Official
AHMET KEMAL EFENDİ
Muslim (Müslüman). Born in Istanbul (Dersaadet) in 1878/79 (AH 1296). On record 1902 to 1908, 6 annual entries.
Archive reference 156_246; 489
Life#
Born in Istanbul in 1878/79 (AH 1296), AHMET KEMAL EFENDİ came from the Muslim (Müslüman) community; the father was an army captain (yüzbaşı). Schooling took seven years, at a middle school (Rüşdiye Mektebi); AHMET KEMAL also wrote Turkish and spoke Greek (Rum).
At about 14, in 1892/93, AHMET KEMAL began work in Antalya, with ten unpaid years as a mülazım (apprentice) before a first salary of 290 kuruş. So long an unpaid start was rare; fewer than 2 per cent of the 5,142 officials with a known apprenticeship worked unpaid for ten years or longer. The annual lists begin in 1902/03, with AHMET KEMAL as a communications official (Muhabere Memuru) in Aleppo (Halep), where the entries run to 1906/07. The last post was in Korçë (Görice) in 1907/08.
The salary never rose above the first in the lists, 290 kuruş a month in 1902/03, as Muhabere Memuru in Aleppo, when 21 per cent of paid officials earned less. In all, six years of salary come to 20,880 kuruş, 65 per cent of what an official on the median salary earned in those years. The final annual entry is for 1907/08.
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 1878/79 (AH 1296)
First work 1892/93 (AH 1310)
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, and the median of the same province for the years in which at least 5 officials were paid in the province of the official's salary that year.
The numbers of the chart
| Year | Salary | Median, all officials | Median, same title | Median, same province | Paid less |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1902/03 | 290 | 500 | 380 | 400 | 21% |
| 1903/04 | 290 | 475 | 350 | 400 | 22% |
| 1904/05 | 290 | 450 | 350 | 400 | 23% |
| 1905/06 | 290 | 475 | 330 | 500 | 23% |
| 1906/07 | 290 | 450 | 300 | 500 | 24% |
| 1907/08 | 290 | 300 | 250 | 320 | 39% |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1892/93AH 1310 | First work | Antalya | 290first-salary field |
| 1902 to 1907AH 1320 to 1324 | Muhabere Memuru | Aleppo (Halep) | 290 |
| 1907/08AH 1325 | Muhabere Memuru | Korçë (Görice) | 290 |
Record#
Personal
- Born
- 1878/79 (AH 1296)
- Birthplace
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- Community
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Nationality as recorded
- Turkish
- Father's occupation
- Yuzbasi
Education
- Rüşdiye
- Rüşdiye Mektebi (7 years)rüşdiye school (middle school)
- Unpaid years (mülazemet)
- 10 years
- Preparation route (classification of the paper)
- Low
- Qualification (diploma, certificate, training or nişan)
- No
The years count all schooling up to that school, as the record gives them.
Languages
- Greek (Rum)
- tekellumspeaking. Rum is the word of the records for Greek as spoken by the Orthodox Christians of the empire. It is kept apart from the column Greek, which the records also have
- Turkish
- Kitabetwriting
The glosses are cautious historical readings of the recorded words, not modern levels of proficiency.
First work
- Year
- 1892/93 (AH 1310)
- Place
- Antalya
- First salary field (kuruş a month)
- 290
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 post (job title and place), same years
Of the 34 officials who held Muhabere Memuru in Aleppo (Halep) in the same years, AHMET KEMAL EFENDİ had the 32nd highest salary.
- Veli Efendi5 shared years; highest salary 500 kuruş
- Mehmet Arif Efendi3 shared years; highest salary 700 kuruş
- Mustafa Efendi3 shared years; highest salary 500 kuruş
- Mehmet Nasih Efendi3 shared years; highest salary 350 kuruş
- Mahmut Efendi3 shared years; highest salary 300 kuruş
Same place, same years
Of the 63 officials with entries in Aleppo (Halep) in the same years, AHMET KEMAL EFENDİ had the 60th highest salary.
- Unnamed official (26_188; 371)5 shared years; highest salary 2,500 kuruş
- Veli Efendi5 shared years; highest salary 500 kuruş
- İsmail Nuri Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- Ahmet Salih Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 900 kuruş
- Mehmet Arif Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 700 kuruş
Same job title, same years
Of the 1,449 officials with the title Muhabere Memuru in the same years, AHMET KEMAL EFENDİ had the 1,082nd highest salary.
