مرکز منطقه ای اطلاع رساني علوم و فناوري - SETTLEMENTS AND DISTRICTS OF NIGDE PROVINCE DURING THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY

Abstract :

In this study, the settlements and districts of Nigde Province during the 15^th century are reviewed. Nigde was under the rule of Karamanids for a long time during the 15^th century, and in the second half of the century, it fell under the rule of the Ottoman Empire. The districts of Nigde were identified through the cadastral record books and charter of pious foundation certificates drafted by the Ottoman Empire at the end of the 15^th and the early 16^th centuries. It is considered that the district names mentioned in these books existed during the rule of Karamanids. The first source referring to those districts in Nigde is the charter of pious foundation of Ali the Karamanid dating back to 1415. There are three district names in this charter, yet they seem to be unmentioned in the other sources cited in this study. In charter certificates prepared in 1476 and 1483 after the province came under the rule of Ottoman Empire, there are references to some mosque and district names belonging to Nigde. Moreover, the cadastral record books prepared in the early 16^th century refers to some 29 districts in Nigde. Except for some of the district names specified in the aforesaid cadastral record book, most of the names existed to a great extent in also the Karamanid era. In the cadastral record book drafted in the early 16^th century, two non-muslim districts are identified and it is possible that these districts also existed during the 15^th century.