Official
Mehmet Kemal Efendi
Muslim (Müslüman). Born in Istanbul (Dersaadet) in 1861/62 (AH 1278). On record 1885 to 1902, 11 annual entries. Death recorded 1902/03.
Archive reference 0091_0164: 325
Life#
Born in Istanbul in 1861/62 (AH 1278), Mehmet Kemal Efendi came from the Muslim (Müslüman) community; the father was a chief telegraph director (telgraf başmüdürü). At about 16, in 1878, Mehmet Kemal began work in the telegraph service (Telgraf) in Trabzon, with eight unpaid years as a mülazım (apprentice) before a first salary of 300 kuruş. Of the 5,142 officials with a known apprenticeship, fewer than 4 per cent worked unpaid for eight years or longer. The annual lists begin in 1885/86, with Mehmet Kemal as a policeman (Polis) in Üsküdar. The lists have no entry for 1887 to 1892. The annual lists then follow Mehmet Kemal to Mosul (Musul), Baghdad (Bağdat) and Erzincan from 1892 to 1901, with a rise to communications official (Muhabere Memuru) in 1892/93. The last post was in Kayseri in 1901/02.
The salary went from 300 kuruş a month in 1885/86 to 500 in 1898/99, the peak, as Muhabere Memuru in Erzincan, when 48 per cent of paid officials earned less. After the last annual entry, for 1901/02, the list of 1902/03 (AH 1320) 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 1861/62 (AH 1278)
1892/93 (AH 1310)
No annual entry for 1887 to 1892 (AH 1305 to 1309) before it.
380 kuruş a month; entries in 1 year
1898 to 1901 (AH 1316 to 1318)
No annual entry for 1897/98 (AH 1315) before it.
500 kuruş a month; entries in 3 years
Death recorded in the annual list of 1902/03 (AH 1320): 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, and the median of the same province for the years in which at least 5 officials were paid in the province of the official's salary that year.
The numbers of the chart
| Year | Salary | Median, all officials | Median, same title | Median, same province | Paid less |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1885/86 | 300 | 500 | 300 | 500 | 12% |
| 1886/87 | 300 | 500 | 300 | 500 | 11% |
| 1892/93 | 380 | 500 | 400 | 400 | 24% |
| 1893/94 | 380 | 500 | 400 | 500 | 25% |
| 1894/95 | 380 | 500 | 400 | 500 | 26% |
| 1895/96 | 380 | 500 | 400 | 535 | 26% |
| 1896/97 | 380 | 500 | 400 | 500 | 28% |
| 1898/99 | 500 | 500 | 400 | 450 | 48% |
| 1899/1900 | 500 | 500 | 400 | 450 | 47% |
| 1900/01 | 500 | 500 | 400 | 450 | 47% |
| 1901/02 | 500 | 500 | 400 | 400 | 49% |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1878AH 1295 | Telgraffirst work | Trabzon | 300first-salary field |
| 1885 to 1887AH 1303 to 1304 | Polis | Üsküdar | 300 |
| No annual entry: 1887 to 1892 (AH 1305 to 1309) | |||
| 1892/93AH 1310 | Muhabere Memuru | Mosul (Musul) | 380 |
| 1893 to 1897AH 1311 to 1314 | Muhabere Memuru | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 380 |
| No annual entry: 1897/98 (AH 1315) | |||
| 1898 to 1901AH 1316 to 1318 | Muhabere Memuru | Erzincan | 500 |
| 1901/02AH 1319 | Muhabere Memuru | Kayseri | 500 |
| 1902/03AH 1320 | Death recorded | ||
Record#
Personal
- Born
- 1861/62 (AH 1278)
- Birthplace
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- Community
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Nationality as recorded
- Turkish
- Father's occupation
- Telgraf Basmuduru
- Death recorded
- 1902/03 (AH 1320)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: Valide
- 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
- 1878 (AH 1295)
- Place
- Trabzon
- First job as worded
- Telgraf
- Age at first work (workbook field)
- 17
- First salary field (kuruş a month)
- 300
- First-job salary of the original workbook (kuruş a month)
- 300
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 post (job title and place), same years
Of the 17 officials who held Muhabere Memuru in Baghdad (Bağdat) in the same years, Mehmet Kemal Efendi had the 13th highest salary.
- Abdülmuttalip Muhlis Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 700 kuruş
- Unnamed official (0087_0089, sayfa no:175.)4 shared years; highest salary 700 kuruş
- Mehmet Salih Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 655 kuruş
- Mehmed Emin Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 630 kuruş
- Setran Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 600 kuruş
Same place, same years
Of the 42 officials with entries in Baghdad (Bağdat) in the same years, Mehmet Kemal Efendi had the 34th highest salary.
