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Ottoman BureaucracyPeople, places and careers in Ottoman public service

Job title

Tatar

Group of job titles: Postal service and dispatch

Stored spellings: Tatar; tatar

8 officials held the job title Tatar. Its 129 annual entries run from 1863 to 1909 (AH 1280 to 1326). The median of the 129 recorded monthly salaries is 600 kuruş, against 500 kuruş for the whole collection in the same years. The median entry paid 1.2 times the collection median of its year. On average an official was paid more than 57 per cent of the other officials with a salary in the same year. Half of the officials have an entry in it in no more than 15 different years, and a quarter in 23 or more. It was the first title on record for 62 per cent of the officials and the last for 12 per cent. No other title is recorded for 12 per cent of them. The title held just after it by most officials is Seyyar Memur (6 officials). The entries name 11 places. The place with the largest number of officials is Istanbul, with 4.

Officials
8
Years on recordAH 1280 to 1326, 47 years with an entry
1863 to 1909
Median monthly salary1.2× the collection median of the same years (500 kuruş)
600 kuruş
Places with officials
11
First job title on recordfor 5 of the 8 officials
63%

Profile of the group: Postal service and dispatch

No source read describes Tatar by itself, so this is the profile of its group of job titles.

The public post of the Ottoman state, founded with the Ministry of Post in 1840 and joined with the telegraph in 1871. Post offices took in, carried and delivered letters, printed matter, registered letters and valuables.

Tools and technology

  • the old overland roads, steamers of the state and of foreign companies, and later the railways
  • postage stamps from 1862

History

Before 1840 official messages were carried by couriers between relay stations (menzil) kept by local contracted postmasters (menzilci); the relay system ended when the post was organised in 1839 and 1840. The empire joined the Universal Postal Union in 1874. The postal guides list 1,033 post and telegraph offices in 1884 and 1,288 in 1892.

Sources

  1. Halaçoğlu, Yusuf (2004). Menzil (Osmanlı). TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, vol. 29, 159-161. Online copy (read 14 October 2026).Pages or part: 159-161. Used for: history.
  2. Koh, Choon Hwee (2021). The Ottoman postmaster: contractors, communication and early modern state formation. Past and Present 251, 113-152. Online copy.Pages or part: 113, 118-120. Used for: history.
  3. Okan, Ayşegül (2003). The Ottoman postal and telegraph services in the last quarter of the nineteenth century. MA thesis, Boğaziçi University, Atatürk Institute for Modern Turkish History.Pages or part: iii, 20-25, 66, 77. Used for: summary, tools and technology, history.
  4. The school and the office: training, entry and pay in the Ottoman Post and Telegraph service, 1870-1905. Working paper, 2026 (the paper behind this collection; its Section II reports Akyıldız 2024, Ata 2022 and Ayhan and Maviş 1994).Pages or part: Section II. Used for: summary.
All years

Monthly salary each year

The median of the 129 recorded monthly salaries is 600 kuruş, the mean 594 kuruş.
02004006001863/64AH 12801868/69AH 12851873/74AH 12901878AH 12951882/83AH 13001887/88AH 13051892/93AH 13101897/98AH 13151902/03AH 13201907/08AH 1325Median 600 kuruş in 1891/92Tatar, median of years with 5 or more salariesMean of the same yearsWhole collectionFewer than 5 salaries, not joined to the lineAbove the scale

The same numbers as a table
Monthly salary each year in kuruş, Tatar
YearRecorded salariesMedianMeanLower quartileUpper quartileMedian of the whole collection
1863/641600600600600500
1864/651600600600600625
1865/661600600600600650
1866/671600600600600600
1867/681600600600600600
1868/691600600600600600
1869/702600600600600600
1870/712600600600600600
1871/722625625612.5637.5550
1872/733600616.67600625550
1873/743600616.67600625500
1874/753600616.67600625535
1875/763600616.67600625530
1876/774600612.5600612.5575
1877/784600612.5600612.5560
18784600600600600600
1878/794600600600600600
1879/804480480480480500
1880/814480480480480500
1881/824600600600600500
1882/834600600600600500
1883/844600600600600500
1884/854600600600600500
1885/864600600600600500
1886/874600600600600500
1887/883600600600600500
1888/893600600600600500
1889/903600600600600500
1890/914600600600600500
1891/925600600600600500
1892/934600600600600500
1893/944600600600600500
1894/954600600600600500
1895/963600600600600500
1896/973500513.33500520500
1897/983500513.33500520500
1898/993500513.33500520500
1899/19003570636.67555685500
1900/013570636.67555685500
1901/021540540540540500
1902/031600600600600500
1903/042600600600600475
1904/051700700700700450
1905/061700700700700475
1906/071700700700700450
1907/081700700700700300
1908/091700700700700350

