Official
Osman Efendi
Muslim (Müslüman). Born in Istanbul (Dersaadet) in 1840/41 (AH 1256). On record 1861 to 1898, 38 annual entries. Death recorded 1898/99.
Archive reference 0066_0231; 459
Life#
Born in Istanbul in 1840/41 (AH 1256), Osman Efendi came from the Muslim (Müslüman) community; the father was a tradesman (esnaf). Osman had four years of schooling, at a school for young children (Sıbyan Mektebi).
Work began in the telegraph service (Telgraf) in Tekirdağ in 1861/62, at about 21, paid from the start, on 500 kuruş a month. The annual lists begin in 1861/62, with Osman as a sergeant (Çavuş) in Tekirdağ. Osman then moved to Silivri in 1862/63 and Istanbul in 1863/64, then Yeniköy from 1864 to 1871. From 1871 to 1898 the annual entries place Osman again in Istanbul, first as Çavuş, from 1877/78 as Bascavus, from 1887/88 as an assistant inspector (Müfettiş Muavini) and from 1893/94 as an inspector (Müfettiş). Few careers in the lists are as long; fewer than 5 per cent of the 5,211 officials have entries spanning 38 years or more.
Pay rose from 500 kuruş a month in 1861/62 to a peak of 1,500 in 1894/95, as Müfettiş in Istanbul, when 94 per cent of paid officials earned less. In all, 37 years of salary come to 396,360 kuruş, 1.7 times what an official on the median salary earned in those years. The last annual entry is for 1897/98; the list of 1898/99 (AH 1316) gives the status word Vefat (death).
Places in order of time#
Each number is a stop: the birthplace, the place of first work, then every place of the annual entries in turn. The year beside an arrow is the first entry at the new place.
Born 1840/41 (AH 1256)
1871 to 1898 (AH 1288 to 1315)
Çavuş 1871 to 1877 (AH 1288 to 1293); Bascavus 1877 to 1887 (AH 1294 to 1304); Müfettiş Muavini 1887 to 1893 (AH 1305 to 1310); Müfettiş 1893 to 1898 (AH 1311 to 1315)
510 to 1,500 kuruş a month; entries in 28 years
Death recorded in the annual list of 1898/99 (AH 1316): the word Vefat, not a date of death.
Career and salary#
Log scale: equal steps are equal ratios. The median of the same title is drawn for the years in which at least 5 officials with that title had a salary.
The numbers of the chart
| Year | Salary | Median, all officials | Median, same title | Paid less |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1861/62 | 500 | 600 | 34% | |
| 1863/64 | 240 | 500 | 8% | |
| 1864/65 | 500 | 625 | 28% | |
| 1865/66 | 500 | 650 | 31% | |
| 1866/67 | 500 | 600 | 39% | |
| 1867/68 | 500 | 600 | 40% | |
| 1868/69 | 500 | 600 | 40% | |
| 1869/70 | 540 | 600 | 45% | |
| 1870/71 | 540 | 600 | 47% | |
| 1871/72 | 510 | 550 | 285 | 49% |
| 1872/73 | 800 | 550 | 285 | 70% |
| 1873/74 | 800 | 500 | 285 | 70% |
| 1874/75 | 800 | 535 | 285 | 69% |
| 1875/76 | 800 | 530 | 285 | 70% |
| 1876/77 | 800 | 582.5 | 300 | 67% |
| 1877/78 | 1,000 | 560 | 79% | |
| 1878 | 1,000 | 600 | 76% | |
| 1878/79 | 1,000 | 600 | 77% | |
| 1879/80 | 600 | 500 | 61% | |
| 1880/81 | 800 | 500 | 76% | |
| 1881/82 | 800 | 500 | 77% | |
| 1882/83 | 800 | 500 | 76% | |
| 1883/84 | 800 | 500 | 76% | |
| 1884/85 | 1,000 | 500 | 82% | |
| 1885/86 | 1,000 | 500 | 83% | |
| 1886/87 | 1,000 | 500 | 84% | |
| 1887/88 | 1,200 | 500 | 1,200 | 87% |
| 1888/89 | 1,200 | 500 | 1,200 | 87% |
| 1889/90 | 1,200 | 500 | 1,200 | 88% |
| 1890/91 | 1,200 | 500 | 1,200 | 89% |
| 1891/92 | 1,200 | 500 | 1,200 | 90% |
| 1892/93 | 1,350 | 500 | 1,200 | 93% |
| 1893/94 | 1,350 | 500 | 2,000 | 93% |
| 1894/95 | 1,500 | 500 | 2,000 | 94% |
| 1895/96 | 1,500 | 500 | 2,000 | 94% |
| 1896/97 | 1,350 | 500 | 1,800 | 94% |
| 1897/98 | 1,350 | 500 | 1,800 | 94% |
Paid less: the share of the other officials with a salary that year who earned less.
