Gümüş Hacı Köyü kazâsı dâhilinde Taşan Dağı’nın garb eteğinde vâki’ Kabakoz köyünden Mehmed oğludur. Köprü müftüsü es-Seyyid el-Hâc Osmân Rûmî, Sarı Müderris Ahmed, Amasya’da sipâhî Hâfız Ömer ve Caniklizâde el-Hâc Mehmed Efendilerden ikmâl-i tahsîl ederek Köprü’de ders-i âm oldu.
Orada yıllarca neşr-i ulûma himmet edib 1228’de Hâfız Mustafa Efendi’nin kasr-ı yediyle Murâd Bey mâlikânesi mütevellîsi ve dersiyesi mutasarrıfı olup 1260 senesinden i’tibâren üç def’a da on altı yıl kadar Köprü müftüsü olduğu hâlde 1287’de vefât etdi. Meşâhîr-i ulemâdan fakîh, sâlih, müteşerri’, natûk, seksen yaşını mütecâviz bir pîr idi. Mahdûmları Ahmed Hilmi, Mehmed Tevfîk Efendiler ders-i âm idiler. Mehmed Tevfîk Efendizâde İbrâhim Zühdi Efendi İstanbul müderrislerindendir.
In Modern English
He was the son of Mehmed, from the village of Kabakoz, on the western foot of Mount Taşan, within the district of Gümüş Hacıköy. He completed his education by studying under es-Seyyid el-Hâc Osmân Rûmî, the mufti of Köprü, under Sarı Müderris Ahmed, and, in Amasya, under Sipâhî Hâfız Ömer and Caniklizâde el-Hâc Mehmed Efendi, and became a ders-i âm (a madrasa professor authorized to teach publicly) in Köprü.
There he labored for years to spread learning. In 1228 [1813], when Hâfız Mustafa Efendi gave up his claim, he became the mütevelli (administrator) of the Murâd Bey life-grant (mâlikâne) and the holder of its teaching revenue. From 1260 [1844], in three terms totaling about sixteen years, he served as mufti of Köprü, and he died in that office in 1287 [1870-71]. He was among the famous scholars: a jurist, pious, devoted to the sharia, a fine speaker, and an elder past eighty years of age. His sons Ahmed Hilmi and Mehmed Tevfîk Efendi were ders-i âm professors. Mehmed Tevfîk Efendi's son İbrâhim Zühdi Efendi is among the madrasa professors of Istanbul.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- vâki': located, situated
- ikmâl-i tahsîl: completing one's education
- neşr-i ulûm: spreading learning
- himmet: effort, zeal
- kasr-ı yed: withdrawing one's hand, giving up a right or an office
- mâlikâne: the grant of a source of revenue to one person for life
- mütevellî: administrator of a waqf
- dersiye: waqf revenue paid in return for giving lessons
- mutasarrıf: one who holds something, the rightful holder
- meşâhîr-i ulemâ: well-known scholars
- fakîh: a scholar of fiqh (Islamic law)
- natûk: one who speaks well and effectively
- mütecâviz: exceeding, past
- pîr: an elderly and respected person
Kabakoz (Kabaoğuz)
Hüsameddin counts İbrâhim Efendi as being from the "village of Kabakoz." In the sources the name Kabakoz appears less as a single village than as the name of a region. According to records on the administrative history of Gümüşhacıköy, in 1520 the nahiye of Kabakoz (Kabaoğuz) was attached to the kaza of Kedegera (Vezirköprü), and these administrative units were then within the sanjak of Canik. When the sanjaks of Amasya and Çorum were merged in 1847, today's Gümüşhacıköy was among the kazas under the name "Hacıköy," and Gümüş under the name "Gümüş ma'a Kabakoz," that is, "Gümüş together with Kabakoz," until 1856. Hüsameddin's phrase "within the kaza of Gümüş Hacıköy" reflects the administrative division of his own time; Hacıköy became a kaza seat in 1881 and from 1883 began to be called Gümüşhacıköy.
The region is still called the "Kabaoğuz villages" today. The local people count villages such as Bademli, Çal, Kızık, Kutluca, Derbent, Saraycık and Kızılcaköy within this group; according to their own accounts, the people of these villages are related to one another and descend from the Kızık tribe of the Oghuz. Which of these villages today corresponds to the "village of Kabakoz" Hüsameddin mentions could not be verified.
The Muftiship of Köprü
The Köprü in the text is today's Vezirköprü. İbrâhim Efendi's life offers information on how provincial muftiships worked in the Tanzimat period. In the Ottoman state all the muftis in the provinces were part of an organization subordinate to the şeyhülislam. Mehmet Sait Sütcü's study, based on archival documents, shows that in appointments of muftis the word of the local people and notables carried weight, that more than one person could seek a post, and that irregular appointments were sometimes made. That İbrâhim Efendi held this office from 1260 [1844] in three separate terms totaling about sixteen years suggests that the muftiship changed hands at intervals and was shared in rotation among local scholars.
Among the mufti records published in the same study, one sees that Mustafa Hâşim Efendi, son of Ali Efendi, born in Vezirköprü in 1277 Rumi [1861], later became mufti of Vezirköprü. This record shows that a generation after İbrâhim Efendi the muftiship also remained in the hands of scholars the town itself had raised.
His Family and His Grandson İbrâhim Zühdi Efendi
Hüsameddin writes that İbrâhim Efendi's sons Ahmed Hilmi and Mehmed Tevfîk Efendi were madrasa professors, and that Mehmed Tevfîk Efendi's son İbrâhim Zühdi Efendi was among the madrasa professors of Istanbul. In the presentation of the book Vezirköprü Meşhurları, in which the researcher Ali Tuzcu, born in the village of Göl in Vezirköprü, describes the notable people of the town, the names mentioned include "Müftüzâde İbrâhim Zühtü" and "Mustafa Tevfik Efendi." The epithet "Müftüzâde" and the similarity of the names suggest that this person may be a grandson of İbrâhim Efendi of Kabakoz; but since the book itself could not be seen, this connection could not be verified. No information was found in other sources about the Murâd Bey life-grant or about Hâfız Mustafa Efendi.
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 6, p. 75–75. amasya.bel.tr
Academic studies
Official sources
Books
Other sources