Local Court, Provincial Society and Justice in the Ottoman Empire: Legal Practice and Dispute Resolution in Cankiri and Kastamonu (1652-1744) (Studies in Islamic Law and Society)

254 Pages·2003·0.89 MB·English

by  Bogac A. Ergene

LOCAL COURT,
PROVINCIAL SOCIETY
AND JUSTICE IN THE
OTTOMAN EMPIRE
Bogaç A. Ergene
BRILL
LOCAL COURT, PROVINCIAL SOCIETY AND JUSTICE IN
THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE
STUDIES
IN ISLAMIC LAW
AND SOCIETY
edited by
Ruud Peters and Bernard Weiss
volume
17
LOCAL COURT, PROVINCIAL SOCIETY
AND JUSTICE IN
THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE
Legal Practice and Dispute Resolution in 0ankÌrÌ
and Kastamonu (1652-1744)
BY
BO>A0 A. ERGENE
BRILL
LEIDEN •BOSTON
2003
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Ergene, BoÅaç A., 1971-
Local court, provincial society and justice in the Ottoman Empire : legal practice and
dispute resolution in ÇankÌrÌand Kastamonu (1652-1744) / by BoÅaç A. Ergene.
p. cm. — (Studies in Islamic law and society, ISSN 1384–1130; v. 17)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN90-04-12609-0
1. Justice, Administration of—Turkey—History—17th century. 2. Justice, Administration
of—Turkey—History—18th century. 3. Turkey—History—Ottoman Empire, 1288-1918. I.
Title. II Series.
KKX283.E74 2003
347.561--dc21 2002043736
Die Deutsche Bibliothek - CIP-Einheitsaufnahme
Ergene, BoÅaç A.:
Local court, provincial society and justice in the Ottoman Empire : legal practice and dispute
resolution in ÇankÌrÌand Kastamonu (1652-1744) / by BoÅaç A. Ergene – Leiden ; Boston
Brill, 2003
(Studies in Islamic law and society ; Vol. 17)
ISBN90-04-12609-0
ISSN 1384–1130
ISBN 90 04 12609 0
© Copyright 2003 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in
a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written
permission from the publisher.
Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal
use is granted by Brill provided that
the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright
Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910
Danvers, MA01923, USA.
Fees are subject to change.
printed in the netherlands
To my parents, Yüksel and Cemil Ergene,
and my sister, Simay Ergene-Civelek
This page intentionally left blank
CONTENTS
List of Tables .............................................................................. ix
List of Figures ............................................................................ xi
List of Maps .............................................................................. xiii
Acknowledgements ...................................................................... xv
Chapter One Introduction .................................................... 1
Sources .................................................................................. 7
Chapter Two Two Sub-Provinces, Two Towns,
Two Courts ................................................................................ 9
Çankırı and Kastamonu: Historical Background .............. 9
The Courts of Çankırı and Kastamonu ............................ 23
Chapter Three A Comparative Analysis of the Operations
of Çankırı and Kastamonu Courts .......................................... 32
Contents of the Court Records .......................................... 33
The Kadı as an Intermediary .............................................. 43
Conclusion ............................................................................ 55
Chapter Four Litigants, Litigations, and Resolutions:
A Statistical Analysis ................................................................ 57
Classification of the Disputes in the Court Records ........ 57
Courts, Clients, and “Justice” .............................................. 62
Balance of Power in the Court .......................................... 66
Conclusion ............................................................................ 74
Chapter Five Costs of Court Usage ...................................... 76
Tax Records .......................................................................... 78
Inheritance Registries ............................................................ 84
Conclusion ............................................................................ 97
Chapter Six The Court Process I: Alternative Approaches
to Kadıship, Court, and Legal “Corruption” .......................... 99
The Ottoman Kadı and Court in the Secondary
Literature .............................................................................. 100
viii 
A Critique .......................................................................... 104
“Corruption” and Its Uses ................................................ 108
A Case Study: Hans Ulrich Krafft’s Memoirs .............. 115
Conclusion .......................................................................... 123
Chapter Seven Intermission: Sicil as Text ............................ 125
Recording the Proceedings ................................................ 126
Problems of Representation in the Court Records ........ 129
Conclusion .......................................................................... 141
Chapter Eight The Court Process II: Strategies of
Litigation .................................................................................... 142
Strategy and Legal Competence in Disputes between
Individual Litigants ............................................................ 143
Community in Action ........................................................ 151
Conclusion .......................................................................... 167
Chapter Nine Alternative Sites for Dispute Resolution ...... 170
Official Alternatives to Local Courts .............................. 170
Unofficial Sites for Dispute Resolution ............................ 177
Ambiguous Settlements ...................................................... 183
“Going to Court” as a Phase of Dispute Resolution ...... 185
Conclusion .......................................................................... 187
Chapter Ten In Place of a Conclusion: Models and
Taxonomies ................................................................................ 189
Court Model versus Bargain Model ................................ 190
Characterizing “Islamic Law” ............................................ 202
Epilogue ...................................................................................... 208
Appendix: Where Did the Court Clients Come from
and Why? ............................................................................ 213
Bibliography .............................................................................. 221
Index .......................................................................................... 231
LIST OF TABLES
2.1 Population of the Sub-province of Çankırı in 1665 .... 17
2.2 'Avarız households in Çankırı ........................................ 19
2.3 'Avarız households in Kastamonu .................................. 20
3.1 Documents Sent by Higher Authorities versus
Documents Composed in the Court of Çankırı .......... 34
3.2 Documents Sent by Higher Authorities versus
Documents Composed in the Court of Kastamonu .... 35
3.3 Documents Sent to the Court of Çankırı:
Classification .................................................................... 35
3.4 Documents Sent to the Court of Kastamonu:
Classification .................................................................... 36
3.5 Documents Drafted in the Court of Çankırı:
Classification .................................................................... 40
3.6 Documents Drafted in the Court of Kastamonu:
Classification .................................................................... 40
3.7 Division of Labor in the Court of Çankırı .................. 42
3.8 Division of Labor in the Court of Kastamonu ............ 42
3.9 Preference between Alternative Judicial and
Administrative Offices in Dispute Resolution
(Çankırı) ............................................................................ 49
3.10 Preference between Alternative Judicial and
Administrative Offices in Dispute Resolution
(Kastamonu) .................................................................... 50
4.1 TypesofDisputesintheCourtRecordsofÇankırı ........ 58
4.2 Types of Disputes in the Court Records of
Kastamonu ...................................................................... 59
4.3 Litigations in Çankırı according to the Social and
Economic Statuses of the Litigants ................................ 67
4.4 Litigations in Kastamonu according to the Social and
Economic Statuses of the Litigants ................................ 67
4.5 Litigations in Çankırı according to the
Residential Affiliations of the Litigants .......................... 68
4.6 Litigations in Kastamonu according to the
Residential Affiliations of the Litigants .......................... 68