Official
Mehmet Salih Efendi
Muslim (Müslüman). Born in Ohrid (Ohri) in 1849/50 (AH 1266). On record 1879 to 1906, 26 annual entries.
Archive reference 5_93; 183
Life#
Mehmet Salih Efendi was born in Ohrid (Ohri) in 1849/50 (AH 1266), into the Muslim (Müslüman) community, Albanian (Arnavut) by nationality. Schooling took seven years, at a middle school (Rüşdiye Mektebi). In all Mehmet Salih knew five languages, Turkish in writing, Bulgarian in speech and Arabic, Greek (Rum) and Persian a little; fewer than 2 per cent of the 5,211 officials knew as many.
At about 30, in 1879/80, Mehmet Salih began work in Istanbul, paid from the start, on 100 kuruş a month. Few began so late; fewer than 4 per cent of the 5,128 officials whose age at first work is known started at 30 or older. Every annual entry from 1879/80 to 1905/06 places Mehmet Salih in Istanbul, with four changes of title, from registered mail official (Taahhüt Memuru) to Muayene Memuru in 1901/02.
Pay rose from 100 kuruş a month in 1879/80 to a peak of 650 in 1903/04, as Muayene Memuru in Istanbul, when 73 per cent of paid officials earned less. Over 26 years the salaries add up to 149,220 kuruş, about what an official on the median salary earned. The last annual entry is for 1905/06. An entry in "II. Abdülhamid döneminde sicill-i ahvâl kayıtlarına göre Osmanlı Devleti'nde Ohri ..." by ÖMER ÖĞÜT (2026) probably refers to Mehmet Salih, since the name and the birthplace agree.
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 1849/50 (AH 1266)
First work 1879/80 (AH 1297); 1879 to 1906 (AH 1297 to 1323)
Taahhüt Memuru 1879 to 1881 (AH 1297 to 1298); Tefrik Odası 1881 to 1884 (AH 1299 to 1301); Emanet Kitabeti 1885 to 1892 (AH 1303 to 1309); Tahrirat Kalemi Musevvitligi 1892 to 1901 (AH 1310 to 1318); Muayene Memuru 1901 to 1906 (AH 1319 to 1323)
100 to 650 kuruş a month; entries in 26 years
No annual entry for 1884/85 (AH 1302).
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1879/80 | 100 | 500 | 2% | |
| 1880/81 | 200 | 500 | 5% | |
| 1881/82 | 300 | 500 | 320 | 13% |
| 1882/83 | 300 | 500 | 310 | 11% |
| 1883/84 | 300 | 500 | 310 | 12% |
| 1885/86 | 400 | 500 | 27% | |
| 1886/87 | 400 | 500 | 27% | |
| 1887/88 | 400 | 500 | 27% | |
| 1888/89 | 500 | 500 | 500 | 41% |
| 1889/90 | 500 | 500 | 500 | 42% |
| 1890/91 | 500 | 500 | 500 | 43% |
| 1891/92 | 500 | 500 | 500 | 43% |
| 1892/93 | 550 | 500 | 57% | |
| 1893/94 | 550 | 500 | 58% | |
| 1894/95 | 550 | 500 | 58% | |
| 1895/96 | 550 | 500 | 58% | |
| 1896/97 | 495 | 500 | 48% | |
| 1897/98 | 495 | 500 | 48% | |
| 1898/99 | 495 | 500 | 48% | |
| 1899/1900 | 600 | 500 | 70% | |
| 1900/01 | 600 | 500 | 67% | |
| 1901/02 | 600 | 500 | 67% | |
| 1902/03 | 600 | 500 | 67% | |
| 1903/04 | 650 | 475 | 73% | |
| 1904/05 | 650 | 450 | 73% | |
| 1905/06 | 650 | 475 | 71% |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1879/80AH 1297 | First work | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 100first-salary field |
| 1879 to 1881AH 1297 to 1298 | Taahhüt Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 100 to 200 |
| 1881 to 1884AH 1299 to 1301 | Tefrik Odası | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 300 |
| No annual entry: 1884/85 (AH 1302) | |||
| 1885 to 1892AH 1303 to 1309 | Emanet Kitabeti | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 400 to 500 |
| 1892 to 1901AH 1310 to 1318 | Tahrirat Kalemi Musevvitligi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 550 to 600 |
