Official
Yahya Efendi
Muslim (Müslüman). Born in Damascus (Şam) in 1880/81 (AH 1298). On record 1899 to 1907, 8 annual entries.
Archive reference 114_160; 315
Life#
Yahya Efendi was born in Damascus (Şam) in 1880/81 (AH 1298), into the Muslim (Müslüman) community, and the father's occupation was "Mufettis Muavini". Schooling took nine years, at a preparatory secondary school (İdadi Mektebi); Yahya also wrote Arabic, French and Turkish.
Yahya began work in Damascus in 1896/97, at about 16, with three unpaid years as a mülazım (apprentice) before a first salary of 150 kuruş. The first annual entry, for 1899/1900, places Yahya in Damascus, the birthplace, as a letters official (Mekâtib Memuru), where the entries run to 1905/06, with a rise to communications official (Muhabere Memuru) in 1900/01. The last post was in Aydın in 1906/07.
The salary went from 150 kuruş a month in 1899/1900 to 400 in 1906/07, the peak, as Muhabere Memuru in Aydın, when 39 per cent of paid officials earned less. In all, eight years of salary come to 25,800 kuruş, 55 per cent of what an official on the median salary earned in those years. The final annual entry is for 1906/07.
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 1880/81 (AH 1298); First work 1896/97 (AH 1314); 1899 to 1906 (AH 1317 to 1323)
Mekâtib Memuru 1899/1900 (AH 1317); Muhabere Memuru 1900 to 1906 (AH 1318 to 1323)
150 to 300 kuruş a month; entries in 7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1899/1900 | 150 | 500 | 310.5 | 4% |
| 1900/01 | 250 | 500 | 400 | 13% |
| 1901/02 | 250 | 500 | 400 | 14% |
| 1902/03 | 250 | 500 | 380 | 15% |
| 1903/04 | 250 | 475 | 350 | 14% |
| 1904/05 | 300 | 450 | 350 | 23% |
| 1905/06 | 300 | 475 | 330 | 23% |
| 1906/07 | 400 | 450 | 300 | 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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1896/97AH 1314 | First work | Damascus (Şam) | 150first-salary field |
| 1899/1900AH 1317 | Mekâtib Memuru | Damascus (Şam) | 150 |
| 1900 to 1906AH 1318 to 1323 | Muhabere Memuru | Damascus (Şam) | 250 to 300 |
| 1906/07AH 1324 | Muhabere Memuru | Aydın | 400 |
Record#
Personal
- Born
- 1880/81 (AH 1298)
- Birthplace
- Damascus (Şam)
- Community
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Nationality as recorded
- Turkish
- Father's occupation
- Mufettis Muavini
Education
- Idadi
- İdadi Mektebi (9 years)idadi school (preparatory secondary school)
- Unpaid years (mülazemet)
- 3 years
- Preparation route (classification of the paper)
- Middle
- Qualification (diploma, certificate, training or nişan)
- No
The years count all schooling up to that school, as the record gives them.
Languages
- Arabic
- Kitabetwriting
- French
- Kitabetwriting
- Turkish
- Kitabetwriting
The glosses are cautious historical readings of the recorded words, not modern levels of proficiency.
First work
- Year
- 1896/97 (AH 1314)
- Place
- Damascus (Şam)
- First salary field (kuruş a month)
- 150
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 62 officials with entries in Damascus (Şam) in the same years, Yahya Efendi had the 43rd highest salary.
- Mahmut Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 440 kuruş
- Ebussuud Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 285 kuruş
- Ahmet Reşid Bey5 shared years; highest salary 1,200 kuruş
- Mehmet Sait Efendi5 shared years; highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- Mahmut Hilmi Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 3,000 kuruş
Same job title, same years
Of the 1,525 officials with the title Muhabere Memuru in the same years, Yahya Efendi had the 761st highest salary.
