A Neat Ottoman Tradition: Rewarding with Books Bearing Fancy Covers

In searching the sahhaf's (book-sellers in Ottoman/Turkish tradition), we very rarely encounter some Ottoman print books with excellent cover designs. They have always the same word on them: Mükafat. Mükafat means reward, and these books were given by school directors to the most hardworking students during the Ottoman era. These book covers were always fancy, always carrying the relief of Ottoman coat of arms, and always written mükafat with the same calligraphic style. The back cover of these books may be also decorated with special reliefs such as the Ottoman flag.
ngurelman

What is Avamil?

Avamil is an Arabic grammer science describing the rules of the pronunciation of the word endings. One of the most famous Avamil books belong to the Abdalqâhir al-Curcânî, researcher and fıqh expert (Death hajera 471 - 1055 modern calender). ngurelman

Mevlid and Nat-i Sherif (Şerif) - Ottoman Style Praises in Verse

Nat means praising and descriptions written in verse in the Ottoman literature and special compositions in the Ottoman music. There are many different types of "nat"s dedicated to the important people, yet generally the most famous ones are dedicated to the Prophet Mohammed (sav), called Nat-ı Şerif.

Mevlid is a similar text written in verse to praise Prophet Mohammed, yet it describes only one manuscript written by Suleyman Celebi (1351-1409 (modern calender)). In Ottoman/Turkish folk, this famous book is known as mevlid, since it was generally read first during the "Mevlid Kandili" = The Birthday Celebrations of Prophet Mohammed.

Now, it is read in many different circumstances including after death of relatives, circumcision of children, etc. The original name of this book is "Vesilet-un Necat (1402)", Vesile = Means, Opportunities, Causes. Necat = Deliverance, Release, Liberation, which defines the God-inspired desire to seek the way of Truth in the religious jargon. ngurelman

Books as the "Suns of Wisdom" in the Ottoman/Islamic Legacy

Şemse comes from the Arabic word "şems", meaning "sun". Most time covers of Ottoman books (either prints or handwritten manuscripts) are decorated with reliefs called şemse made via cold or hot pressure/stamps. They are not round as the sun, rather oval reliefs sharpening on the upper and lower edges. The reason putting the sun on the book covers are commented by some researchers that the books were seen as "irfan güneşi", "sun of wisdom and knowledge". ngurelman