The role of waqfs in the physical formation of the city of Amasya (XIII-XVIII. century)

There is no doubt that one of the most important elements of Islamic civilization is the waqf institution. Waqfs established by philanthropists for religious/charitable purposes have influenced Islamic civilization in many ways. This waqfs, which has experienced its peak especially during the Ottoman period, has ensured that the needs that are considered the duty of the state to meet today, such as economic, religious, social, health and cleaning needs in society, are met thanks to charitable buildings built by philanthropists or foundations established for the continuity of the services and structures of these buildings. Waqfs, together with these services they perform, have ensured the emergence of a new city in the places where they were established, as well as directly influencing the determination of the direction of expansion of cities, becoming an important factor in the formation of the physical structure. As a matter of fact, while the economic elements that philanthropists have dedicated as income-generating elements constitute the commercial areas of cities, the service buildings they have built have also become the main elements of settlement and expansion as religious and social areas. On the other hand, the green areas donated, clean water resources and allocated cleaning staff have ensured the protection of green areas in the city for many years in accordance with the principle of the perpetuity of the foundation. However, the fact that the maintenance and repair of the structures are also carried out by the foundations and ensure that many of these institutions have reached the present day is the product of an understanding of environmentalism that is above its era. As a matter of fact, Amasya city has been a city where countless charitable works and examples of income have been donated for their needs by many dynasty members and people from the upper bureaucracy due to the fact that it has been the sanjak of the prince for close to 200 years and was a border city during the Iranian wars in the east. In this study, prepared by using archival documents and research resources, it has been seen that the role of the waqf institution has a very important share in the physical formation of the city of Amasya.