İbrâhim Efendi — Oğuz Müftü

In Modern English

He was from Köprü. He acquired learning and knowledge from Kabakozlu Hacı İbrâhim Efendi. Later, while a schoolteacher, with the support of some notables he became mufti of Köprü in 1289 [1872-73]. After carrying on the work for about two years through his müsevvid (the scribe who put fatwas into writing), he died around 1291 [1874-75]. He was a man of pleasant disposition and pure heart, weak in learning, but with a fairly fluent gift of speech.

Notes and Research

Old Words in the Text

• ilm ü ma'rifet: learning and knowledge, culture
• mekteb mu'allimi: teacher at a primary school (sıbyan mektebi)
• iltizâm: here, favoring or supporting someone
• müsevvid: the scribe who prepares the drafts of fatwas to be written, or makes fair copies of them
• idâre-i maslahat: managing the business, getting by
• latîf meşreb: of pleasant disposition
• sâde dil: simple-hearted, well-intentioned
• kuvve-i natıka: the faculty of speech

A Candid Biography by Hüsameddin

This short entry is one of the examples showing how candid Hüsameddin could be when describing people. The author, who in the preceding entry praised his teacher Kabakozlu Hacı İbrâhim Efendi as "among the famous scholars, a jurist," does not hesitate to call his pupil "weak in learning." According to him, Oğuz Müftü came to the muftiship not through scholarly competence but with the support of some notables, and carried out his duty with the help of a müsevvid who prepared the fatwas. The author nevertheless does not neglect to record his pleasant disposition, his simplicity and his fluent speech.

Appointing a Mufti in the Provinces

Hüsameddin's phrase "with the support of some notables" points to a known situation in how provincial muftiships worked. In the Ottoman state the muftis in the provinces were part of an organization subordinate to the şeyhülislam, but the influence of local people and notables in appointments was great. Mehmet Sait Sütcü's study, based on archival documents, shows with examples that more than one person could seek a muftiship, that unqualified persons were sometimes appointed, and that this gave rise to complaints from local scholars. The same study also mentions a telegram from the market-district madrasa professors protesting that an unqualified person had been installed as mufti of Trabzon in place of a candidate who had won the examination, and a document dated 1317 [1899-1900] about an irregular appointment to the muftiship of Amasya.

Sütcü also defines the officials involved in fatwa business: the official who organized the questions coming to the şeyhülislam and the answers given was called the fatwa trustee (fetva emini), and the person who made fair copies of the fatwas to be written was called the müsevvid. Hüsameddin's expression "managing the business through his müsevvid" describes the mufti leaving the preparation of fatwas largely to this assistant.

On the Name "Oğuz Müftü"

In the heading of the entry Hüsameddin calls the man "Oğuz Müftü," but does not explain where this epithet comes from. The name of the region from which his teacher Kabakozlu İbrâhim Efendi came appears in the sources as "Kabakoz" or "Kabaoğuz." It comes to mind that the epithet may be related to this regional name, but this is only a possibility and could not be verified. No information was found in other sources about Oğuz Müftü.

Bibliography

Primary sources

• Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 6, p. 75–76. amasya.bel.tr

Academic studies

• Mehmet Sait Sütcü, "Osmanlı Devleti'nde Müftülük Kurumu: Anadolu Müftüleri", Tarih Okulu Dergisi, no. 32 (December 2017), p. 459-536. https://isamveri.org/pdfdrg/D03601/2017_32/2017_32_SUTCUMS.pdf

Official sources

• Gümüşhacıköy Kaymakamlığı, "İlçe Tanıtımı". https://www.gumushacikoy.gov.tr/ilce-tanitimi