Official
Osman Vafi Efendi
Muslim (Müslüman). Born in Erzurum in 1834/35 (AH 1250). On record 1845 to 1888, 42 annual entries. Death recorded 1889/90.
Archive reference 3_145; 288
Life#
Born in Erzurum in 1834/35 (AH 1250), Osman Vafi Efendi came from the Muslim (Müslüman) community. At about 12, in 1845/46, Osman Vafi began work in the Tahrirat Kalemi in Bursa, paid from the start, on 250 kuruş a month. The annual lists begin in 1845/46, with Osman Vafi in the correspondence office (Tahrirat Kalemi) in Bursa. Next came Kars, Sivas and Istanbul from 1851 to 1863, then Baghdad (Bağdat) from 1863 to 1871. The annual lists then follow Osman Vafi back to Istanbul from 1872 to 1876, then Kibris from 1876 to 1878. From 1878 to 1888 the annual entries place Osman Vafi in Suriye, first as DH Mufettisi, from 1884/85 as DH Muduru.
The salary went from 250 kuruş a month in 1845/46 to 7,500 in 1863/64, the peak, as DH Muduru in Baghdad, when 99 per cent of paid officials earned less. From 1864 to 1869 no official in the lists was paid more; only 16 of the 5,203 officials with a salary were ever the best paid of a year. In all, 42 years of salary come to 1,474,800 kuruş, 6.1 times the median official's, a level reached by 28 of the 3,805 officials paid for five years or more. After the last annual entry, for 1887/88, the list of 1889/90 (AH 1307) gives the status word Vefat (death). The honours of Osman Vafi were a rank (rütbe) and the Mecidi order.
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 1834/35 (AH 1250)
First work 1845/46 (AH 1262); 1845 to 1851 (AH 1262 to 1267)
First work as Tahrirat Kalemi
250 kuruş a month; entries in 6 years
1858 to 1863 (AH 1275 to 1279)
Defter-i Hakani Kalemi 1858 to 1861 (AH 1275 to 1277); Ticaret Nezareti Baskitabeti 1861 to 1863 (AH 1278 to 1279)
1,000 to 2,500 kuruş a month; entries in 5 years
1872 to 1876 (AH 1289 to 1292)
No annual entry for 1871/72 (AH 1288) before it.
2,500 kuruş a month; entries in 4 years
1878 to 1888 (AH 1295 to 1305)
DH Mufettisi 1878 to 1884 (AH 1295 to 1301); DH Muduru 1884 to 1888 (AH 1302 to 1305)
2,800 to 3,500 kuruş a month; entries in 10 years
No annual entry for 1882/83 (AH 1300).
Death recorded in the annual list of 1889/90 (AH 1307): 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1845/46 | 250 | 300 | 40% | |
| 1846/47 | 250 | 300 | 42% | |
| 1847/48 | 250 | 250 | 50% | |
| 1848/49 | 250 | 300 | 44% | |
| 1849/50 | 250 | 250 | 50% | |
| 1850/51 | 250 | 175 | 53% | |
| 1851/52 | 1,000 | 282.5 | 93% | |
| 1852/53 | 1,000 | 350 | 88% | |
| 1853/54 | 1,000 | 400 | 79% | |
| 1854/55 | 1,000 | 400 | 75% | |
| 1855/56 | 1,000 | 432.5 | 78% | |
| 1856/57 | 1,000 | 375 | 77% | |
| 1857/58 | 1,000 | 475 | 70% | |
| 1858/59 | 1,000 | 500 | 100 | 73% |
| 1859/60 | 1,000 | 500 | 250 | 74% |
| 1860/61 | 1,000 | 500 | 285 | 66% |
| 1861/62 | 2,500 | 600 | 94% | |
| 1862/63 | 2,500 | 500 | 93% | |
| 1863/64 | 7,500 | 500 | 99% | |
| 1864/65 | 7,500 | 625 | 100% | |
| 1865/66 | 7,500 | 650 | 100% | |
| 1866/67 | 7,500 | 600 | 100% | |
| 1867/68 | 7,500 | 600 | 100% | |
| 1868/69 | 7,500 | 600 | 100% | |
| 1869/70 | 7,500 | 600 | 99% | |
| 1870/71 | 7,500 | 600 | 99% | |
| 1872/73 | 2,500 | 550 | 95% | |
| 1873/74 | 2,500 | 500 | 95% | |
| 1874/75 | 2,500 | 535 | 94% | |
| 1875/76 | 2,500 | 530 | 94% | |
| 1876/77 | 3,500 | 582.5 | 98% | |
| 1877/78 | 3,500 | 560 | 98% | |
| 1878 | 3,500 | 600 | 97% | |