Point at a year for its salary, title, place and the median of all officials paid that year. Choose a row of the table to mark its years in the charts and its stop on the map.
| Years | Title | Place | Salary (kuruş a month) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1861/62AH 1278 | Telgraffirst work | Tekirdağ | 500first-salary field |
| 1861/62AH 1278 | Çavuş | Tekirdağ | 500 |
| 1862/63AH 1279 | Silivri | ||
| 1863/64AH 1280 | Muvassil | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 240 |
| 1864 to 1871AH 1281 to 1287 | Bascavus | Yeniköy | 500 to 540 |
| 1871 to 1877AH 1288 to 1293 | Çavuş | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 510 to 800 |
| 1877 to 1887AH 1294 to 1304 | Bascavus | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,000 |
| 1887 to 1893AH 1305 to 1310 | Müfettiş Muavini | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,200 to 1,350 |
| 1893 to 1898AH 1311 to 1315 | Müfettiş | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,350 |
| 1898/99AH 1316 | Death recorded | ||
Record#
Personal
- Born
- 1840/41 (AH 1256)
- Birthplace
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- Community
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Nationality as recorded
- Turkish
- Father's occupation
- Esnaf
- Death recorded
- 1898/99 (AH 1316)the year of the annual list with the word Vefat, not a date of death
Education
- Primary
- Sıbyan Mektebi (4 years)school for young children (primary school)
- Unpaid years (mülazemet)
- 0 years
- Preparation route (classification of the paper)
- Low
- Qualification (diploma, certificate, training or nişan)
- NoShown as in the flag of the paper. The qualification column of the recovered extract gives yes.
The years count all schooling up to that school, as the record gives them.
Languages
- Turkish
- Kitabetwriting
The glosses are cautious historical readings of the recorded words, not modern levels of proficiency.
First work
- Year
- 1861/62 (AH 1278)
- Place
- Tekirdağ
- First job as worded
- Telgraf
- Age at first work (workbook field)
- 22
- First salary field (kuruş a month)
- 500
- First-job salary of the original workbook (kuruş a month)
- 500
Recorded with#
Officials who share a place, a job title, a school, a birthplace or the year of the first annual entry. Ranks compare the highest monthly salary of each official.
Same place, same years
Of the 1,156 officials with entries in Istanbul in the same years, Osman Efendi had the 231st highest salary.
- Emil Efendi29 shared years; highest salary 9,000 kuruş
- Mehmet Hayri Bey29 shared years; highest salary 5,500 kuruş
- Melkok Efendi29 shared years; highest salary 5,000 kuruş
- Mehmet Salim Bey29 shared years; highest salary 3,000 kuruş
- Ali Kaya Bey29 shared years; highest salary 2,500 kuruş
Same job title, same years
Of the 6 officials with the title Bascavus in the same years, Osman Efendi had the 2nd highest salary.
