The Taşköprü family is a

Turkish Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The w ...

family that rose to prominence in the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

for the important scholars, judges and artists it produced. Many important historians and teachers were born in this family. They were a center of ''

ulama In Islam, the ''ulama'' ( ; also spelled ''ulema''; ; singular ; feminine singular , plural ) are scholars of Islamic doctrine and law. They are considered the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious knowledge in Islam. "Ulama ...

'', training other prominent scholars. Among the best known members of the family is Taşköprülüzade İsameddin Ahmed bin Mustafa, better known as

Taşköprüzade Taşköprüzade or Taşköprülüzade Ahmet (), pseudonym of Aḥmad ibn Muṣṭafá ibn Khalīl Ṭāshkubrīʹzādah (; Bursa, 3 December 1495 – Istanbul, 16 April 1561), was an Ottoman Turkish historian and chronicler living during the reig ...

, famous for his great biographic

encyclopedia An encyclopedia is a reference work or compendium providing summaries of knowledge, either general or special, in a particular field or discipline. Encyclopedias are divided into article (publishing), articles or entries that are arranged Alp ...

. Taşköprüzade's father, Muslih al-Din Mustafa, was a noted scholar, the teacher of the Ottoman Sultan

Selim I Selim I (; ; 10 October 1470 – 22 September 1520), known as Selim the Grim or Selim the Resolute (), was the List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire, sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1512 to 1520. Despite lasting only eight years, his reign is ...

. Muslih al-Din Mustafa was the director of a

medrese Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , ), sometimes Romanization of Arabic, romanized as madrasah or madrassa, is the Arabic word for any Educational institution, type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whet ...

in Taşköprü, from which fact his son's name was derived. Ahmet (Taşköprüzade) was trained by his father, and later completed his edcutation in Istanbul. While several members of them family became judges, they are said to have preferred to act as ''

müderris Müderris is a term that described the religious scholar, professor or faculty member in Seljuk Anatolia and the Ottoman Empire.Cambridge University Press, History of Turkey Vol. 3, The Later Ottoman Empire 1603-1839 (2006), s.216 In Arabic, the ...

''. They also made significant contributions in the fields of poetry, literature and calligraphy.

History

The family originates from Taşköprü,

Kastamonu Kastamonu, formerly Kastamone/Castamone () and Kastamon/Castamon (), is a city in northern Turkey. It is the seat of Kastamonu Province and Kastamonu District.

. According to

, a member of the family, they trace their origin to

Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...

. They were forced to migrate due to Genghis Khan's westward campaigns. They passed Afghanistan and Iran, and settled in Taşköprü. The first famous member of the family is Hayreddin Halil Efendi b. Kāsım b. Hacı Safâ'dır (died in 1474–75). He was first educated in Kastamonu, then completed his education in

Bursa Bursa () is a city in northwestern Turkey and the administrative center of Bursa Province. The fourth-most populous city in Turkey and second-most populous in the Marmara Region, Bursa is one of the industrial centers of the country. Most of ...

and

Edirne Edirne (; ), historically known as Orestias, Adrianople, is a city in Turkey, in the northwestern part of the Edirne Province, province of Edirne in Eastern Thrace. Situated from the Greek and from the Bulgarian borders, Edirne was the second c ...

. Hayreddin then returned to his native Taşköprü, where he became a professor. He was professor at the Muzafferiye Madrasa. Sultan

Mehmed Mehmed or Mehmet is the most common Turkish form of the Arabic male name Muhammad () (''Muhammed'' and ''Muhammet'' are also used, though considerably less) and gains its significance from being the name of Muhammad, the prophet of Islam. Origina ...

invited him to the madrasa he had founded, the Sahn Madrasa. However, Hayreddin didn't leave his native Taşköprü. He married the sister of Muhyiddin Mehmed Efendi, a scholar from

Niksar Niksar, historically known as Neocaesarea (Νεοκαισάρεια), is a city in Tokat Province, Turkey. It is the seat of Niksar District. Both of them were part of the ''

ilmiye The İlmiye is one of four institutions that existed within the state organisation of the Ottoman Empire, the other three being the Imperial (''mülkiye'') institution; the military (''seyfiye'') institution; and the administrative (''kalemiye'') i ...

''. Kıvâmüddin, born in 1462–63, received a good education and worked with the likes of Molla Lutfî and his well-known nephew. He worked as a professor in several madrasahs. He was also a calligrapher, and trained with

Sheikh Hamdullah Sheikh Hamdullah (1436–1520) (), born in Amasya, Ottoman Empire, was a master of Islamic calligraphy. Life and work Sheikh Hamdullah was born in Amasya, a north-central town in Anatolia. His father, Mustafa Dede, was a Sheik of the Suhrawardi ...

. He copied several works for Sultan Bayezid, and left a treatise He died in 1513, while a professor at İnegöl İshak Pasha Madrasa. Kıvâmüddin's son Sheikh Mehmed Efendi rose to the position of sahn. Kıvâmüddin's other son, İbrahim Efendi, was a professor and a judge, and worked as a judge in

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

and

Rumelia Rumelia (; ; ) was a historical region in Southeastern Europe that was administered by the Ottoman Empire, roughly corresponding to the Balkans. In its wider sense, it was used to refer to all Ottoman possessions and Vassal state, vassals in E ...