| 1878/79 | 3,500 | 600 | 97% | |
| 1879/80 | 2,800 | 500 | 96% | |
| 1880/81 | 2,800 | 500 | 97% | |
| 1881/82 | 2,800 | 500 | 97% | |
| 1883/84 | 2,800 | 500 | 97% | |
| 1884/85 | 2,800 | 500 | 96% | |
| 1885/86 | 2,800 | 500 | 96% | |
| 1886/87 | 2,800 | 500 | 97% | |
| 1887/88 | 2,800 | 500 | 97% |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1845/46AH 1262 | Tahrirat Kalemifirst work | Bursa | 250first-salary field |
| 1845 to 1851AH 1262 to 1267 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Bursa | 250 |
| 1851 to 1853AH 1268 to 1269 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Kars | 1,000 |
| 1853 to 1858AH 1270 to 1274 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Sivas | 1,000 |
| 1858 to 1861AH 1275 to 1277 | Defter-i Hakani Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,000 |
| 1861 to 1863AH 1278 to 1279 | Ticaret Nezareti Baskitabeti | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 2,500 |
| 1863 to 1871AH 1280 to 1287 | DH Muduru | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 7,500 |
| No annual entry: 1871/72 (AH 1288) | |||
| 1872 to 1876AH 1289 to 1292 | DH Mumeyyiz | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 2,500 |
| 1876 to 1878AH 1293 to 1294 | DH Mufettisi | Kibris | 3,500 |
| 1878 to 1882AH 1295 to 1299 | DH Mufettisi | Suriye | 3,500 to 2,800 |
| No annual entry: 1882/83 (AH 1300) | |||
| 1883/84AH 1301 | DH Mufettisi | Suriye | 2,800 |
| 1884 to 1888AH 1302 to 1305 | DH Muduru | Suriye | 2,800 |
| 1889/90AH 1307 | Death recorded | ||
Record#
Personal
- Born
- 1834/35 (AH 1250)
- Birthplace
- Erzurum
- Community
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Nationality as recorded
- turkish
- Death recorded
- 1889/90 (AH 1307)the year of the annual list with the word Vefat, not a date of death
Education
- Private teaching
- Muallim-i Mahsustan (4 years)from a private teacher (not a school)
- Unpaid years (mülazemet)
- 0 years
- Qualification (diploma, certificate, training or nişan)
- No
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
- 1845/46 (AH 1262)
- Place
- Bursa
- First job as worded
- Tahrirat Kalemi
- Age at first work (workbook field)
- 12
- First salary field (kuruş a month)
- 250
- First-job salary of the original workbook (kuruş a month)
- 250
Honours and ranks
- Rank (recorded code)
- 2
- Mecidi order (recorded code)
- 4; 3
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 13 officials with entries in Suriye in the same years, Osman Vafi Efendi had the highest salary.
- Yosef Sava Efendi10 shared years; highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- Kamil Hakki Efendi9 shared years; highest salary 750 kuruş
- Ahmet Rüştü Efendi5 shared years; highest salary 3,000 kuruş
- Emil Efendi5 shared years; highest salary 2,750 kuruş
- Mustafa Cudi Efendi5 shared years; highest salary 1,200 kuruş
Same job title, same years
Of the 6 officials with the title Defter-i Hakani Kalemi in the same years, Osman Vafi Efendi had the highest salary.
- Abdurrahman Zekai Bey3 shared years; highest salary 3,600 kuruş
- Ali Fehmi Kemali Efendi3 shared years; highest salary 1,200 kuruş
- Mehmet Tevfik Efendi3 shared years; highest salary 950 kuruş
- Mehmet Kamil Efendi3 shared years; highest salary 760 kuruş
- Mehmet Zihni Efendi2 shared years; highest salary 1,200 kuruş
Same birthplace
Of the 56 officials born in Erzurum, Osman Vafi Efendi had the highest salary.