Salaries are nominal monthly amounts in kuruş, as assigned. The thick line is the median of each year and the thin line the mean. A year with fewer than 5 recorded salaries is drawn as an open mark and is not joined to the line.

Pay against the whole collection

Officials by their median monthly salary in this job
Officials of this jobWhole collection
100%01002003004005007501,0001,5002,500

8 officials with a salary, each counted once in the band of the median of the official's salaries in this job. A bar runs from its number to the next; the last is 2,500 kuruş and more. Most officials (100%) are in the band 500 to 750 kuruş.

The same numbers as a table
Officials of Tatar by median monthly salary
Median monthly salary, kuruşOfficialsShareWhole collection
0 to 10000%3%
100 to 20000%10%
200 to 30000%17%
300 to 40000%18%
400 to 50000%17%
500 to 7508100%23%
750 to 1,00000%5%
1,000 to 1,50000%4%
1,500 to 2,50000%2%
2,500 and more00%1%

The median of the 129 recorded monthly salaries of this job is 600 kuruş. In the same years the whole collection paid a median of 500 kuruş. The median entry paid 1.2× the collection median of its year, and the middle half of the entries between 1.03× and 1.2×. On average an official of this job was paid more than 57% of the other paid officials of the same year.

Times the collection median1.2×0.25×0.5×1×2×4×Share of paid officials earning less57%0%25%50%75%100%

The dot is the median, the box the middle half of the entries. Dashed lines: the collection median of the same years (1×) and the middle of the paid officials (50%).

Where the job was held

All years
11 places with officials on record, 11 of them with a position on the map. A larger dot means more officials.
Seat of a province (vilayet) Seat of a sancak Office or region
Istanbul (Dersaadet)KonyaBitola (Manastır)KayseriThessaloniki (Selanik)Afyonkarahisar (Karahisar-ı Sahib)Aleppo (Halep)Aydın4 officials1 official

Career paths: the titles just before and after

The number is the officials who made the move. Under it, the median change of the monthly salary: the first salary of the later title less the last salary of the earlier one, where at least 5 moves have both.

Held just before

The title of the entries just before a run of Tatar. Pay: the change on moving from that title to Tatar. The 2 titles with most officials, of 2 moves in all.

  1. Polispoliceman1
  2. Seyyar Memurtravelling postal official1

Held just after

The title of the entries just after a run of Tatar. Pay: the change on moving from Tatar to that title. The 2 titles with most officials, of 7 moves in all.

  1. Seyyar Memurtravelling postal official6pay 0 kuruş (0%)
  2. Tatar Agasi1

Of the 9 moves shown, 2 cross at least one year without an annual entry; nothing is known about those years. Two posts held in the same years are not counted as a move.

Time in the job

Years with an entry in the job
15.5 yearsmedian over 8 officials
A quarter of the officials
22.25 years or moreupper quartile
Most years of one official
33 years
  1. First job title on recordthe first year with an entry with a job title has it63%5 officials
  2. Last job title on recordthe last such year has it13%1 official
  3. No other job titlein the whole record13%1 official
  4. One place in the jobof 8 officials with a place recorded38%3 officials

Years are years with an annual entry in the job, each counted once for an official. They need not follow one another, and nothing is known about a year without an entry. With two posts in the first or last year, both count.

Who held the job

Officials of this jobWhole collection

Community

8 officials with it recorded.