- Mehmet Hulusi Bey7 shared years; highest salary 2,600 kuruş
- Mustafa Fazıl Bey7 shared years; highest salary 1,700 kuruş
- Mehmet Sadullah Efendi7 shared years; highest salary 1,650 kuruş
- Mehmet Asım Efendi7 shared years; highest salary 1,550 kuruş
- Nikola Yunani Efendi7 shared years; highest salary 1,350 kuruş
Same school
Of the 136 officials with İdadi Mektebi among their schools, Yahya Efendi had the 42nd highest salary.
- Abdullah Avni Efendiborn 1880/81 (AH 1298); highest salary 250 kuruş
- Hayret Lütfi Efendiborn 1880/81 (AH 1298); highest salary 300 kuruş
- Mahmut Ragıp Efendiborn 1880/81 (AH 1298); highest salary 200 kuruş
- Süleyman Şefik Efendiborn 1880/81 (AH 1298); highest salary 100 kuruş
- Ziya Efendiborn 1880/81 (AH 1298); highest salary 200 kuruş
Same birthplace
Of the 59 officials born in Damascus (Şam), Yahya Efendi had the 31st highest salary.
- Abdullah Safi Efendiborn 1880/81 (AH 1298); highest salary 300 kuruş
- Mehmet Şerif Efendiborn 1879/80 (AH 1297); highest salary 300 kuruş
- Ahmet Tevfik Efendiborn 1881/82 (AH 1299); highest salary 350 kuruş
- Ebussuud Efendiborn 1881/82 (AH 1299); highest salary 285 kuruş
- MEHMET EFENDİborn 1881/82 (AH 1299); highest salary 400 kuruş
The page of Damascus (Şam), with the 59 officials born there
First annual entry in the same year
Of the 87 officials whose first annual entry is for 1899/1900 (AH 1317), Yahya Efendi had the 34th highest salary.
- Ahmet Şefik Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 220 kuruş
- Mehmet Celalettin Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 150 kuruş
- Yusuf İzzet Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 120 kuruş
- Ahmet Midhat Efendifirst entry in Adana; highest salary 500 kuruş
- Ahmet Muhtar Efendifirst entry in Tripoli (Trablusgarp); highest salary 1,000 kuruş
Full record
Annual entries (8)
| Year | Title | Place | Kuruş a month | Institution | Source | Archive reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1899/1900AH 1317 | Mekâtib Memuru | Damascus (Şam) | 150 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 114_160; 315 |
| 1900/01AH 1318 | Muhabere Memuru | Damascus (Şam) | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 114_160; 315 |
| 1901/02AH 1319 | Muhabere Memuru | Damascus (Şam) | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 114_160; 315 |
| 1902/03AH 1320 | Muhabere Memuru | Damascus (Şam) | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 114_160; 315 |
| 1903/04AH 1321 | Muhabere Memuru | Damascus (Şam) | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 114_160; 315 |
| 1904/05AH 1322 | Muhabere Memuru | Damascus (Şam) | 300 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 114_160; 315 |
| 1905/06AH 1323 | Muhabere Memuru | Damascus (Şam) | 300 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 114_160; 315 |
| 1906/07AH 1324 | Muhabere Memuru | Aydın | 400 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 114_160; 315 |
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 | Yahya Efendi | Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Birth year (AH) | 1298 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Birthplace | sam | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Province of birth | suriye | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Father's occupation | mufettis muavini | 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 | idadi Mektebi | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Years of schooling | 9 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Years of apprenticeship (mülazemet) | 3 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First work | ||
| First work: year (AH) | 1314 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First work: Gregorian year as stored | 1896 | Recovered annual personnel extract |
| First work: place | sam | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First salary field (kuruş a month) | 150 | 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.
- 7 annual entries of 8 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
- Yahya Efendi
- Communications official (Muhabere Memuru)
- Damascus (Şam)
- Idadi school (İdadi Mektebi)
- Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf)
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Letters official (Mekâtib Memuru)
- 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)