- Bekir Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 2,700 kuruş
- Nikola Colini Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 2,700 kuruş
- Ömer Fevzi Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 2,000 kuruş
- Süleyman Doryan Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 1,650 kuruş
- Abdülbaki Efendi4 shared years; highest salary 1,000 kuruş
Same job title, same years
Of the 1,651 officials with the title Muhabere Memuru in the same years, Mehmet Kemal Efendi had the 810th highest salary.
- Mehmet Arif Efendi9 shared years; highest salary 3,600 kuruş
- Mehmet Hulusi Bey9 shared years; highest salary 2,600 kuruş
- Mustafa Fazıl Bey9 shared years; highest salary 1,700 kuruş
- Mehmet Sadullah Efendi9 shared years; highest salary 1,650 kuruş
- Mehmet Asım Efendi9 shared years; highest salary 1,550 kuruş
Same school
Of the 3,206 officials with Rüşdiye Mektebi among their schools, 3,200 have a recorded salary; Mehmet Kemal Efendi had the 1,253rd 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; Mehmet Kemal Efendi had the 986th 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
- Ahmet Tevfik Beyborn 1861/62 (AH 1278); highest salary 800 kuruş
- Ali Galip Efendiborn 1861/62 (AH 1278); highest salary 100 kuruş
- Arganyan Karekin Efendiborn 1861/62 (AH 1278); highest salary 850 kuruş
First annual entry in the same year
Of the 93 officials whose first annual entry is for 1885/86 (AH 1303), Mehmet Kemal Efendi had the 57th highest salary.
- Fethi Zağbi Efendifirst entry in Mosul (Musul); highest salary 760 kuruş
- Mehmet Niyazi Efendifirst entry in Neapoli (Nasliç); highest salary 1,650 kuruş
- Yosef Efendifirst entry in Baghdad (Bağdat); highest salary 600 kuruş
- Yusuf Efendifirst entry in Beirut (Beyrut); highest salary 640 kuruş
- İbrahim Neşet Beyfirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 240 kuruş
All 93 officials whose first annual entry is for 1885/86 (AH 1303)
Full record
Annual entries (11)
| Year | Title | Place | Kuruş a month | Institution | Source | Archive reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1885/86AH 1303 | Polis | Üsküdar | 300 | Police (Polis) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 0091_0164: 325 |
| 1886/87AH 1304 | Polis | Üsküdar | 300 | Police (Polis) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 0091_0164: 325 |
| 1892/93AH 1310 | Muhabere Memuru | Mosul (Musul) | 380 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0091_0164: 325 |
| 1893/94AH 1311 | Muhabere Memuru | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 380 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0091_0164: 325 |
| 1894/95AH 1312 | Muhabere Memuru | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 380 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0091_0164: 325 |
| 1895/96AH 1313 | Muhabere Memuru | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 380 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0091_0164: 325 |
| 1896/97AH 1314 | Muhabere Memuru | Baghdad (Bağdat) | 380 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0091_0164: 325 |
| 1898/99AH 1316 | Muhabere Memuru | Erzincan | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0091_0164: 325 |
| 1899/1900AH 1317 | Muhabere Memuru | Erzincan | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0091_0164: 325 |
| 1900/01AH 1318 | Muhabere Memuru | Erzincan | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0091_0164: 325 |
| 1901/02AH 1319 | Muhabere Memuru | Kayseri | 500 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0091_0164: 325 |
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 | Mehmet Kemal Efendi | Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Linked personnel workbook |
| Birth year (AH) | 1278 | 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 | telgraf basmuduru | 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 | Valide | 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) | 8 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work | ||
| First work: year (AH) | 1295 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Linked personnel workbook |
| First work: Gregorian year as stored | 1878 | Recovered annual personnel extract |
| First work: place | Trabzon | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: district (kaza) | Trabzon | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: sancak | Trabzon | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: province (vilayet) | Trabzon | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First job as worded | Telgraf | Linked personnel workbook; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Age at first work (workbook field) | 17 | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First salary field (kuruş a month) | 300 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First-job salary of the original workbook (kuruş a month) | 300 | Linked personnel workbook; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Status | ||
| Death recorded under the year (AH) | 1320 | 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.
- 9 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
- Mehmet Kemal Efendi
- Communications official (Muhabere Memuru)
- Baghdad (Bağdat)
- 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)