| 1901 to 1906AH 1319 to 1323 | Muayene Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 600 to 650 |
Record#
Personal
- Born
- 1849/50 (AH 1266)
- Birthplace
- Ohrid (Ohri)
- Community
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Nationality as recorded
- Arnavut
Education
- Rüşdiye
- Rüşdiye Mektebi (7 years)rüşdiye school (middle school)
- Unpaid years (mülazemet)
- 0 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
- Arabic
- asinafamiliarity
- Bulgarian
- Tekellumspeaking
- Persian
- asinafamiliarity
- Greek (Rum)
- asinafamiliarity. 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
- 1879/80 (AH 1297)
- Place
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- First salary field (kuruş a month)
- 100
Legal records
- Legal record note as worded
- Görevi İhmal/ Mektup ziya'ından dolayı azledilmiştir.; Görev İhmali
- Years (AH) with a criminal-record mark in the annual records
- 1297; 1298; 1299; 1300; 1301; 1303; 1304; 1305; 1306; 1307; 1308; 1309; 1311; 1312; 1313; 1314; 1315; 1316; 1317; 1318; 1319; 1320; 1321; 1322; 1323
Named in scholarly works#
No link between a work and an official has been accepted. Each entry was found by fixed rules on the name and the recorded fields, and says what it rests on.
II. Abdülhamid döneminde sicill-i ahvâl kayıtlarına göre Osmanlı Devleti'nde Ohri doğumlu memurlar (ÖMER ÖĞÜT, 2026). Name as printed: MEHMED SALĠH EFENDĠ. PDF pages 121 and 122.
Probable link: same name and birthplace
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 1,387 officials with entries in Istanbul in the same years, Mehmet Salih Efendi had the 636th highest salary.
- Salahattin Bey26 shared years; highest salary 7,800 kuruş
- Suleyman Resat Bey26 shared years; highest salary 7,000 kuruş
- Mehmet Hayri Bey26 shared years; highest salary 5,500 kuruş
- Melkok Efendi26 shared years; highest salary 5,000 kuruş
- Mehmet Salim Bey26 shared years; highest salary 3,000 kuruş
Same job title, same years
Of the 8 officials with the title Emanet Kitabeti in the same years, Mehmet Salih Efendi had the lowest salary.
- Mehmet Raşit Efendi7 shared years; highest salary 725 kuruş
- Mustafa Raif Efendi7 shared years; highest salary 700 kuruş
- Mehmed Şecaüddin Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 700 kuruş
- Mehmet İzzet Efendi3 shared years; highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- Ali Rıza Efendi2 shared years; highest salary 1,435 kuruş
Same school
Of the 3,206 officials with Rüşdiye Mektebi among their schools, 3,200 have a recorded salary; Mehmet Salih Efendi had the 810th highest salary of them.
- Abdulvahab Efendiborn 1849/50 (AH 1266); highest salary 500 kuruş
- Ahmet Cemal Efendiborn 1849/50 (AH 1266); highest salary 760 kuruş
- Ahmet Halit Efendiborn 1849/50 (AH 1266); highest salary 720 kuruş
- Ahmet Latif Efendiborn 1849/50 (AH 1266); highest salary 800 kuruş
- Ahmet Recai Efendiborn 1849/50 (AH 1266); highest salary 500 kuruş
Same birthplace
Of the 6 officials born in Ohrid (Ohri), Mehmet Salih Efendi had the 3rd highest salary.
- Ahmet Kemal Beyborn 1847/48 (AH 1264); highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- Selim Sabit Efendiborn 1863/64 (AH 1280); highest salary 285 kuruş
- Hasan Vasıf Efendiborn 1868/69 (AH 1285); highest salary 250 kuruş
- Ahmet Hamdi Efendiborn 1870/71 (AH 1287); highest salary 800 kuruş
- İBRAHİM HAKKI EFENDİborn 1880/81 (AH 1298); highest salary 350 kuruş
First annual entry in the same year
Of the 60 officials whose first annual entry is for 1879/80 (AH 1297), Mehmet Salih Efendi had the 25th highest salary.
