Turkey Biographies

Biographical Dictionaries [Arabic - Tabaqāt]
Research use: Establish individual identity, vital information, and relationships.

Record type: Biographies of Islamic scholars and jurists [ulama] as well as literary, bureaucratic, and commercial men of distinction. Some of these dictionaries are published; others are not.

Time period: 1600s to present.

Contents: Names of notable persons; parentage, death and often birth dates; positions; education and accomplishments; relationships (especially to other notable persons).

Location: Sulaymaniye Library in Istanbul and mosque libraries throughout Turkey.

Population coverage: About 10%; limited to notable persons.

Reliability: Very Good.