrâhim Afîf Efendi are the same person could not be determined with certainty from the sources read. The coincidence of names and period, the statement that the person was known by this name among statesmen, and his training within the scribal service point to a possibility; the discrepancy in the information on his birthplace leaves the question open. Hüsameddin's actual biography under the letter "ayn" will answer this question. No information was found in other sources about his father Hacı Mehmed Ağa and his forebears.

Bibliography

Primary sources

• Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 6, p. 69. amasya.bel.tr

Official sources

• Mehmet Alaaddin Yalçınkaya, "Avrupa'da Açılan İlk Daimî Osmanlı Elçiliklerinin Yönetimi (1793-1802): Londra – Paris – Viyana – Berlin", Türk Tarih Kurumu publication (ttk.gov.tr).

Other sources

• İsmail Orman, "İbrahim Afîf Efendi", Ketebe calligrapher biographies (ketebe.org).