Ma'mûretü'l-azîz province foundations accounting records: Dated 1868-1869 an examination on Muhasebe-i̇ Evkâf-i Hümayun book

It is known that the Ottoman State, which used the staircase recording method that was borrowed from the Ilkhanids in the state accounting system for more than 500 years and started to use the double entry recording technique with the Tanzimat, has a rich archive of accounting record order and practices. It is possible to say that all this rich background witnessed the development of the accounting practices of the Ottoman State. In addition to the numerous accounting documents that have survived to the present day from the archives of the Ottoman State, accounting books for the organization of annual accounts, report books for control purposes, shar'iyye registers containing records of legal relations between people, and foundation books belonging to foundations, which are an important part of social life, shed light on the accounting practices of the Ottoman State. In this thesis study, it is aimed to examine the Muhasebe-i Evkâf-ı Hümâyûn Book dated 1285 Hijri (1868-1869 Gregorian) and to reveal its importance in terms of foundation accounting practices in the Ottoman State. The study is important in terms of foundation activities in Ma'mûratü'l-Azîz Province and its affiliated districts in the said period, determination of income and expenses related to foundations and evaluation of their accounting records. In this thesis study, which is based on the documentary research method and archive research, which is one of the qualitative research approaches, firstly general information about the Ottoman State in the 19th century is presented and the foundation institution in the Ottoman State is explained in detail. Later T.R. A transcription study of the ledger in the archives of the Presidency Ottoman Archives Department was made and simplified and examples of the accounting records in the ledger were presented. In addition, in the light of the information in the book, foundations and their income and expense distributions were determined by region and statistical information was also presented. The fact that records were kept systematically during the period in question, ensuring income and expense equality with budget logic, and collecting the accounting records of 132 foundations affiliated with the Ma'mûratü'l-Azîz province in a single book can be considered as an indicator of the strength of the accounting organization of the Ottoman State and the maturity of the recording culture.