Official
Suleyman Asaf Bey
Muslim (Müslüman). Born in Istanbul (Dersaadet) in 1871/72 (AH 1288). On record 1886 to 1902, 16 annual entries.
Archive reference 0049_0044; 85
Life#
Suleyman Asaf Bey was born in Istanbul in 1871/72 (AH 1288) into the Muslim (Müslüman) community; the father was an army major (binbaşı). Schooling took seven years, at a middle school (Rüşdiye Mektebi); Suleyman Asaf also wrote Turkish and had some knowledge of French.
Suleyman Asaf began work in Istanbul in 1884/85, at about 14, with two unpaid years as a mülazım (apprentice) before a first salary of 70 kuruş. From 1886/87 to 1901/02 every annual entry places Suleyman Asaf in Istanbul, the birthplace, with five changes of title, from Adliye Memuru to Musevvit Kalemi in 1894/95.
The salary went from 70 kuruş a month in 1886/87 to 420 in 1901/02, the peak, in the Musevvit Kalemi in Istanbul, when 44 per cent of paid officials earned less. In all, 16 years of salary come to 50,040 kuruş, 52 per cent of what an official on the median salary earned in those years. The last annual entry is for 1901/02.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1886/87 | 70 | 500 | 500 | 0% | |
| 1887/88 | 200 | 500 | 620 | 500 | 4% |
| 1888/89 | 200 | 500 | 600 | 500 | 5% |
| 1889/90 | 250 | 500 | 300 | 500 | 10% |
| 1890/91 | 250 | 500 | 285 | 500 | 10% |
| 1891/92 | 250 | 500 | 200 | 500 | 12% |
| 1892/93 | 250 | 500 | 1,175 | 500 | 13% |
| 1893/94 | 250 | 500 | 1,100 | 480 | 13% |
| 1894/95 | 250 | 500 | 550 | 450 | 13% |
| 1895/96 | 270 | 500 | 550 | 440 | 16% |
| 1896/97 | 270 | 500 | 495 | 425 | 17% |
| 1897/98 | 270 | 500 | 495 | 425 | 17% |
| 1898/99 | 270 | 500 | 550 | 440 | 17% |
| 1899/1900 | 350 | 500 | 600 | 450 | 26% |
| 1900/01 | 350 | 500 | 550 | 450 | 25% |
| 1901/02 | 420 | 500 | 592.5 | 440 | 44% |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1884/85AH 1302 | Adliye Nezaretifirst work | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 70first-salary field |
| 1886/87AH 1304 | Adliye Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 70 |
| 1887 to 1889AH 1305 to 1306 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 200 |
| 1889 to 1891AH 1307 to 1308 | Memur | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 250 |
| 1891/92AH 1309 | Muhasebe Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 250 |
| 1892 to 1894AH 1310 to 1311 | Mümeyyiz | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 250 |
| 1894 to 1902AH 1312 to 1319 | Musevvit Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 250 to 420 |
Record#
Personal
- Born
- 1871/72 (AH 1288)
- Birthplace
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- Community
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Nationality as recorded
- Turkish
- Father's occupation
- Binbasi
Education
- Rüşdiye
- Rüşdiye Mektebi (7 years)rüşdiye school (middle school); place of the school as worded: Gulhane
- Unpaid years (mülazemet)
- 2 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
- French
- Asinafamiliarity
- Turkish
- Kitabetwriting
The glosses are cautious historical readings of the recorded words, not modern levels of proficiency.
First work
- Year
- 1884/85 (AH 1302)
- Place
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- First job as worded
- Adliye Nezareti
- Age at first work (workbook field)
- 14
- First salary field (kuruş a month)
- 70
- First-job salary of the original workbook (kuruş a month)
- 70
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 7 officials who held Musevvit Kalemi in Istanbul in the same years, Suleyman Asaf Bey had the lowest salary.
- Hüseyin Rasim Bey8 shared years; highest salary 950 kuruş
- Mehmet Ziyaettin Efendi8 shared years; highest salary 675 kuruş
- Osman Faiz Efendi8 shared years; highest salary 650 kuruş
- Mehmet Tevfik Efendi8 shared years; highest salary 550 kuruş
- Ali Bey6 shared years; highest salary 1,400 kuruş
Same place, same years
Of the 1,103 officials with entries in Istanbul in the same years, Suleyman Asaf Bey had the 767th highest salary.
- Salahattin Bey16 shared years; highest salary 7,800 kuruş
- Suleyman Resat Bey16 shared years; highest salary 7,000 kuruş
- Mehmet Hayri Bey16 shared years; highest salary 5,500 kuruş
- Fahri Efendi16 shared years; highest salary 5,000 kuruş
- Melkok Efendi16 shared years; highest salary 5,000 kuruş
Same job title, same years
Of the 8 officials with the title Musevvit Kalemi in the same years, Suleyman Asaf Bey had the lowest salary.
