Ahmed Dede Müneccimbaşi (b. 1631 in Salonika, d. February 27, 1702 in Mecca) was a Turkish astronomer and astrologer. He was also a historian, known for his writings concentrating on the history of the Ottoman dynasties. He is often referred to only under the name of Müneccimbaşı, which was actually his title of chief astrologer. In western literature, his name is sometimes spelled as Müneĝĝimbaşi, In Turkish literature he is referred to also as Ahmed Lütfullah

Contents 1 Biography 2 Works 2.1 The Compendium of Nations 2.2 Commentaries of the Qur'an 2.3 Poetry 2.4 Others 3 References

[edit] Biography

Ahmed Dede was born 1631 in Salonica (now Thessaloniki, Greece. His father, Karaman Ereğlisinden Lütfullah, was cloth mearchant. Ahmede Dede however, refused to continue his father's trade and against his father’s will, got higher education. He studied 15 years with the Mevlevi dervishes first in Salonica and from 1654 with the Galata Mevlevi in Istanbul, where he studied with Sheikh Arzi Dede. His education covered religious topics, from the Hadith as well as philosophy and medicine. He also studied astrology with chief astrologer Mehmed Effendi. ^{[1] [2][3]}.

In 1665, after Mehmed Effendi’s death, Ahmed Dede was appointed münenccimbaşi (chief court astrologer) for sultan Mehmed IV. He used the title in his name during his future works. In November 1675 he is elevated to the rank of musahib-i padişahi (favorite of the sultan) ^[4]

In November 1687, after Mehmed’s deposition by the janissaries revolt, he fell out of favour with sultan Suleiman II and was exiled to Egypt. After a few years he moved to Medina and Mecca where he spent the rest of his life, as sheikh at the Mevlevi Hane dervishes monastery. ^{[4] [2]}

In 1700, he was recalled to Istanbul work again as chief astrologer. Ahmed Dede refused because of his age. ^[3] He died on February 27, 1702 in Mecca (now in Saudi Arabia, and is buried near the grave of Khadijah, the prophet’s wife. ^[4]

[edit] Works

[edit] The Compendium of Nations

Müneccimbaşi’s most important work is Camiu'd - Düvel (The Compendium of Nations), written in Arabic. While Müneccimbaşi was working as chief astrologer, Grand Vezier Kara Mustafa instructed him to prepare a comprehensive historical work. ^[5] The compendium was completed when Müneccimbaşi retired to Mecca and was written in Arabic. Shortly after his death, in 1705, a copy of the manuscript was made. Later, during the reign sultan Ahmed III, Grand Vizier Damat Ibrahim ordered a summary of the Compendium translated into Turkish by a commission coordinated by the poet Ahmed Nedin; this translation known as Sahaif-ül-Ahbar (The Pages of the Chronicle) is the only published version of this work, first printed in Cairo in 1868. </ref name="Hayati"> The original manuscript, considered lost for a long time, is kept partly at the Library of the Selimiye Mosque in Edirne and the rest at the Library of the Topkapi Sarayi Museum in Istanbul. ^[4] The work is a universal history starting with Adam and ending in the year 1672, based on 72 Arab, Persian and Turkish sources. Some of the original sources have been lost and are not available any more. The works used most frequently are the chronicles of Ali ibn al-Athir, Abu'l-Fida, Ibn al-Wardi and Ibn Khaldun. ^[3] The pre-Muslim accounts seem also to be based on Roman and Jewish sources. The part related to Armenian history he mentions the use of Armenian chronicles.

The book develops the history of the Ottoman Turks, but also presents lesser dynasties and branches of the Turks for which few if any historical sources are available. His work also covers other kingdoms which existed on the territory of the Ottoman Empire, dealing with the history of the Babylonians, the Assyrians and the Seleucids, which were not dealt with previously by Islamic historiography. It also covers the history of non-Turkish populations such as the Franks and Armenians. Besides it also deals with the history of India and China. ^{[2] [6]}

In his Compendium, Müneccimbaşi follows the method used in Islamic historiography by Ibn Khaldun, indicating his sources and submitting them to a critical investigation. ^[5]

[edit] Commentaries of the Qur'an

An important work is Hasia, a commentary of the interpretation of the Qur’an Tafsir al-baydawi al-musamma anwar altanzil wa asrar by Al Baidawi. ^{[2] [6] [4]}

[edit] Poetry

Müneccimbaşi also published a Letaifname, a volume of Divan poetry with translations of anecdotes and raunchy poetry of the bawdy bard and often homoerotic Persian satyrist Ubayd-i Zākāni ^[4]

He also composed a Divan in Turkish on mystical themes under the pen name of Âşik (meaning Lover). ^{[2] [6]}

[edit] Others

Of the other works written by Müneccimbaşi the following are worth mentioning:

• Şerh-i kitâb-ı Ahlâk - annotations on the ethics book of Qadi Adudun.
• Talikat 'ala Uklidi – a treaty of geometry.
• Vesilet ül-Vüsûl ilâ Ma'rifet İl-Hamli vel-Mahmûl - the science of logic.
• Risale-i Mûsikiyye - a treaty of music.
• Feyz-ül-Harem – a presentation of the city of Mecca and its environment, meant mainly as a guide for pilgrims during their Hajj
• Cayet-ül-Beyân fi Dekaik-i ilm-ül-Beyân – a study on the use of the metaphor,

[edit] References