- Ali Rıza Efendi12 shared years; highest salary 500 kuruş
- Mehmet Emin Efendi2 shared years; highest salary 500 kuruş
- Abdülkerim Efendi1 shared year; highest salary 4,500 kuruş
- Mehmet Sait Efend1 shared year; highest salary 620 kuruş
- Abdullah Efendi1 shared year; highest salary 500 kuruş
Same school
Of the 746 officials with Sıbyan Mektebi among their schools, 745 have a recorded salary; Osman Efendi had the 107th highest salary of them.
- Ahmet Hazım Efendiborn 1840/41 (AH 1256); highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- Hacı Mehmet Tevfik Efendiborn 1840/41 (AH 1256); highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- İskender Efendiborn 1840/41 (AH 1256); highest salary 2,350 kuruş
- Kadri Efendiborn 1840/41 (AH 1256); highest salary 2,500 kuruş
- Kasım Tevfik Efendiborn 1840/41 (AH 1256); highest salary 800 kuruş
Same birthplace
Of the 1,999 officials born in Istanbul, 1,997 have a recorded salary; Osman Efendi had the 203rd highest salary of them.
- Agop Efendiborn 1840/41 (AH 1256); highest salary 400 kuruş
- Andon Fakaro Efendiborn 1840/41 (AH 1256); highest salary 2,350 kuruş
- Antuvan Jean Daliço Efendiborn 1840/41 (AH 1256); highest salary 1,750 kuruş
- Kirkor Kakmaciyan Efendiborn 1840/41 (AH 1256); highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- Mahmut Efendiborn 1840/41 (AH 1256); highest salary 2,500 kuruş
First annual entry in the same year
Of the 18 officials whose first annual entry is for 1861/62 (AH 1278), Osman Efendi had the 12th highest salary.
- Antuvan Jean Daliço Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 1,750 kuruş
- Kadri Efendifirst entry in Üsküdar; highest salary 2,500 kuruş
- İsmail Zühdü Beyfirst entry in Gelibolu; highest salary 2,800 kuruş
- Mustafa Bahri Efendifirst entry in Tripoli (Trablusşam); highest salary 1,750 kuruş
- Mikail Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 2,100 kuruş
Full record
Annual entries (38)
| Year | Title | Place | Kuruş a month | Institution | Source | Archive reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1861/62AH 1278 | Çavuş | Tekirdağ | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1862/63AH 1279 | Silivri | Other | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 0066_0231; 459 | ||
| 1863/64AH 1280 | Muvassil | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 240 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1864/65AH 1281 | Bascavus | Yeniköy | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1865/66AH 1282 | Bascavus | Yeniköy | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1866/67AH 1283 | Bascavus | Yeniköy | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1867/68AH 1284 | Bascavus | Yeniköy | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1868/69AH 1285 | Bascavus | Yeniköy | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1869/70AH 1286 | Bascavus | Yeniköy | 540 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1870/71AH 1287 | Bascavus | Yeniköy | 540 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1871/72AH 1288 | Çavuş | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 510 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1872/73AH 1289 | Çavuş | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 800 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1873/74AH 1290 | Çavuş | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 800 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1874/75AH 1291 | Çavuş | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 800 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1875/76AH 1292 | Çavuş | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 800 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1876/77AH 1293 | Çavuş | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 800 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1877/78AH 1294 | Bascavus | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1878AH 1295 | Bascavus | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1878/79AH 1296 | Bascavus | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1879/80AH 1297 | Bascavus | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 600 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1880/81AH 1298 | Bascavus | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 800 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1881/82AH 1299 | Bascavus | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 800 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1882/83AH 1300 | Bascavus | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 800 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1883/84AH 1301 | Bascavus | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 800 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1884/85AH 1302 | Bascavus | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1885/86AH 1303 | Bascavus | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1886/87AH 1304 | Bascavus | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1887/88AH 1305 | Müfettiş Muavini | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,200 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1888/89AH 1306 | Müfettiş Muavini | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,200 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1889/90AH 1307 | Müfettiş Muavini | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,200 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1890/91AH 1308 | Müfettiş Muavini | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,200 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1891/92AH 1309 | Müfettiş Muavini | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,200 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1892/93AH 1310 | Müfettiş Muavini | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,350 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1893/94AH 1311 | Müfettiş | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,350 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1894/95AH 1312 | Müfettiş | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1895/96AH 1313 | Müfettiş | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1896/97AH 1314 | Müfettiş | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,350 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
| 1897/98AH 1315 | Müfettiş | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,350 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0066_0231; 459 |
What the sources named in this table are
- Cross-ministry personnel workbook
- A personnel workbook with the annual entries in institutions other than the Post and Telegraph (justice, land registry, customs, police and others), with the same annual fields as the personnel workbook.
