Transcription and evalution of Urfa Sharia Court record numbered 212 (H. 1290-1294/ M. 1873-1877)

Neither a break with history while planning the future nor ignoring the history for the sake of future is possible. Disclosure of the documents and topics ensure the improvement of particularly political history of the states. Sharia Court Records, which have come to light through recent local history research, are significant resources bearing the biggest traces of the functioning of the Ottoman in the rural areas. These resources splendidly reveal the functioning of the administration in Ottoman Empire. Even though the study conducted did not include several documents and topics, registration and preserving of them during the period shows the undeniable fact that the state was built on a strong foundation. Court records consist of the judgements given by the Kadis and directives, edicts and charters of the headquarter. These documents of the Sheria Courts have their feature as primary sources. Urfa Sharia Court Records numbered 212 that provide one of the best samples of the understanding of the social state in Ottoman contain registries of orphan fund. They do not just consist of documents related to warranties and loans. Each document that has been revealed from past to present, in whichever language or alphabet they have been written, conveys all the values of a particular nation to the humanity together with its historical wealth. In this study, local information belonging to Urfa during the second half of 19th century has been revealed. Urfa Shari Court Records numbered 212 consists of 93 leaf, 186 pages and 584 documents. The study has four parts. In the first part, general information is given about the city Urfa, Sharia Courts, the people in charge in these courts and recorded documents. The second part includes the transcription of the Urfa Sharia Court Record numbered 212 and the summaries of the documents in reference to the transcription. The third part is about materials and methods and the fourth part includes findings related to the transcribed documents. Keywords: Ottoman Empire, Sharia Court Records, Urfa, Kadı