- Hüseyin Rasim Bey8 shared years; highest salary 950 kuruş
- Mehmet Ziyaettin Efendi8 shared years; highest salary 675 kuruş
- Osman Faiz Efendi8 shared years; highest salary 650 kuruş
- Mehmet Tevfik Efendi8 shared years; highest salary 550 kuruş
- Ali Bey6 shared years; highest salary 1,400 kuruş
Same school
Of the 3,206 officials with Rüşdiye Mektebi among their schools, 3,200 have a recorded salary; Suleyman Asaf Bey had the 1,718th highest salary of them.
- Abdi Zühtü Efendiborn 1871/72 (AH 1288); highest salary 1,000 kuruş
- Abdullah Avni Efendiborn 1871/72 (AH 1288); highest salary 380 kuruş
- Ahmet Cevdet Efendiborn 1871/72 (AH 1288); highest salary 900 kuruş
- Ahmet Hamdi Efendiborn 1871/72 (AH 1288); highest salary 210 kuruş
- Ahmet Hamdi Efendiborn 1871/72 (AH 1288); highest salary 300 kuruş
Same birthplace
Of the 1,999 officials born in Istanbul, 1,997 have a recorded salary; Suleyman Asaf Bey had the 1,188th highest salary of them.
- Ahmet Bahaattin Efendiborn 1871/72 (AH 1288); highest salary 1,500 kuruş
- Ahmet Cevdet Efendiborn 1871/72 (AH 1288); highest salary 900 kuruş
- Ahmet Hamdi Efendiborn 1871/72 (AH 1288); highest salary 210 kuruş
- Ahmet Hamdi Efendiborn 1871/72 (AH 1288); highest salary 300 kuruş
- Ahmet Hulusi Efendiborn 1871/72 (AH 1288); highest salary 700 kuruş
First annual entry in the same year
Of the 53 officials whose first annual entry is for 1886/87 (AH 1304), Suleyman Asaf Bey had the 41st highest salary.
- Macit Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 800 kuruş
- Mehmet Emin Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 3,500 kuruş
- Dikran Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 4,500 kuruş
- Hüseyin Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 2,500 kuruş
- İbrahim Halil Efendifirst entry in Istanbul; highest salary 300 kuruş
Full record
Annual entries (16)
| Year | Title | Place | Kuruş a month | Institution | Source | Archive reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1886/87AH 1304 | Adliye Memuru | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 70 | Justice (Adliye) | Cross-ministry personnel workbook | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1887/88AH 1305 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 200 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1888/89AH 1306 | Tahrirat Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 200 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1889/90AH 1307 | Memur | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1890/91AH 1308 | Memur | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1891/92AH 1309 | Muhasebe Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1892/93AH 1310 | Mümeyyiz | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1893/94AH 1311 | Mümeyyiz | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1894/95AH 1312 | Musevvit Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 250 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1895/96AH 1313 | Musevvit Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 270 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1896/97AH 1314 | Musevvit Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 270 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1897/98AH 1315 | Musevvit Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 270 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1898/99AH 1316 | Musevvit Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 270 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1899/1900AH 1317 | Musevvit Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 350 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1900/01AH 1318 | Musevvit Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 350 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
| 1901/02AH 1319 | Musevvit Kalemi | Istanbul (Dersaadet) | 420 | Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf) | Recovered annual personnel extract | 0049_0044; 85 |
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 (25)
| Field | Recorded value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | ||
| Name | Suleyman Asaf Bey | Linked personnel workbook |
| Birth year (AH) | 1288 | 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 | Binbasi | 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 | Gulhane | 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) | 2 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work | ||
| First work: year (AH) | 1302 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Linked personnel workbook |
| First work: Gregorian year as stored | 1885 | Recovered annual personnel extract |
| First work: place | istanbul | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: district (kaza) | istanbul | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: sancak | istanbul | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First work: province (vilayet) | istanbul | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First job as worded | Adliye Nezareti | Linked personnel workbook; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| Age at first work (workbook field) | 14 | Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
| First salary field (kuruş a month) | 70 | Recovered annual personnel extract; Personnel attributes extract; Earlier annual personnel extract |
| First-job salary of the original workbook (kuruş a month) | 70 | Linked personnel workbook; Cross-ministry personnel workbook |
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.
- 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.
- 15 annual entries of 16 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
- Suleyman Asaf Bey
- Musevvit Kalemi
- Istanbul (Dersaadet)
- Rüşdiye school (Rüşdiye Mektebi)
- Post and Telegraph (Posta ve Telgraf)
- Muslim (Müslüman)
- Correspondence office (Tahrirat Kalemi)
- 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)