- Recovered annual personnel extract
- The merged annual personnel file recovered for the replication of the first paper. Annual entries are taken from it for every official it holds.
Sources and original values (25)
| Field | Recorded value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | ||
| Name | Osman Efendi | Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Linked personnel workbook |
| Birth year (AH) | 1256 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Birthplace | dersaadet used on this page | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Birthplace | istanbul other value | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Birthplace: district (kaza) | istanbul | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Birthplace: sancak | istanbul | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Birthplace: province (vilayet) | istanbul | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Province of birth | dersaadet | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Father's occupation | esnaf | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Religion | Musluman | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Nationality or community | Turkish | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Schooling | ||
| School | Sibyan Mektebi | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Years of schooling | 4 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Years of apprenticeship (mülazemet) | 0 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work | ||
| First work: year (AH) | 1278 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Linked personnel workbook |
| First work: Gregorian year as stored | 1861 | Recovered annual personnel extract |
| First work: place | Tekirdag | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: district (kaza) | Tekirdag | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: sancak | Tekirdag | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: province (vilayet) | Edirne | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First job as worded | Telgraf | Linked personnel workbook; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Age at first work (workbook field) | 22 | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First salary field (kuruş a month) | 500 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First-job salary of the original workbook (kuruş a month) | 500 | Linked personnel workbook; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Status | ||
| Death recorded under the year (AH) | 1316 | Earlier annual personnel extract (original copy); Earlier annual personnel extract (parallel copy) |
What the sources named in this table are
- Earlier annual personnel extract (original copy)
- A copy of the earlier annual personnel file, read for the title wording of each year. A death taken from it is the status word Vefat in the title field of one annual list: the year is the year of that list, not a date of death.
- Earlier annual personnel extract (parallel copy)
- A second copy of the earlier annual personnel file, read in the same way. A death taken from it is the status word Vefat in the title field of one annual list: the year is the year of that list, not a date of death. Two copies that agree are one piece of evidence, not two.
- Cross-ministry personnel workbook
- A personnel workbook with the annual entries in institutions other than the Post and Telegraph (justice, land registry, customs, police and others), with the same annual fields as the personnel workbook.
- Earlier annual personnel extract
- The detailed annual personnel file of October 2024. An official found only in this file keeps the years, titles and salaries it gives.
- Recovered annual personnel extract
- The merged annual personnel file recovered for the replication of the first paper. Annual entries are taken from it for every official it holds.
- Personnel attributes extract
- The detailed personnel file of September 2025, read for personal details such as birth, schooling and first work.
- Linked personnel workbook
- The original personnel workbook, from which selected fields on background and first work are taken.
- The sources give more than one value for a marked field. Every value is listed.
- Origin of the record: Post and Telegraph personnel records.
- 29 annual entries of 38 belong to the saved estimation sample of the paper.
How to read this record: calendar years, years without an annual entry, salaries and sources.
Subjects
- Osman Efendi
- Bascavus
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- School for young children (Sıbyan Mektebi)
- Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf)
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Sergeant (Çavuş)
- Biography of an Ottoman official (Osmanlı memurunun biyografisi)
- Career and pay (memuriyet ve maaş)
- Ottoman history (Osmanlı tarihi)
- Ottoman bureaucracy (Osmanlı bürokrasisi)
- Ottoman officials (Osmanlı'da memurlar)
- Ottoman personnel registers (Sicill-i Ahvâl defterleri)
- Ottoman registers (Osmanlı defterleri)