Turkey

adab		gentlemanly code of conduct and taste
adalet		justice; characteristic of a government that remains within its hudud (q.v.)
alaylı		officer who has risen from the ranks
Alevî		adherents of a syncretistic form of Shi’i Islam
altı ok		‘Six Arrows’; principles of Republican People’s Party
aman		safe conduct under Islamic law enabling non-Muslims who are not dhimmi (q.v.) to reside in Muslim countries
askeri		member of the arms-bearing, tax-exempt, ruling elite of the empire, consisting of the sultan’s servants
aşar		tithe
ayan		provincial notables
bab-ı Ali		‘Sublime Porte’ or ‘Porte’, both the main building housing the Ottoman government and its collective name
berat		document recognizing someone as subject of a foreign power, entitled to aman (q.v.)
casus foederi		a case that comes within the provisions of a treaty or that causes a treaty to become operative
ciziye		poll tax payable by dhimmis (q.v.)
çiftlik		privately owned farm
damat		son-in-law, a man who has married into the imperial family
dervish		member of a tarikat (q.v.)
divan		imperial council
dokuz umde		‘Nine Principles’; 1923 programme of People’s Party
dönüm		quarter of an acre
dragoman		translator, especially one in the service of a foreign embassy
evkaf		plural of vakıf (q.v.)
fetva		legal opinion based on şeriat (q.v.)
fitne		disorder, rebellion
gazi		‘conquering hero’, title for a successful soldier
gecekondu		‘built at night’; squatter dwelling
halk evi		‘People’s House’; local educational establishment for disseminating Kemalist message in provincial towns
halk odası		‘People’s Room’; same as halk evi, but on a smaller scale, in villages
harbiye		military academy
hatt-i humayun		imperial decree
hatt-i şerif		see hatt-i humayun
hudud		bounds within which any individual or group had to remain in order not to trespass on others’ rights
idadiye		secondary school for boys
iltizam		tax farming
imam		Muslim prayer leader; also successor to the Prophet recognized by Shi’i (q.v.) Muslims
janissaries		see yeni çeri
jurnal		report by government spy
kadi		şeriat (q.v.) judge
kadi sicilleri		local court records
kâhya		steward of the grand vizier
kaime		Ottoman government bonds, used as banknotes
kanun		see örf
kariye		village
kaymakam		governor of a county
kaza		district
khedive		hereditary governor-general of Egypt
mabeyn		palace secretariat
medrese		religious college
mektep		traditional primary school
mektepli		officer who has graduated from military academy
millet		nation, community of dhimmis (q.v.)
mir		prince, specifically in Kurdistan
miri		state-owned real estate
muhassil		tax collector
mutasarrif		governor of a county (see also sancak)
müftü		expert of religious law, who pronounces fetvas (q.v.)
mülk		privately owned real estate
mülkiye		civil service academy
nahiye		rural community
nizam-i cedid		reform programme of Selim III (‘new order’). Also the name of his new Western-style army
nizamiye		regular army
örf		legislation by sultanic decree
reaya		the tax-paying subjects of the Ottoman state
redif		army reserve
reisülküttab		chief scribe, secretary to the grand vizier
rüşdiye		school for boys aged between 10 and 15
sadrazam		grand vizier, the sultan’s chief minister
sancak		county
scribes		administrative corps of Ottoman central government before the transition to a modern bureaucracy
serasker		commander-in-chief (under the sultan)
Shi’i		Muslims who only recognize the male descendants of Ali, the Prophet’s son-in-law and nephew, as legitimate leaders of the Muslim community
sipahi		member of semi-feudal cavalry
softa		student at medrese (q.v.)
Sufi		see dervish
sultaniye		college (lyceum)
Sunni		Muslims who recognize the succession to the Prophet as leaders of the Muslim community of elected caliphs. The vast majority of Muslims in the Ottoman Empire
Şeriat		Islamic canon law
şeyhülislam		chief müftü (q.v.) of the empire
tanzimat		reforms, especially the centralizing and Westernizing ones of 1839 to 1873
tarikat		Islamic mystical order or fraternity
tekke		lodge of a tarikat (q.v.)
tercüme odası		translation office of the Porte (see also bab-ı Ali)
timar		fief
türbe		religious shrine, tomb of a Muslim saint
ulema		doctors of Islamic law
vakıf		religious charitable foundation
vali		governor-general of a province (see also vilayet)
varlık vergisi		discriminatory wealth tax, imposed during the Second World War
vekil		commissar, minister in the nationalist government between 1920 and 1923
vilayet		province
yeni çeri		salaried standing infantry, known in the West as janissaries
zülm		tyranny, oppression

Glossary