Amasyalıdır. Amasya’da Sultân Bâyezîd evkâfı kâtibi iken İstanbul’a gelip Sultân Bâyezîd evkâfı kâtibi olan Kâtipzâde el-Hâc Abdulbâri Efendi bin el-Hâc Mustafa Efendi’nin mahdûmudur. Abdulbârî Efendi, kayden Abdullah Efendi [164] yazılıdır. Abdulbâri kendi imzâsıyla sâbitdir.
İstanbul’da mektûbi-i mâliye kalemine girdi. Orada tefeyyüz ederek ser-hâlife iken Küçük Kal’a tezkirecisi, 1163’de nâ’il-i rütbe-i hâcegânî, 1165’de Sultân Mahmûd-ı Evvel ve 1168’de Sultân Osmân-ı Sâlise kâtib-i masraf-ı şehriyâri olduğu hâlde 1173’de vefât etdi. Üsküdâr’da medfûndur.
Mahdûmları Abdullah, Mehmed Emîn Efendilerdir. Bunlara “Masrafzâde, Masraf Kâtibizâdeler” dendi. Abdullah Efendi, Abdî Efendi demekle meşhûr olup mahdûmu el-Hâc Fâ’iz Mehmed Efendi’dir. Mehmed Emîn Efendi de Amasya’da Sultân Bâyezîd evkâfı kâtibi bir hattât-ı bî-nazîrdir. Buna “Köse Hattât” denirdi.
In Modern English
He was from Amasya. He was the son of el-Hâc Mustafa Efendi's son, that is, the grandson of Kâtipzâde el-Hâc Abdülbâri Efendi, who had been clerk of the Sultan Bayezid waqfs in Amasya and, after coming to Istanbul, again became clerk of the Sultan Bayezid waqfs. Abdülbâri Efendi is written in the records as Abdullah Efendi; the name Abdülbâri is established by his own signature.
In Istanbul he entered the mektûbî-i mâliye office (the finance correspondence bureau). Rising there, he became ser-halife and tezkireci of the Küçük Kale, attained the rank of hâcegân in 1163 [1749-50], was scribe of the sultan's expenses for Mahmud I in 1165 [1751-52] and for Osman III in 1168 [1754-55], and died in 1173 [1759-60]. He is buried in Üsküdar.
His sons are Abdullah and Mehmed Emîn Efendis. They were called "Masrafzâde, Masraf Kâtibizâdes". Abdullah Efendi is famous as "Abdî Efendi"; his son is el-Hâc Fâ'iz Mehmed Efendi. Mehmed Emîn Efendi was likewise clerk of the Sultan Bayezid waqfs in Amasya and a peerless calligrapher. He was called "Köse Hattat".
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- evkâf kâtibi: clerk of the waqfs
- mektûbî-i mâliye kalemi: the correspondence bureau of the finance ministry
- ser-halife: the chief halife of a bureau, its senior scribe
- tezkireci: the official in the Ottoman bureaucracy who kept the register of documents
- rütbe-i hâcegânî: the rank of entry into the class of divan scribes
- masraf-ı şehriyârî: the sultan's expenses
- bî-nazîr: peerless, without equal
- mahdûm: son
From the Provinces to the Palace Bureau
The rise of İbrahim Efendi in this entry shows well how the Ottoman scribal service (kalemiye) worked. According to the encyclopedia entry, in the 18th century the kalemiye made up an important part of the ruling class; those who entered the bureaus were trained within a master-apprentice relationship, attached themselves to viziers, ağas and pashas to work as clerks and tezkirecis, and came to the fore as apprentices of senior bureau men. İbrahim Efendi seems to have followed this path: his father had come from Amasya to Istanbul and become a waqf clerk, and the son, rising step by step in the finance bureau, reached the post of writing the sultan's expenses. The text does not say how this transition took place, so the link above is an inference.
In this entry Hüsameddin records the hâcegân rank in 1163, and in 1165 and 1168 the expense-scribeship under two different sultans; that is, İbrahim Efendi stayed in the same post across two reigns.
Köse Hattat Mehmed Emîn
The last sentence of the entry points to the family's artistic branch. Mehmed Emîn Efendi, clerk of the Sultan Bayezid waqfs in Amasya and called "Köse Hattat", was known for his calligraphy. In an entry under the letter "R" in the book, it is written that Râtib Mehmed Efendi learned fine writing from Köse Hattat es-Seyyid Mehmed Emîn Efendi. This is another record showing that the calligrapher taught in Amasya.
No information on Abdullah (Abdî) Efendi and his son Fâ'iz Mehmed Efendi, or on the Masrafzâde family, was found in other sources.
Bibliography
Primary sources
Academic studies