MOSQUES, MASJIDS AND THEIR OFFICIALS IN KUMRU (SERKIS, KEŞ STREAM AND MEYDAN DISTRICT) ACCORDING TO HURUFAT NOTEBOOKS (1689-1834)

This study deals with the foundations and religious structures established in rural settlements around Kumru, and officials and their wages will be examined based on the Hurufat notebooks, which are among the main sources of the local history, and some other documents revealing the characteristics of the region. Hurufat notebooks kept by district officers provide us with important information about the administrative, religious, social and economic aspects of the region. Considering the period in which it was kept, these notebooks offer the opportunity to identify a period of approximately two centuries in the region. During the Ottoman period, many religious buildings were serving in the districts of Meydan, Sergis and Keş Stream, which were the administrative units of the region, between 1690 and 1830. All kinds of financing for these buildings were supported by foundations. Many monetary foundations were established by benevolent people to cover the expenses of mosques and masjids built in these districts, and the people working in these places. These donations were utilized through a kind of income system according to Islamic law, and the revenues were spent for the maintenance and restoration of religious and social structures and to meet the wages of the officials.