Official
Ahmet Tevfik Bey
Muslim (Müslüman). Born in Istanbul (Dersaadet) in 1861/62 (AH 1278). On record 1881 to 1907, 11 annual entries.
Archive reference 54_157; 311
Life#
Ahmet Tevfik Bey was born in Istanbul in 1861/62 (AH 1278) into the Muslim (Müslüman) community; the father was a colonel (miralay). Schooling took seven years, at a middle school (Rüşdiye Mektebi).
Work began in Bitola (Manastır) in 1874/75, at about 13, with eight unpaid years as a mülazım (apprentice) before a first salary of 380 kuruş. Fewer than 4 per cent of the 5,142 officials with a known apprenticeship worked unpaid for eight years or longer. Of the 5,128 officials whose age at first work is known, fewer than 6 per cent started at 13 or younger. The first annual entry, for 1881/82, places Ahmet Tevfik in Antalya as a communications official (Muhabere Memuru), where the entries run to 1883/84. For 1884 to 1887 the lists have no entry. Next came a return to Istanbul, the birthplace, from 1887 to 1889. The lists have no entry for 1889 to 1901. From 1901 to 1907 the annual entries place Ahmet Tevfik in Svilengrad (Cisr-i Mustafapaşa), with a rise to travelling postal official (Seyyar Memur).
The salary went from 380 kuruş a month in 1881/82 to 800 in 1904/05, the peak, as Seyyar Memur in Svilengrad, when four in five paid officials earned less. The last 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 1861/62 (AH 1278)
First work 1874/75 (AH 1291)
1887 to 1889 (AH 1305 to 1306)
No annual entry for 1884 to 1887 (AH 1302 to 1304) before it.
300 kuruş a month; entries in 2 years
Svilengrad (Cisr-i Mustafapaşa)
1901 to 1907 (AH 1319 to 1324)
No annual entry for 1889 to 1901 (AH 1307 to 1318) before it.
700 to 800 kuruş a month; entries in 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1881/82 | 380 | 500 | 400 | 20% |
| 1882/83 | 380 | 500 | 400 | 18% |
| 1883/84 | 380 | 500 | 400 | 18% |
| 1887/88 | 300 | 500 | 300 | 11% |
| 1888/89 | 300 | 500 | 375 | 12% |
| 1901/02 | 700 | 500 | 600 | 76% |
| 1902/03 | 700 | 500 | 600 | 75% |
| 1903/04 | 700 | 475 | 675 | 75% |
| 1904/05 | 800 | 450 | 600 | 80% |
| 1905/06 | 800 | 475 | 540 | 78% |
| 1906/07 | 800 | 450 | 500 | 78% |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1874/75AH 1291 | First work | Bitola (Manastır) | 380first-salary field |
| 1881 to 1884AH 1299 to 1301 | Muhabere Memuru | Antalya | 380 |
| No annual entry: 1884 to 1887 (AH 1302 to 1304) | |||
| 1887 to 1889AH 1305 to 1306 | Memur | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 300 |
| No annual entry: 1889 to 1901 (AH 1307 to 1318) | |||
| 1901 to 1907AH 1319 to 1324 | Seyyar Memur | Svilengrad (Cisr-i Mustafapaşa) | 700 to 800 |
Record#
Personal
- Born
- 1861/62 (AH 1278)
- Birthplace
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- Community
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Nationality as recorded
- Turkish
- Father's occupation
- Miralay
Education
- Rüşdiye
- Rüşdiye Mektebi (7 years)rüşdiye school (middle school)
- Unpaid years (mülazemet)
- 8 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
- Turkish
- Kitabetwriting
The glosses are cautious historical readings of the recorded words, not modern levels of proficiency.
First work
- Year
- 1874/75 (AH 1291)
- Place
- Bitola (Manastır)
- First salary field (kuruş a month)
- 380
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 24 officials with entries in Svilengrad (Cisr-i Mustafapaşa) in the same years, Ahmet Tevfik Bey had the 3rd highest salary.
- Mehmet Sadettin Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 500 kuruş
- Mahmut Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 300 kuruş
- Ahmet Bahaattin Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 1,500 kuruş
- Abdülaziz Efendi3 shared years; highest salary 900 kuruş
- Ahmet Sami Efendi3 shared years; highest salary 800 kuruş
All 68 officials with entries in Svilengrad (Cisr-i Mustafapaşa)
Same job title, same years
Of the 130 officials with the title Seyyar Memur in the same years, Ahmet Tevfik Bey had the 11th highest salary.