- Salih Necmi Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 640 kuruş
- Huseyin Husnu Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 650 kuruş
- Rıfat Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 500 kuruş
- Hasib Sami Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 700 kuruş
- Yusuf Cemal Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 1,500 kuruş
Full record
Annual entries (26)
| Year | Title | Place | Kuruş a month | Institution | Source | Archive reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1879/80AH 1297 | Taahhüt Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 100 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1880/81AH 1298 | Taahhüt Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 200 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1881/82AH 1299 | Tefrik Odası | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 300 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1882/83AH 1300 | Tefrik Odası | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 300 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1883/84AH 1301 | Tefrik Odası | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 300 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1885/86AH 1303 | Emanet Kitabeti | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 400 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1886/87AH 1304 | Emanet Kitabeti | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 400 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1887/88AH 1305 | Emanet Kitabeti | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 400 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1888/89AH 1306 | Emanet Kitabeti | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1889/90AH 1307 | Emanet Kitabeti | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1890/91AH 1308 | Emanet Kitabeti | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1891/92AH 1309 | Emanet Kitabeti | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1892/93AH 1310 | Tahrirat Kalemi Musevvitligi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 550 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1893/94AH 1311 | Tahrirat Kalemi Musevvitligi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 550 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1894/95AH 1312 | Tahrirat Kalemi Musevvitligi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 550 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1895/96AH 1313 | Tahrirat Kalemi Musevvitligi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 550 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1896/97AH 1314 | Tahrirat Kalemi Musevvitligi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 495 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1897/98AH 1315 | Tahrirat Kalemi Musevvitligi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 495 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1898/99AH 1316 | Tahrirat Kalemi Musevvitligi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 495 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1899/1900AH 1317 | Tahrirat Kalemi Musevvitligi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 600 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1900/01AH 1318 | Tahrirat Kalemi Musevvitligi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 600 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1901/02AH 1319 | Muayene Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 600 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1902/03AH 1320 | Muayene Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 600 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1903/04AH 1321 | Muayene Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 650 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1904/05AH 1322 | Muayene Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 650 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
| 1905/06AH 1323 | Muayene Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 650 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 5_93; 183 |
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 (16)
| Field | Recorded value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | ||
| Name | Mehmet Salih Efendi | Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Birth year (AH) | 1266 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Birthplace | ohri | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Province of birth | manastir | 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 | Arnavut | 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) | 0 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First work | ||
| First work: year (AH) | 1297 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First work: Gregorian year as stored | 1880 | 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) | 100 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Legal records | ||
| Legal record note as worded | Görevi İhmal/ Mektup ziya'ından dolayı azledilmiştir. used on this page | Legal notes (earlier workbook copy); Legal notes (later workbook copy) |
| Legal record note as worded | Görev İhmali other value | Legal notes (earlier workbook copy); Legal notes (later workbook copy) |
| Years (AH) with a criminal-record mark in the annual records | 1297; 1298; 1299; 1300; 1301; 1303; 1304; 1305; 1306; 1307; 1308; 1309; 1311; 1312; 1313; 1314; 1315; 1316; 1317; 1318; 1319; 1320; 1321; 1322; 1323 | Later annual personnel extract |
What the sources named in this table are
- Legal notes (earlier workbook copy)
- A workbook of notes on legal records. The wording is kept as written. It may hold an accusation or an acquittal, it is not the finding of a court, and its year is the year of the record, not the date of an event.
- Legal notes (later workbook copy)
- A later copy of the workbook of notes on legal records. The same wording in both copies is one note, not two.
- Later annual personnel extract
- The detailed annual personnel file of October 2025. It marks single annual entries with a criminal-record flag and holds status words such as Vefat. For a death, the year is the year of the annual list in which the status word stands.
- 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.
- The sources give more than one value for a marked field. Every value is listed.
- Origin of the record: Post and Telegraph personnel records.
- 26 annual entries of 26 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 Salih Efendi
- Tahrirat Kalemi Musevvitligi
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- Ohrid (Ohri)
- 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)