Official
Huseyin Refik Efendi
Muslim (Müslüman). Born in Istanbul (Dersaadet) in 1853/54 (AH 1270). On record 1872 to 1884, 13 annual entries. Death recorded 1884/85.
Archive reference 0006_0310; 615
Life#
Born in Istanbul in 1853/54 (AH 1270), Huseyin Refik Efendi came from the Muslim (Müslüman) community; the father was a customs official (rüsumat memuru). At about 17, in 1871/72, Huseyin Refik began work in the Rusumat Kalemi in Istanbul, with one unpaid year as a mülazım (apprentice) before a first salary of 100 kuruş. The annual lists begin in 1872/73, with Huseyin Refik in the correspondence office (Tahrirat Kalemi) in Istanbul, the birthplace, where the entries run to 1881/82. The last posts were in Jeddah in 1882/83, as Rusumat Muhasebe Baskatibi and Istanbul again in 1883/84. The farthest post, Jeddah, lay about 2,350 km from Istanbul, and fewer than 5 per cent of the 5,162 officials with a known birthplace and place of service served as far from the birthplace.
Pay rose from 100 kuruş a month in 1872/73 to a peak of 1,500 in 1882/83, as Rusumat Muhasebe Baskatibi in Jeddah, when nine in ten paid officials earned less. That salary was paid for a single year, and the next list gives 350 kuruş. After the last annual entry, for 1883/84, the list of 1884/85 (AH 1302) 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 1853/54 (AH 1270); First work 1871/72 (AH 1288); 1872 to 1882 (AH 1289 to 1299)
First work as Rusumat Kalemi
100 to 300 kuruş a month; entries in 11 years
Death recorded in the annual list of 1884/85 (AH 1302): 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1872/73 | 100 | 550 | 400 | 1% |
| 1873/74 | 150 | 500 | 400 | 5% |
| 1874/75 | 150 | 535 | 420 | 5% |
| 1875/76 | 150 | 530 | 700 | 4% |
| 1876/77 | 150 | 582.5 | 600 | 3% |
| 1877/78 | 150 | 560 | 700 | 2% |
| 1878 | 200 | 600 | 900 | 3% |
| 1878/79 | 300 | 600 | 700 | 9% |
| 1879/80 | 240 | 500 | 450 | 9% |
| 1880/81 | 300 | 500 | 460 | 15% |
| 1881/82 | 300 | 500 | 480 | 13% |
| 1882/83 | 1,500 | 500 | 90% | |
| 1883/84 | 350 | 500 | 450 | 17% |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1871/72AH 1288 | Rusumat Kalemifirst work | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 100first-salary field |
| 1872 to 1882AH 1289 to 1299 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 100 to 300 |
| 1882/83AH 1300 | Rusumat Muhasebe Baskatibi | Jeddah (Cidde) | 1,500 |
| 1883/84AH 1301 | Rusumat Muhasebe Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 350 |
| 1884/85AH 1302 | Death recorded | ||
Record#
Personal
- Born
- 1853/54 (AH 1270)
- Birthplace
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- Community
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Nationality as recorded
- Turkish
- Father's occupation
- Rusumat Memuru
- Death recorded
- 1884/85 (AH 1302)the year of the annual list with the word Vefat, not a date of death
Education
- Rüşdiye
- Rüşdiye Mektebi (7 years)rüşdiye school (middle school); place of the school as worded: Davutpasa
- Unpaid years (mülazemet)
- 1 year
- 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
- Turkish
- Kitabetwriting
The glosses are cautious historical readings of the recorded words, not modern levels of proficiency.
First work
- Year
- 1871/72 (AH 1288)
- Place
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- First job as worded
- Rusumat Kalemi
- Age at first work (workbook field)
- 18
- First salary field (kuruş a month)
- 100
- First-job salary of the original workbook (kuruş a month)
- 100
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 550 officials with entries in Istanbul in the same years, Huseyin Refik Efendi had the 171st highest salary.
- Emil Efendi12 shared years; highest salary 9,000 kuruş
- Suleyman Resat Bey12 shared years; highest salary 7,000 kuruş
- Mehmet Hayri Bey12 shared years; highest salary 5,500 kuruş
- Mehmet Emin Bey12 shared years; highest salary 5,000 kuruş
- Melkok Efendi12 shared years; highest salary 5,000 kuruş
Same job title, same years
Of the 44 officials with the title Tahrirat Kalemi in the same years, Huseyin Refik Efendi had the 13th highest salary.
