Official
Mehmet Kadri Efendi
Muslim (Müslüman). Born in Ürgüp in 1845 (AH 1261). On record 1869 to 1897, 27 annual entries. Death recorded 1897/98.
Archive reference 0062_0012; 21
Life#
Born in Ürgüp in 1845 (AH 1261), Mehmet Kadri Efendi came from the Muslim (Müslüman) community; the father was an imam. Schooling took four years, at a school for young children (Sıbyan Mektebi).
Work began in the telegraph service (Telgraf) in Ioannina (Yanya) in 1869/70, at about 24, paid from the start, on 400 kuruş a month. The first annual entry, for 1869/70, places Mehmet Kadri in Ioannina as a communications official (Muhabere Memuru). Next came Bilecik from 1871 to 1878, then Yenişehir from 1878 to 1883. From 1885 to 1897 every annual entry places Mehmet Kadri in Istanbul, first as Muhabere Memuru, from 1886/87 in the dispatch office (Sevk Kalemi).
The salary went from 400 kuruş a month in 1869/70 to 1,000 in 1895/96, the peak, in the Sevk Kalemi in Istanbul, when 87 per cent of paid officials earned less. The peak lasted a single year; the next list gives 900 kuruş. In all, 26 years of salary come to 175,680 kuruş, about what an official on the median salary earned in those years. After the last annual entry, for 1896/97, the list of 1897/98 (AH 1315) 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.
Not on the map, as no position is recorded: stop 5 (Place not recorded).
Born 1845 (AH 1261)
First work 1869/70 (AH 1286); 1869/70 (AH 1286)
First work as Telgraf
400 kuruş a month; entries in 1 year
1871 to 1878 (AH 1288 to 1294)
No annual entry for 1870/71 (AH 1287) before it.
380 to 500 kuruş a month; entries in 7 years
1878 to 1883 (AH 1295 to 1300)
475 to 500 kuruş a month; entries in 6 years
1885 to 1897 (AH 1303 to 1314)
No annual entry for 1884/85 (AH 1302) before it.
Muhabere Memuru 1885/86 (AH 1303); Sevk Kalemi 1886 to 1897 (AH 1304 to 1314)
500 to 1,000 kuruş a month; entries in 12 years
Death recorded in the annual list of 1897/98 (AH 1315): 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1869/70 | 400 | 600 | 400 | 18% |
| 1871/72 | 380 | 550 | 400 | 20% |
| 1872/73 | 380 | 550 | 400 | 18% |
| 1873/74 | 380 | 500 | 400 | 18% |
| 1874/75 | 400 | 535 | 450 | 23% |
| 1875/76 | 400 | 530 | 400 | 23% |
| 1876/77 | 500 | 582.5 | 410 | 36% |
| 1877/78 | 500 | 560 | 410 | 36% |
| 1878 | 500 | 600 | 600 | 33% |
| 1878/79 | 500 | 600 | 600 | 34% |
| 1879/80 | 475 | 500 | 500 | 42% |
| 1880/81 | 475 | 500 | 570 | 43% |
| 1881/82 | 475 | 500 | 600 | 42% |
| 1882/83 | 475 | 500 | 600 | 39% |
| 1885/86 | 600 | 500 | 400 | 58% |
| 1886/87 | 500 | 500 | 475 | 42% |
| 1887/88 | 600 | 500 | 477.5 | 58% |
| 1888/89 | 600 | 500 | 500 | 58% |
| 1889/90 | 700 | 500 | 525 | 73% |
| 1890/91 | 700 | 500 | 525 | 73% |
| 1891/92 | 700 | 500 | 590 | 73% |
| 1892/93 | 700 | 500 | 580 | 73% |
| 1893/94 | 700 | 500 | 476.5 | 74% |
| 1894/95 | 700 | 500 | 450 | 74% |
| 1895/96 | 1,000 | 500 | 400 | 87% |
| 1896/97 | 900 | 500 | 425 | 88% |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1869/70AH 1286 | Telgraffirst work | Ioannina (Yanya) | 400first-salary field |
| 1869/70AH 1286 | Muhabere Memuru | Ioannina (Yanya) | 400 |
| No annual entry: 1870/71 (AH 1287) | |||
| 1871 to 1878AH 1288 to 1294 | Muhabere Memuru | Bilecik | 380 to 500 |
| 1878 to 1883AH 1295 to 1300 | Başmuhabere Memuru | Yenişehir | 500 to 475 |
| 1883/84AH 1301 | Asker | ||
| No annual entry: 1884/85 (AH 1302) | |||
| 1885/86AH 1303 | Muhabere Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 600 |
| 1886 to 1897AH 1304 to 1314 | Sevk Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 500 to 900 |
| 1897/98AH 1315 | Death recorded | ||
Record#
Personal
- Born
- 1845 (AH 1261)
- Birthplace
- Ürgüp
- Community
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Nationality as recorded
- Turkish
- Father's occupation
- imam
- Death recorded
- 1897/98 (AH 1315)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
- 1869/70 (AH 1286)
- Place
- Ioannina (Yanya)
- First job as worded
- Telgraf
- Age at first work (workbook field)
- 25
- First salary field (kuruş a month)
- 400
- First-job salary of the original workbook (kuruş a month)
- 400
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 890 officials with entries in Istanbul in the same years, Mehmet Kadri Efendi had the 266th highest salary.
- Emil Efendi12 shared years; highest salary 9,000 kuruş
- Salahattin Bey12 shared years; highest salary 7,800 kuruş
- Suleyman Resat Bey12 shared years; highest salary 7,000 kuruş
- Mehmet Hayri Bey12 shared years; highest salary 5,500 kuruş
- Fahri Efendi12 shared years; highest salary 5,000 kuruş
Same job title, same years
Of the 52 officials with the title Sevk Kalemi in the same years, Mehmet Kadri Efendi had the 4th highest salary.
