TURKOMANS BETWEEN TWO EMPIRES: THE ... - Bilkent University

Comes either for a hope of a ministry or a governorship. 290
In later periods, the prestige of Persia-Islamic culture attained such a level that
writing in Turkish was perceived as insufficiency and shame. Furthermore, proving
affiliation to this ‘high culture’, which in most cases meant proving to be Persian origin,
automatically attracts the favor of sultan and ruling class. Đnalcık notes that many
Ottoman intellectuals went to Persia for further education and were welcomed as
masters when they returned. An exemplary case cited by Đnalcık strikingly shows the
degree of Persian and Arabic dominance on the high Ottoman culture in the fifteenth
century: “Lâlî, one of the scribes, stayed in Persia for a long time and when he returned,
he introduced himself as Persian. He became a musâhib to the Conqueror and when the
truth was revealed, his position of manager of the zāviye and his salary were taken away
from him.” 291 The predicament of Turkish intellectuals and artists is perhaps best
reflected in Mesîhî’s following verse:
Mesîhî gökden insen sana yer yok,
Yürü var gel Arab’dan ya Acemden.
Oh Mesîhî there is no place for you even if you descend from the Heavens
[For the only way of attaining esteem] Go and then come either from Arabia or
from Persia. 292
On the other hand, parallel to the consolidation of their supremacy, Ottoman
sultans offered generous patronage to newly arriving intellectuals and artists, for having
renowned scholars and artists in the realm was perceived as a sign of splendor. It is
known that, in the fifteenth century, Ottoman sultans pursued a conscious policy to
290 Quoted in Đnalcık, “The ‘Ottoman Civilization’ and Palace Patronage”, p. 19.
291 See Đnalcık, “The ‘Ottoman Civilization’ and Palace Patronage”, p. 21.
292 Mesîhî, Mesîhî Divanı, ed. Mine Mengi, Ankara, 1995, p. 231.
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