- Mehmet Ziver Efendiborn 1831/32 (AH 1247); highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- Mehmet İzzet Efendiborn 1837/38 (AH 1253); highest salary 800 kuruş
- Aleksandir Efendiborn 1839/40 (AH 1255); highest salary 2,000 kuruş
- Ali Efendiborn 1841/42 (AH 1257); highest salary 800 kuruş
- İbrahim Ethem Efendiborn 1844/45 (AH 1260); highest salary 1,200 kuruş
Full record
Annual entries (42)
| Year | Title | Place | Kuruş a month | Institution | Source | Archive reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1845/46AH 1262 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Bursa | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 3_145; 288 |
| 1846/47AH 1263 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Bursa | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 3_145; 288 |
| 1847/48AH 1264 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Bursa | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 3_145; 288 |
| 1848/49AH 1265 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Bursa | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 3_145; 288 |
| 1849/50AH 1266 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Bursa | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 3_145; 288 |
| 1850/51AH 1267 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Bursa | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 3_145; 288 |
| 1851/52AH 1268 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Kars | 1,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 3_145; 288 |
| 1852/53AH 1269 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Kars | 1,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 3_145; 288 |
| 1853/54AH 1270 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Sivas | 1,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 3_145; 288 |
| 1854/55AH 1271 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Sivas | 1,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 3_145; 288 |
| 1855/56AH 1272 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Sivas | 1,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 3_145; 288 |
| 1856/57AH 1273 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Sivas | 1,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 3_145; 288 |
| 1857/58AH 1274 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Sivas | 1,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 3_145; 288 |
| 1858/59AH 1275 | Defter-i Hakani Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,000 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1859/60AH 1276 | Defter-i Hakani Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,000 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1860/61AH 1277 | Defter-i Hakani Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 1,000 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1861/62AH 1278 | Ticaret Nezareti Baskitabeti | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 2,500 | Justice (Adliye) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1862/63AH 1279 | Ticaret Nezareti Baskitabeti | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 2,500 | Justice (Adliye) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1863/64AH 1280 | DH Muduru | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 7,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1864/65AH 1281 | DH Muduru | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 7,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1865/66AH 1282 | DH Muduru | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 7,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1866/67AH 1283 | DH Muduru | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 7,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1867/68AH 1284 | DH Muduru | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 7,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1868/69AH 1285 | DH Muduru | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 7,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1869/70AH 1286 | DH Muduru | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 7,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1870/71AH 1287 | DH Muduru | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 7,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1872/73AH 1289 | DH Mumeyyiz | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 2,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1873/74AH 1290 | DH Mumeyyiz | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 2,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1874/75AH 1291 | DH Mumeyyiz | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 2,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1875/76AH 1292 | DH Mumeyyiz | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 2,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1876/77AH 1293 | DH Mufettisi | Kibris | 3,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1877/78AH 1294 | DH Mufettisi | Kibris | 3,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1878AH 1295 | DH Mufettisi | Suriye | 3,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1878/79AH 1296 | DH Mufettisi | Suriye | 3,500 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1879/80AH 1297 | DH Mufettisi | Suriye | 2,800 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1880/81AH 1298 | DH Mufettisi | Suriye | 2,800 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1881/82AH 1299 | DH Mufettisi | Suriye | 2,800 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1883/84AH 1301 | DH Mufettisi | Suriye | 2,800 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1884/85AH 1302 | DH Muduru | Suriye | 2,800 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1885/86AH 1303 | DH Muduru | Suriye | 2,800 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1886/87AH 1304 | DH Muduru | Suriye | 2,800 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
| 1887/88AH 1305 | DH Muduru | Suriye | 2,800 | Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 3_145; 288 |
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 Vafi Efendi | Linked personnel workbook |
| Birth year (AH) | 1250 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Birthplace | erzurum | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Birthplace: district (kaza) | Erzurum | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Birthplace: sancak | Erzurum | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Birthplace: province (vilayet) | Erzurum | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Province of birth | erzurum | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| 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 | muallim-i mahsustan | 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; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work | ||
| First work: year (AH) | 1262 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Linked personnel workbook |
| First work: place | bursa | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: district (kaza) | Bursa | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: sancak | Bursa | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: province (vilayet) | Bursa | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First job as worded | Tahrirat Kalemi | Linked personnel workbook; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Age at first work (workbook field) | 12 | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First salary field (kuruş a month) | 250 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First-job salary of the original workbook (kuruş a month) | 250 | Linked personnel workbook; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Honours | ||
| Rank (recorded code) | 2 | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Mecidi order (recorded code) | 4 used on this page | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Mecidi order (recorded code) | 3 other value | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Status | ||
| Death recorded under the year (AH) | 1307 | 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.
How to read this record: calendar years, years without an annual entry, salaries and sources.
Subjects
- Osman Vafi Efendi
- Correspondence office (Tahrirat Kalemi)
- Suriye
- Erzurum
- From a private teacher (Muallim-i Mahsustan)
- Land Registry (Defter-i Hakani)
- 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)