- Mehmet Ali Efendi11 shared years; highest salary 800 kuruş
- Mehmet Reşit Efendi11 shared years; highest salary 800 kuruş
- Mehmet Cemal Efendi11 shared years; highest salary 750 kuruş
- İbrahim Hakkı Efendi11 shared years; highest salary 650 kuruş
- Mustafa Hakkı Bey11 shared years; highest salary 650 kuruş
Same school
Of the 746 officials with Sıbyan Mektebi among their schools, 745 have a recorded salary; Mehmet Kadri Efendi had the 194th highest salary of them.
- Abdullah Fikri Efendiborn 1845 (AH 1261); highest salary 600 kuruş
- Ahmet Hilmi Efendiborn 1845 (AH 1261); highest salary 675 kuruş
- Ahmet Naili Efendiborn 1845 (AH 1261); highest salary 600 kuruş
- Ahmet Raif Efendiborn 1845 (AH 1261); highest salary 1,500 kuruş
- Ali Efendiborn 1845 (AH 1261); highest salary 800 kuruş
Same birthplace
Of the 27 officials born in Ürgüp, Mehmet Kadri Efendi had the 4th highest salary.
- Mustafa Şakir Efendiborn 1845 (AH 1261); highest salary 475 kuruş
- İbrahim Hakki Beyborn 1845/46 (AH 1262); highest salary 7,000 kuruş
- Mehmet Hilmi Efendiborn 1843/44 (AH 1259); highest salary 800 kuruş
- İbrahim Münir Efendiborn 1842/43 (AH 1258); highest salary 600 kuruş
- Yusuf Kemal Efendiborn 1848/49 (AH 1265); highest salary 1,000 kuruş
First annual entry in the same year
Of the 116 officials whose first annual entry is for 1869/70 (AH 1286), Mehmet Kadri Efendi had the 37th highest salary.
- Artin Şorun(?) Efendifirst entry in Kayseri; highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- İzzet Şevki Efendifirst entry in Adana; highest salary 600 kuruş
- Mustafa Zeki Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 650 kuruş
- Tavik Besim Efendifirst entry in Samawah (Semave); highest salary 1,500 kuruş
- Abdullah Efendifirst entry in Büyükçekmece (Çekmece-i Kebir); highest salary 500 kuruş
Full record
Annual entries (27)
| Year | Title | Place | Kuruş a month | Institution | Source | Archive reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1869/70AH 1286 | Muhabere Memuru | Ioannina (Yanya) | 400 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1871/72AH 1288 | Muhabere Memuru | Bilecik | 380 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1872/73AH 1289 | Muhabere Memuru | Bilecik | 380 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1873/74AH 1290 | Muhabere Memuru | Bilecik | 380 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1874/75AH 1291 | Muhabere Memuru | Bilecik | 400 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1875/76AH 1292 | Muhabere Memuru | Bilecik | 400 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1876/77AH 1293 | Muhabere Memuru | Bilecik | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1877/78AH 1294 | Muhabere Memuru | Bilecik | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1878AH 1295 | Başmuhabere Memuru | Yenişehir | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1878/79AH 1296 | Başmuhabere Memuru | Yenişehir | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1879/80AH 1297 | Başmuhabere Memuru | Yenişehir | 475 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1880/81AH 1298 | Başmuhabere Memuru | Yenişehir | 475 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1881/82AH 1299 | Başmuhabere Memuru | Yenişehir | 475 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1882/83AH 1300 | Başmuhabere Memuru | Yenişehir | 475 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1883/84AH 1301 | Asker | Military (Askeriye) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 0062_0012; 21 | ||
| 1885/86AH 1303 | Muhabere Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 600 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1886/87AH 1304 | Sevk Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1887/88AH 1305 | Sevk Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 600 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1888/89AH 1306 | Sevk Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 600 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1889/90AH 1307 | Sevk Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 700 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1890/91AH 1308 | Sevk Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 700 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1891/92AH 1309 | Sevk Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 700 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1892/93AH 1310 | Sevk Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 700 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1893/94AH 1311 | Sevk Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 700 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1894/95AH 1312 | Sevk Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 700 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1895/96AH 1313 | Sevk Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
| 1896/97AH 1314 | Sevk Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 900 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0062_0012; 21 |
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 (24)
| Field | Recorded value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | ||
| Name | Mehmet Kadri Efendi | Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Linked personnel workbook |
| Birth year (AH) | 1261 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Birthplace | urgup | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Birthplace: district (kaza) | urgup | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Birthplace: sancak | Nigde | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Birthplace: province (vilayet) | Konya | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Province of birth | konya | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Father's occupation | imam | 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) | 1286 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Linked personnel workbook |
| First work: Gregorian year as stored | 1869 | Recovered annual personnel extract |
| First work: place | Yanya | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: district (kaza) | Yanya | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: sancak | Yanya | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: province (vilayet) | Yanya | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First job as worded | Telgraf | Linked personnel workbook; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Age at first work (workbook field) | 25 | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First salary field (kuruş a month) | 400 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First-job salary of the original workbook (kuruş a month) | 400 | Linked personnel workbook; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Status | ||
| Death recorded under the year (AH) | 1315 | 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.
- Origin of the record: Post and Telegraph personnel records.
- 25 annual entries of 27 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
- Mehmet Kadri Efendi
- Dispatch office (Sevk Kalemi)
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- Ürgüp
- School for young children (Sıbyan Mektebi)
- Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf)
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- 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)