  1. Muslim (Müslüman)100%8

Age at the first annual entry in the job

8 officials with it recorded.

  1. under 150%0
  2. 15 to 190%0
  3. 20 to 2425%2
  4. 25 to 2925%2
  5. 30 to 3425%2
  6. 35 to 3925%2
  7. 40 and over0%0

Province of birth

7 officials with it recorded.

  1. Erzurum province43%3
  2. Mamuretülaziz province43%3
  3. Kastamonu province14%1

Schooling

7 officials with it recorded. An official can have several, so the shares add up to more than 100%. The groups of the schools recorded for each official.

  1. Primary57%4
  2. Rüşdiye43%3

Languages

7 officials with it recorded. An official can have several, so the shares add up to more than 100%.

  1. Turkish100%7

Qualification

8 officials with it recorded. A diploma, certificate, training or decoration (nişan) recorded in the schooling or the work.

  1. No100%8

Officials on record each year

The fullest year is 1891/92 (AH 1309) with 5 officials. Years with an annual entry: 47.
0123451863/64AH 12801868/69AH 12851873/74AH 12901878AH 12951882/83AH 13001887/88AH 13051892/93AH 13101897/98AH 13151902/03AH 13201907/08AH 13255 in 1891/92Recorded in an earlier year tooFirst recorded in this year

The same numbers as a table
Officials on record each year, Tatar
YearOfficials on recordFirst recordedAnnual entries
1863/64 (AH 1280)111
1864/65 (AH 1281)101
1865/66 (AH 1282)101
1866/67 (AH 1283)101
1867/68 (AH 1284)101
1868/69 (AH 1285)101
1869/70 (AH 1286)212
1870/71 (AH 1287)202
1871/72 (AH 1288)202
1872/73 (AH 1289)313
1873/74 (AH 1290)303
1874/75 (AH 1291)303
1875/76 (AH 1292)303
1876/77 (AH 1293)414
1877/78 (AH 1294)404
1878 (AH 1295)404
1878/79 (AH 1296)404
1879/80 (AH 1297)404
1880/81 (AH 1298)404
1881/82 (AH 1299)404
1882/83 (AH 1300)404
1883/84 (AH 1301)404
1884/85 (AH 1302)404
1885/86 (AH 1303)404
1886/87 (AH 1304)404
1887/88 (AH 1305)303
1888/89 (AH 1306)303
1889/90 (AH 1307)303
1890/91 (AH 1308)414
1891/92 (AH 1309)515
1892/93 (AH 1310)404
1893/94 (AH 1311)404
1894/95 (AH 1312)404
1895/96 (AH 1313)303
1896/97 (AH 1314)313
1897/98 (AH 1315)303
1898/99 (AH 1316)303
1899/1900 (AH 1317)303
1900/01 (AH 1318)303
1901/02 (AH 1319)101
1902/03 (AH 1320)101
1903/04 (AH 1321)212
1904/05 (AH 1322)101
1905/06 (AH 1323)101
1906/07 (AH 1324)101
1907/08 (AH 1325)101
1908/09 (AH 1326)101

An official is counted once in a year. First recorded is the first year in which the collection has an annual entry of the official on this page. It is not a hiring date.

Ottoman officials recorded

8 officials, the one with most annual entries first.

Officials of Tatar
OfficialYearsAnnual entriesKuruş a monthBirthplace
Ahmet Tevfik Efendi1863 to 189533480 to 600Erzincan
Hacı Süleyman Efendi1876 to 190126480 to 600Çemişgezek
Süleyman Efendi1872 to 189221480 to 600Çemişgezek
Numan Ağa1869 to 188719480 to 650Kastamonu
Mehmet Zeki Efendi1896 to 190912500 to 800Kemaliye (Eğin)
Mehmet Şevki Efendi1891 to 190211540 to 600Kemah
Halil Efendi1890 to 18966600Erzurum
Ayn Fahreddin Efendi1903/041600Habesistan

Years run from the first to the last annual entry. An official without a recorded name is listed after the named officials.

How to read these records: years and calendars, what first recorded means, gaps between annual entries, and salaries.

Subjects