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(a.), an honorific title in use in the Islamic world up to the early 20th century, applied essentially to religious dignitaries. 1. Early history of the term. The tide first appears in K̲h̲urāsān towards the end of the 4th/10th century. While honorific tides compounded with Islām (like ʿIzz-, D̲j̲alāl-, and Sayf al-Islām) were borne by persons exercising secular power (notably the viziers of the Fatimids, cf. M. van Berchem, in ZDPV, xvi [1893], 101), the tide of Shaykh al-Islām has always been reserved for ʿulamaʾ and mystics, like other titles of honour whose first part is S̲h̲ayk̲h̲ …

, a family of Ottoman viziers who rose to prominence in the latter half of the 11th/17th century and dominated Ottoman life for much of that period, bringing a halt for some time to the decline of the empire, instituting internal reforms and gaining new conquests. The name derives from the close association of the founder of the family, Köprülü Meḥmed Pas̲h̲a, with the town of Köprü [ q.v.] (then in the sand̲j̲aḳ of Amasya), which, in turn, was later called Vezīr-Köprü through its association ¶ with the family (and to distinguish it from the near-by Tas̲h̲ Köprü). That Meḥmed Pa…

(a.; Turkish form: mülāzi̊m), an Ottoman administrative and military term (e.g. denoting in later times a lieutenant in the army), the most notable use of which was to designate a candidate for office in the Ottoman learned hierarchy (the ʿilmiyye [ q.v.]) whether at the beginning of his career (in which case he was, strictly, a mülāzi̊m-i new) or at any later stage when he was awaiting a post; in this last respect, the former usage is by far the more commonly met with in the literature (usually without the addition of new ), since attaining the status of a mülāzi̊m, or of mülāzama ( mülāzemet [ q.v.…

(a.), pl. of ʿālim , active participle of ʿalima , "to know, to be aware of", denotes scholars of almost all disciplines ( lug̲h̲a , bayān , ḥisāb , etc. [ q.vv.]). However, the term refers more specifically to the scholars of the religious sciences ( faḳīh , mufassir , muftī , muḥaddit̲h̲ , mutakallim , ḳāriʾ etc. [ q.vv.]), considered here exclusively in the context of Sunnism, where they are regarded as the guardians, transmitters and interpreters of religious knowledge, of Islamic doctrine and law; the term also embraces those who fulfil religious f…

, Bosniak ( ?-1041/1632), Ottoman Grand Vizier. Bosnian in origin, K̲h̲osrew was taken into the palace service and rose to the office of silāḥdār . When, in Muḥarram 1033/October-November 1623, the dissident ( zorba ) oda bas̲h̲i̊ s of the Janissaries demanded the replacement of their ag̲h̲a by someone not of the corps, K̲h̲osrew passed out of the enderūn-i humāyūn to become Yeñičeri ag̲h̲asi̊ . The state was at this time going through a critical period: the dominance of the Janissaries in internal affairs had reached new heights with the execution of ʿOt̲h̲m…

b. D̲j̲aʿfar al-ʿImādī , Ottoman S̲h̲ayk̲h̲ al-Islām [ q.v.], d. 1021/1612. Born in 960/1553, the son of the ḳāḍī ʿasker [ q.v.] D̲j̲aʿfar Efendi, a first cousin of Abu ’l-Suʿūd Efendi [ q.v.], Ṣunʿ Allāh studied under Mollā Fuḍayl al-Ḏj̲amālī ¶ and afterwards under Abu ’l-Suʿūd, then S̲h̲ayk̲h̲ al-Islām , whom he served as muʿīd and through whom he became mulāzim [ q.v.] in 977/1569-70. Because of his family connections, his first madrasa appointment (Ramaḍān 978/February 1571) was at the 40- aḳčes level. He passed through the ranks of the madrasas until, with his appointment to the…

(“Archer”), ʿalī pas̲h̲a , Ottoman Grand Vizier. Born in the district of Ḥamīd-ili in Anatolia, he came to Istanbul and was trained in the palace service from which he emerged with an appointment as beylerbeyi of Diyār Bakr with the rank of vizier, probably in 1029/1620. Difficulties arising over his executing a well-known provincial official without reference to Istanbul caused his transfer to the governorship of Bag̲h̲dād, where he remained for about a year before being dismissed and retiring to the vicin…