H. 963 / M. 1556 tarihli Mufassol Tahrir Defterine göre Bozok Sancağı'nın ekonomik ve demografik yapısı

Abstract

The Present study has covered the economic and demografic structure of the Bozok District of the Otoman Empire. Detailed Boks of Records dated 963 A.H/ 1556 A.D. have been carefully gone through in order to fulfil the task. Bozok region of Asia Minor has been a place for settlement for ages. Before the fifteenth century the area was inhabitad by the Mongols. Bozok was the under the reign of Danishmends and Seljuks first and by Erethna, Kadiburhaneddin and Dulkadirli Beglics later. The territory, which came under the Otoman rule in 1 520, began to be settled by Dulkadirs Turkomans who had settled in the area by mid-fefteen.th and early sixteenth centuries. A careful study of the of the names of places and people of this region revals the use of Turkish words. Among the settlements of Turkomans are there the ones which were established near the ruins and relic of a period earlier. A throug study of the process of settlement to the area which has been in question for inhabiting the land can be observed. It has also been noted 'that the economic activities of the settlers were formed in accordance with the tendencies of the settling procedure which took a certain period of time similarly in nearly every other part of Asia Minor, the satate of being Turkicized in Bozok District was independent the outcome of the problems of settlement and some economic and demographic issues. The alterations and reciprocal influences whic took place,jn the ethnic, culturel, demographic and economik body of the previous settlers of the Anatolia on the advent of Turks have strongly attracted the attention 'of /social, cultural and economic historians for along time. Central Anatolia, where Turkoman tribes and congregations densely settled, namely Bozok District is teherefore, an area in which researchers have been interested. The fact that most of the previous settlers were the members of the tribes and congregations of the Dulkadiris and that they had the ties of kingship facilitaled the operations of the state and the way of living of the inhabitants. The Laws of Bozok District were, of course, in effect in regulating social and economik life of the region- the population was composed of a. large number of permanent inhabitants and a small number of nomedic people and according records kept the rate increased continually. It is, hawever, hard to point out that the economic activities of the inhabitants and trials for subsistance were 133progressive. Turks (Turkomans) carried on their former social and economic activities in Anatolia on their advent. The present study has also revealed that. the economic and demographic structure bear similar characteristics with those of other regions such topics as economik procedures in the area, the livelihood of the inhabitants and the means of taxing. Such issues as which tribe or congregation the inhabitants belong to, the number of people inhabiting, the demographic, administrative and political state of the region and the importance of the area within the Otoman organization have been considered. The origins of Armenians and Roums who are believed to have been living in Asia Minor have been studied the answers to whether they were the native peoples of Asia Minor or not and from which part of the world the came, anld settled in the region have been given. 134