- Mehmet İzzet Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- Mehmet Nurettin Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- Salih Safi Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 800 kuruş
- Mehmet Mazhar Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 750 kuruş
- Necip Efendi6 shared years; highest salary 750 kuruş
Same school
Of the 3,206 officials with Rüşdiye Mektebi among their schools, 3,200 have a recorded salary; Ahmet Tevfik Bey had the 477th highest salary of them.
- Ahmed Hulusi Efendiborn 1861/62 (AH 1278); highest salary 800 kuruş
- Ahmet Hamdi Efendiborn 1861/62 (AH 1278); highest salary 500 kuruş
- Ahmet Hamdi Efendiborn 1861/62 (AH 1278); highest salary 285 kuruş
- Ahmet Refik Efendiborn 1861/62 (AH 1278); highest salary 400 kuruş
- Ahmet Refik Efendiborn 1861/62 (AH 1278); highest salary 500 kuruş
Same birthplace
Of the 1,999 officials born in Istanbul, 1,997 have a recorded salary; Ahmet Tevfik Bey had the 503rd highest salary of them.
- Ahmet Hamdi Efendiborn 1861/62 (AH 1278); highest salary 285 kuruş
- Ahmet Refik Efendiborn 1861/62 (AH 1278); highest salary 400 kuruş
- Ali Galip Efendiborn 1861/62 (AH 1278); highest salary 100 kuruş
- Arganyan Karekin Efendiborn 1861/62 (AH 1278); highest salary 850 kuruş
- İbrahim Vehbi Efendiborn 1861/62 (AH 1278); highest salary 1,480 kuruş
First annual entry in the same year
Of the 86 officials whose first annual entry is for 1881/82 (AH 1299), Ahmet Tevfik Bey had the 29th highest salary.
- Ahmed Hulusi Efendifirst entry in Aleppo (Halep); highest salary 800 kuruş
- Ahmet Hamdi Efendifirst entry in Erzurum; highest salary 500 kuruş
- Ahmet Hamdi Efendifirst entry in Bitola (Manastır); highest salary 285 kuruş
- İbrahim İlhami Efendifirst entry in Diyarbakır; highest salary 860 kuruş
- İbrahim Vehbi Efendifirst entry in Mount Athos (Aynaroz); highest salary 1,480 kuruş
Full record
Annual entries (11)
| Year | Title | Place | Kuruş a month | Institution | Source | Archive reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1881/82AH 1299 | Muhabere Memuru | Antalya | 380 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 54_157; 311 |
| 1882/83AH 1300 | Muhabere Memuru | Antalya | 380 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 54_157; 311 |
| 1883/84AH 1301 | Muhabere Memuru | Antalya | 380 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 54_157; 311 |
| 1887/88AH 1305 | Memur | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 300 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 54_157; 311 |
| 1888/89AH 1306 | Memur | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 300 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 54_157; 311 |
| 1901/02AH 1319 | Seyyar Memur | Svilengrad (Cisr-i Mustafapaşa) | 700 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 54_157; 311 |
| 1902/03AH 1320 | Seyyar Memur | Svilengrad (Cisr-i Mustafapaşa) | 700 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 54_157; 311 |
| 1903/04AH 1321 | Seyyar Memur | Svilengrad (Cisr-i Mustafapaşa) | 700 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 54_157; 311 |
| 1904/05AH 1322 | Seyyar Memur | Svilengrad (Cisr-i Mustafapaşa) | 800 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 54_157; 311 |
| 1905/06AH 1323 | Seyyar Memur | Svilengrad (Cisr-i Mustafapaşa) | 800 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 54_157; 311 |
| 1906/07AH 1324 | Seyyar Memur | Svilengrad (Cisr-i Mustafapaşa) | 800 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 54_157; 311 |
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 | Ahmet Tevfik Bey | Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| Birth year (AH) | 1278 | 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 |
| Father's occupation | miralay | 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 | 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) | 8 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First work | ||
| First work: year (AH) | 1291 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First work: Gregorian year as stored | 1874 | Recovered annual personnel extract |
| First work: place | Manastir | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First salary field (kuruş a month) | 380 | 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.
- 10 annual entries of 11 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
- Ahmet Tevfik Bey
- Travelling postal official (Seyyar Memur)
- Svilengrad (Cisr-i Mustafapaşa)
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- 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)