Official
Mehmet Asaf Efendi
Muslim (Müslüman). Born in Istanbul (Dersaadet) in 1873/74 (AH 1290). On record 1893 to 1910, 17 annual entries.
Archive reference 89_111; 219
Life#
Born in Istanbul in 1873/74 (AH 1290), Mehmet Asaf Efendi came from the Muslim (Müslüman) community. At about 20, in 1893/94, Mehmet Asaf began work in Istanbul, paid from the start, on 400 kuruş a month. The first annual entry, for 1893/94, places Mehmet Asaf in Beyoğlu as an official for foreign communications (Muhaberat-ı Ecnebiye Memuriyeti). Mehmet Asaf then moved back to Istanbul, the birthplace, from 1895 to 1900, then Yemen, Edirne, Thessaloniki (Selanik) and Baghdad (Bağdat), four places in nine years, with a rise to chief director (Başmüdür) in 1908/09. The last post was in Istanbul again in 1909/10, with a rise to Basmudur Vekili. Yemen, about 3,200 km from Istanbul, was the post farthest from the birthplace; fewer than 2 per cent of the 5,162 officials with a known birthplace and place of service served as far from home.
The salary went from 400 kuruş a month in 1893/94 to 4,896 in 1909/10, the peak, as Basmudur Vekili in Istanbul, when 98 per cent of paid officials earned less. Over 17 years the salaries add up to 284,472 kuruş, 3 times what an official on the median salary earned, a level reached by fewer than 5 per cent of the 3,805 officials paid for five years or more. The last annual entry is for 1909/10.
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 1873/74 (AH 1290); First work 1893/94 (AH 1311)
1895 to 1900 (AH 1313 to 1317)
475 to 550 kuruş a month; entries in 5 years
1903 to 1907 (AH 1321 to 1324)
Başkitabet 1903/04 (AH 1321); Müfettiş Muavini 1904 to 1906 (AH 1322 to 1323); Müfettiş 1906/07 (AH 1324)
600 to 1,500 kuruş a month; entries in 4 years
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1893/94 | 400 | 500 | 500 | 30% |
| 1894/95 | 400 | 500 | 500 | 30% |
| 1895/96 | 475 | 500 | 475 | 45% |
| 1896/97 | 495 | 500 | 495 | 48% |
| 1897/98 | 495 | 500 | 450 | 48% |
| 1898/99 | 495 | 500 | 472.5 | 48% |
| 1899/1900 | 550 | 500 | 500 | 68% |
| 1900/01 | 2,000 | 500 | 96% | |
| 1901/02 | 2,000 | 500 | 96% | |
| 1902/03 | 2,000 | 500 | 96% | |
| 1903/04 | 600 | 475 | 720 | 67% |
| 1904/05 | 1,200 | 450 | 1,180 | 91% |
| 1905/06 | 1,200 | 475 | 1,080 | 90% |
| 1906/07 | 1,500 | 450 | 1,800 | 92% |
| 1907/08 | 2,000 | 300 | 2,000 | 93% |
| 1908/09 | 3,000 | 350 | 2,750 | 95% |
| 1909/10 | 4,896 | 462.5 | 98% |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1893/94AH 1311 | First work | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 400first-salary field |
| 1893 to 1895AH 1311 to 1312 | Muhaberat-ı Ecnebiye Memuriyeti | Beyoğlu | 400 |
| 1895 to 1900AH 1313 to 1317 | Mektubi Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 475 to 550 |
| 1900 to 1903AH 1318 to 1320 | Basmudur Baskitabeti | Yemen | 2,000 |
| 1903/04AH 1321 | Başkitabet | Edirne | 600 |
| 1904 to 1906AH 1322 to 1323 | Müfettiş Muavini | Edirne | 1,200 |
| 1906/07AH 1324 | Müfettiş | Edirne | 1,500 |
| 1907/08AH 1325 | Müfettiş | Thessaloniki (Selanik) | 2,000 |
| 1908/09AH 1326 | Başmüdür | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 3,000 |
| 1909/10AH 1327 | Basmudur Vekili | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 4,896 |
Record#
Personal
- Born
- 1873/74 (AH 1290)
- Birthplace
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- Community
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Nationality as recorded
- Turkish
Education
- Darüşşafaka
- Darüşşafaka (12 years)Darüşşafaka (school for orphans in Istanbul)
- Higher or professional
- Telgraf Mektebitelegraph school; recorded as a code
- Unpaid years (mülazemet)
- 0 years
- Preparation route (classification of the paper)
- Darüşşafaka
- Qualification (diploma, certificate, training or nişan)
- Yes
The years count all schooling up to that school, as the record gives them.
Languages
- French
- Kitabetwriting
- Turkish
- Kitabetwriting
The glosses are cautious historical readings of the recorded words, not modern levels of proficiency.
First work
- Year
- 1893/94 (AH 1311)
- Place
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- First salary field (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 817 officials with entries in Istanbul in the same years, Mehmet Asaf Efendi had the 20th highest salary.