- Ali Kaya Bey11 shared years; highest salary 2,500 kuruş
- Mehmet Şevki Efendi11 shared years; highest salary 2,000 kuruş
- Mehmet Arif Efendi11 shared years; highest salary 1,500 kuruş
- Mustafa Akif Efendi11 shared years; highest salary 1,400 kuruş
- Hacı Bekir Efendi11 shared years; highest salary 1,200 kuruş
Same school
Of the 3,206 officials with Rüşdiye Mektebi among their schools, 3,200 have a recorded salary; Huseyin Refik Efendi had the 133rd highest salary of them.
- Abdülbaki Efendiborn 1853/54 (AH 1270); highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- Ahmet Naim Efendiborn 1853/54 (AH 1270); highest salary 500 kuruş
- Ahmet Rüştü Efendiborn 1853/54 (AH 1270); highest salary 3,000 kuruş
- Ali Haydar Efendiborn 1853/54 (AH 1270); highest salary 1,500 kuruş
- Feyzullah Zihni Efendiborn 1853/54 (AH 1270); highest salary 400 kuruş
Same birthplace
Of the 1,999 officials born in Istanbul, 1,997 have a recorded salary; Huseyin Refik Efendi had the 203rd highest salary of them.
- Agop Maryan Efendiborn 1853/54 (AH 1270); highest salary 750 kuruş
- Ahmet Canib Efendiborn 1853/54 (AH 1270); highest salary 590 kuruş
- Ahmet Naim Efendiborn 1853/54 (AH 1270); highest salary 500 kuruş
- Ali Haydar Efendiborn 1853/54 (AH 1270); highest salary 1,500 kuruş
- Ali Riza Efendiborn 1853/54 (AH 1270); highest salary 600 kuruş
First annual entry in the same year
Of the 84 officials whose first annual entry is for 1872/73 (AH 1289), Huseyin Refik Efendi had the 11th highest salary.
- Mehmet Şerefeddin Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 1,700 kuruş
- Mehmet Aziz Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 700 kuruş
- Salim Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 290 kuruş
- Unnamed official (0067_0240; sayfa no:477)first entry in Istanbul; highest salary 500 kuruş
- İsmail Hakkı Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 790 kuruş
Full record
Annual entries (13)
| Year | Title | Place | Kuruş a month | Institution | Source | Archive reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1872/73AH 1289 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 100 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0006_0310; 615 |
| 1873/74AH 1290 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 150 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0006_0310; 615 |
| 1874/75AH 1291 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 150 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0006_0310; 615 |
| 1875/76AH 1292 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 150 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0006_0310; 615 |
| 1876/77AH 1293 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 150 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0006_0310; 615 |
| 1877/78AH 1294 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 150 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0006_0310; 615 |
| 1878AH 1295 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 200 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0006_0310; 615 |
| 1878/79AH 1296 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 300 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0006_0310; 615 |
| 1879/80AH 1297 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 240 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0006_0310; 615 |
| 1880/81AH 1298 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 300 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0006_0310; 615 |
| 1881/82AH 1299 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 300 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0006_0310; 615 |
| 1882/83AH 1300 | Rusumat Muhasebe Baskatibi | Jeddah (Cidde) | 1,500 | Customs (Gümrük) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 0006_0310; 615 |
| 1883/84AH 1301 | Rusumat Muhasebe Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 350 | Customs (Gümrük) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 0006_0310; 615 |
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 (26)
| Field | Recorded value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | ||
| Name | Huseyin Refik Efendi | Linked personnel workbook |
| Birth year (AH) | 1270 | 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 | rusumat memuru | 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 | Rusdiye Mektebi | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Place of the school | Davutpasa | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Years of schooling | 7 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Years of apprenticeship (mülazemet) | 1 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work | ||
| First work: year (AH) | 1288 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Linked personnel workbook |
| First work: Gregorian year as stored | 1871 | Recovered annual personnel extract |
| First work: place | istanbul | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: district (kaza) | istanbul | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: sancak | istanbul | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: province (vilayet) | istanbul | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First job as worded | Rusumat Kalemi | Linked personnel workbook; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Age at first work (workbook field) | 18 | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First salary field (kuruş a month) | 100 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First-job salary of the original workbook (kuruş a month) | 100 | Linked personnel workbook; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Status | ||
| Death recorded under the year (AH) | 1302 | 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.
- 11 annual entries of 13 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
- Huseyin Refik Efendi
- Correspondence office (Tahrirat Kalemi)
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- Rüşdiye school (Rüşdiye Mektebi)
- Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf)
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Rusumat Muhasebe Baskatibi
- 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)