Gaznevî Mahmûd: a neglected Ottoman clerk his career, miscellany, and his religious and literary network

Official URL: http://risc01.sabanciuniv.edu/record=b1669276 (Table of Contents)

This study aims to reveal the religious and literary network that existed around Gaznevî Mahmûd, an Ottoman clerk who had a passionate desire to advance along the bureaucratic ladder of the late seventeenth century Ottoman Empire. To this end, this thesis traces the characteristic features of the network in which Gaznevî Mahmûd, a pious poet and bureaucrat, was situated; it does so by utilizing archival documents pertaining to a waqf established in the name of Gaznevî Mahmûd, alongside an analysis of the poems composed by several other poets for inclusion into Gaznevî’s miscellany. Through these methods, this study attempts to uncover the strength of Gaznevî Mahmûd’s affiliations with adherents of the Naqshbandi-Mujaddidi order, and with other high-ranking clerks who were in the service of the Imperial Council or various vizierial households. In addition to this main objective, this study also aspires to construct a plausible biography and career history of Gaznevî Mahmûd; in this, it will depend primarily upon archival documents, as most previous research has largely neglected the topic due to the paucity of information regarding his life and career. Finally, this study aims to understand the reasons behind the completion of Gaznevî’s miscellany, and what motivated him to take on such a large project in the first place.