- Melkok Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 5,000 kuruş
- Mehmet Emin Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 3,500 kuruş
- Tevfik Bey6 shared years; highest salary 3,500 kuruş
- Hasan Basri Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 3,000 kuruş
- Mehmet Şevki Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 3,000 kuruş
Same job title, same years
Of the 19 officials with the title Mektubi Kalemi in the same years, Mehmet Asaf Efendi had the highest salary.
- Mahmut Aziz Efendi5 shared years; highest salary 1,500 kuruş
- Salih Hulusi Efendi5 shared years; highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- Mehmet Raşit Efendi 12775 shared years; highest salary 725 kuruş
- Mehmet Asım Bey5 shared years; highest salary 550 kuruş
- Unnamed official (0087_0146, sayfa no:289.)5 shared years; highest salary 425 kuruş
Same school
Of the 203 officials with Darüşşafaka among their schools, Mehmet Asaf Efendi had the 5th highest salary.
- Abdülaziz Efendiborn 1873/74 (AH 1290); highest salary 450 kuruş
- Abdullah Zühdü Efendiborn 1873/74 (AH 1290); highest salary 400 kuruş
- Abdürrahim Haşim Efendiborn 1873/74 (AH 1290); highest salary 750 kuruş
- Ahmet Mahmut Efendiborn 1873/74 (AH 1290); highest salary 800 kuruş
- Ethem Tevfik Efendiborn 1873/74 (AH 1290); highest salary 1,500 kuruş
Same birthplace
Of the 1,999 officials born in Istanbul, 1,997 have a recorded salary; Mehmet Asaf Efendi had the 35th highest salary of them.
- Abdullah Zühdü Efendiborn 1873/74 (AH 1290); highest salary 400 kuruş
- Abdülvahap Efendiborn 1873/74 (AH 1290); highest salary 750 kuruş
- Abdürrahim Haşim Efendiborn 1873/74 (AH 1290); highest salary 750 kuruş
- Ahmet Efendiborn 1873/74 (AH 1290); highest salary 100 kuruş
- Ahmet Fuat Efendiborn 1873/74 (AH 1290); highest salary 800 kuruş
First annual entry in the same year
Of the 162 officials whose first annual entry is for 1893/94 (AH 1311), Mehmet Asaf Efendi had the highest salary.
- Dikran Vartanyan Efendifirst entry in Beyoğlu; highest salary 500 kuruş
- Ali Rıza Efendifirst entry in Beyoğlu; highest salary 800 kuruş
- Mehmet Kadri Efendifirst entry in Beyoğlu; highest salary 700 kuruş
- Salamon Efendifirst entry in Beyoğlu; highest salary 480 kuruş
- Unnamed official (0086_0158: 311)first entry in Beyoğlu; highest salary 480 kuruş
Full record
Annual entries (17)
| Year | Title | Place | Kuruş a month | Institution | Source | Archive reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1893/94AH 1311 | Muhaberat-ı Ecnebiye Memuriyeti | Beyoğlu | 400 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1894/95AH 1312 | Muhaberat-ı Ecnebiye Memuriyeti | Beyoğlu | 400 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1895/96AH 1313 | Mektubi Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 475 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1896/97AH 1314 | Mektubi Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 495 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1897/98AH 1315 | Mektubi Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 495 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1898/99AH 1316 | Mektubi Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 495 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1899/1900AH 1317 | Mektubi Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 550 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1900/01AH 1318 | Basmudur Baskitabeti | Yemen | 2,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1901/02AH 1319 | Basmudur Baskitabeti | Yemen | 2,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1902/03AH 1320 | Basmudur Baskitabeti | Yemen | 2,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1903/04AH 1321 | Başkitabet | Edirne | 600 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1904/05AH 1322 | Müfettiş Muavini | Edirne | 1,200 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1905/06AH 1323 | Müfettiş Muavini | Edirne | 1,200 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1906/07AH 1324 | Müfettiş | Edirne | 1,500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1907/08AH 1325 | Müfettiş | Thessaloniki (Selanik) | 2,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1908/09AH 1326 | Başmüdür | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 3,000 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
| 1909/10AH 1327 | Basmudur Vekili | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 4,896 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 89_111; 219 |
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 | Mehmet Asaf Efendi | Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Birth year (AH) | 1290 | 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 |
| 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 | Darussafaka | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Years of schooling | 12 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Telegraph school (recorded code) | 1 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Years of apprenticeship (mülazemet) | 0 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First work | ||
| First work: year (AH) | 1311 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First work: Gregorian year as stored | 1893 | Recovered annual personnel extract |
| First work: place | istanbul | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First salary field (kuruş a month) | 400 | 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.
- 13 annual entries of 17 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 Asaf Efendi
- Office of the corresponding secretary (Mektubi Kalemi)
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- Darüşşafaka
- Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf)
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Basmudur Baskitabeti
- 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)