. He died in

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

in 1657 and was buried in

Jannat al-Mu'alla Jannat al-Mu'alla (), also known as the "Cemetery of Ma'la" ( ') and ''Al-Ḥajūn'' (), is a cemetery to the north of ''Al-Masjid Al-Haram'', and near the Mosque of the Jinn in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. It is the place where the Islamic prophet Mu ...

. Ibrahim's son Ahmed Efendi was a ''ilmye'' who became a professor in Süleymaniye Darülhadisi. He was appointed Judge of Aleppo, but died shortly after he took charge, in 1665. Ibrahim's other son Yahyâ Çelebi was professor in several madrashas. Yahyâ Çelebi died in 1669. Muslih al-Din Mustafa was born in 1453. He was the teacher of the Ottoman Sultan

. Muslih al-Din Mustafa was a judge in

Aleppo Aleppo is a city in Syria, which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Governorates of Syria, governorate of Syria. With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and ...

and the director of a

in Taşköprü, from which fact his son's name was derived. Muslih also wrote poetry, under the pen name of "Hilmi" and left, among other things, a treatise on the science of ferâiz. He died in 1529. Muslih al-Din Mustafa had two sons, İsâmüddin Ahmed (the famous Taşköprizade) and Nizameddin Mehmed. Both his sons were part of the ''

''. However, Nizameddin Mehmed died in young age. Ahmet (Taşköprüzade) was trained by his father, and later completed his edcutation in Istanbul. Taşköprüzade was active as a teacher in

Skopje Skopje ( , ; ; , sq-definite, Shkupi) is the capital and largest city of North Macedonia. It lies in the northern part of the country, in the Skopje Basin, Skopje Valley along the Vardar River, and is the political, economic, and cultura ...

, and

Dimetoka Didymoteicho ( ) is a town located on the eastern edge of the Evros regional unit of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, in northeastern Greece. It is the seat of the municipality of the same name. The town (pop. 8,681 in 2021) sits on a plain and ...

. In Edirne he thought in the medrese of

Üç Şerefeli Mosque The Üç Şerefeli Mosque () is a 15th-century Ottoman mosque in Edirne, Turkey. History The Üç Şerefeli Mosque was commissioned by Ottoman sultan Murad II (r. 1421–1444, 1446–1451), and built between 1438 and 1447. It is located in the ...

at first. Later, he was appointed the manager of Sultan

Bayezid II Bayezid II (; ; 3 December 1447 – 26 May 1512) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1481 to 1512. During his reign, Bayezid consolidated the Ottoman Empire, thwarted a pro-Safavid dynasty, Safavid rebellion and finally abdicated his throne ...

's medical medrese. A member of the

Khalwati order The Khalwati order (also known as Khalwatiyya, Khalwatiya, or Halveti, as it is known in Turkey and Albania) is an Islamic Sufi brotherhood (''tariqa''). Along with the Naqshbandi, Qadiri, and Shadhili orders, it is among the most famous Sufi or ...

, in 1551 he became the ''

qadi A qadi (; ) is the magistrate or judge of a Sharia court, who also exercises extrajudicial functions such as mediation, guardianship over orphans and minors, and supervision and auditing of public works. History The term '' was in use from ...

'' of

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

. However, his eyesight failing, he had to retire three years later. Taşköprüzade's son Kemaleddin Mehmed translated and expanded with additions his father's work and printed the first Ottoman Encyclopedia, ''Mevzuatii l-ulum''. Kemaleddin had five sons. He taught his son-in-law Abdullah Efendi, who got a mulazam from

Ebussuud Efendi Ebussuud Efendi (, 30 December 1490 – 23 August 1574),İsmail Hâmi Danişmend, ''Osmanlı Devlet Erkânı'', Türkiye Yayınevi, İstanbul, 1971, p. 114. was a Hanafi Maturidi Ottoman jurist and Quran exegete, served as the Qadi (judge) ...

. Taşköprüzade's other son Abu Hâmid Mehmed Efendi was a tutor of Ebussuud Efendi. He was going to become the judge of Haremeyn, but died of plague in Hama in 1597. He was buried in the grave of Azeri Çelebi.

Members

*Hayreddin Halil Efendi b. Kāsım b. Hacı Safâ'dır (died in 1474–75) **Kıvâmüddin Kasım (b. 1462-63 - died in 1513) ***Sheikh Mehmed Efendi ***İbrahim Efendi (died in 1657) ****Ahmed Efendi **Muslihuddin Mustafa (b. 1453 - died in 1529) ***Nizameddin Mehmed *** Taşköprülüzade Ahmet (1494 - 1561) ****Abu Hâmid Mehmed Efendi **** Kemaleddin Mehmed (1553-1621) *****Kemaleddin's five sons

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taşköprü family Families from the Ottoman Empire Turks from the Ottoman Empire 15th-century people from the Ottoman Empire 16th-century people from the Ottoman Empire