- Mustafa Fazıl Bey6 shared years; highest salary 1,700 kuruş
- Mahmut Nedim Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 1,200 kuruş
- Abdülvahid Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- Mustafa Nuri Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 900 kuruş
- Osman Hulusi Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 900 kuruş
Same school
Of the 3,206 officials with Rüşdiye Mektebi among their schools, 3,200 have a recorded salary; AHMET KEMAL EFENDİ had the 2,503rd highest salary of them.
- Abdülcabbar Efendiborn 1878/79 (AH 1296); highest salary 350 kuruş
- Abdülkadir Zihni Efendiborn 1878/79 (AH 1296); highest salary 300 kuruş
- Abdullah Vahdi Efendiborn 1878/79 (AH 1296); highest salary 500 kuruş
- Ahmed Refik Efendiborn 1878/79 (AH 1296); highest salary 350 kuruş
- Ahmet Celalettin Efendiborn 1878/79 (AH 1296); highest salary 700 kuruş
Same birthplace
Of the 1,999 officials born in Istanbul, 1,997 have a recorded salary; AHMET KEMAL EFENDİ had the 1,530th highest salary of them.
- Ahmed Refik Efendiborn 1878/79 (AH 1296); highest salary 350 kuruş
- Ahmet Bahaettin Efendiborn 1878/79 (AH 1296); highest salary 150 kuruş
- Ahmet Halit Efendiborn 1878/79 (AH 1296); highest salary 600 kuruş
- Ahmet Hulusi Efendiborn 1878/79 (AH 1296); highest salary 380 kuruş
- Ahmet Mithat Efendiborn 1878/79 (AH 1296); highest salary 250 kuruş
First annual entry in the same year
Of the 168 officials whose first annual entry is for 1902/03 (AH 1320), AHMET KEMAL EFENDİ had the 103rd highest salary.
- Veli Efendifirst entry in Aleppo (Halep); highest salary 500 kuruş
- Mahmut Efendifirst entry in Aleppo (Halep); highest salary 300 kuruş
- Ahmet Rıza Efendifirst entry in Beirut (Beyrut); highest salary 500 kuruş
- Ahmet Rüşti Efendifirst entry in Razlog (Razlık); highest salary 300 kuruş
- Hacı Hüseyin Efendifirst entry in Kırşehir; highest salary 200 kuruş
Full record
Annual entries (6)
| Year | Title | Place | Kuruş a month | Institution | Source | Archive reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1902/03AH 1320 | Muhabere Memuru | Aleppo (Halep) | 290 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 156_246; 489 |
| 1903/04AH 1321 | Muhabere Memuru | Aleppo (Halep) | 290 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 156_246; 489 |
| 1904/05AH 1322 | Muhabere Memuru | Aleppo (Halep) | 290 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 156_246; 489 |
| 1905/06AH 1323 | Muhabere Memuru | Aleppo (Halep) | 290 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 156_246; 489 |
| 1906/07AH 1324 | Muhabere Memuru | Aleppo (Halep) | 290 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 156_246; 489 |
| 1907/08AH 1325 | Muhabere Memuru | Korçë (Görice) | 290 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 156_246; 489 |
What the sources named in this table are
- 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 (14)
| Field | Recorded value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | ||
| Name | AHMET KEMAL EFENDİ | Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Birth year (AH) | 1296 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Birthplace | dersaadet | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Province of birth | dersaadet | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Father's occupation | Yuzbasi | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Religion | Musluman | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Nationality or community | Turkish | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Schooling | ||
| School | Rusdiye Mektebi | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Years of schooling | 7 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Years of apprenticeship (mülazemet) | 10 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First work | ||
| First work: year (AH) | 1310 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First work: Gregorian year as stored | 1892 | Recovered annual personnel extract |
| First work: place | Antalya | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First salary field (kuruş a month) | 290 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
What the sources named in this table are
- 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.
- Origin of the record: Post and Telegraph personnel records.
- 4 annual entries of 6 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
- AHMET KEMAL EFENDİ
- Communications official (Muhabere Memuru)
- Aleppo (Halep)
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- Rüşdiye school (Rüşdiye 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)