İbrahim Müteferrika

Publisher, Writer

Publisher and writer (b. 1674, Cluj-Napoca, Romania – d. 1745, İstanbul). He is the person who established the first printing house in the history of Turkey. He is of Hungarian origin and his family was Calvinists. He received education in theology in Hungary. After the failure of the rebellion against the Austrians he took refuge in the Ottoman Empire and became a Muslim.

He settled in İstanbul, learned law and became a servant to the sultan in various positions. He worked as the translator and clerk to the Hungarian Prince F. Rakoczi II who took shelter in Turkey during those years. He established the first printing house in İstanbul (and in the history of Turkey) in the year 1726 with Said Efendi. In this printing house that is known by his own name, from the total of seventeen works that were printed the first one of these was Kitab-ı Lügat-i Vankulu (The Dictionary Book of Vankulu). In addition, he produced copyright works and translations of his own. His grave is in the Aynalıkavak Graveyard in İstanbul.

MAIN WORKS:

Risale-i İslâmiye (Islamic Dissertation), Usûlü’l-Hikem fî Nizamü’l-Ümem (Style of Philosophy before the Order of Unemployment Relief).

REFERENCE: İbrahim Alaeddin Gövsa / Türk Meşhurları (1946), Bursalı Mehmed Tahir / Osmanlı Müellifleri III (1975), A’dan Z’ye Tarih Ansiklopedisi (1984), Arslan Tekin / Edebiyatımızda İsimler ve Terimler (2. bas. 1999), Erhan Afyoncu / TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi (c. 21, 2000), Hüseyin Gazi Topdemir / İbrahim Müteferrika ve Türk Matbaacılığı  (2002),   Franz Babinger / Müteferrika ve Osmanlı Matbaası (Çev: Nedret Kuran Burçoğlu, Mart 2004), İhsan Işık / Resimli ve Metin Örnekli Türkiye Edebiyatçılar ve Kültür Adamları Ansiklopedisi (2006, gen. 2. bas. 2007) - Ünlü Bilim Adamları (Türkiye Ünlüleri Ansiklopedisi, C. 2, 2013) - Encyclopedia of Turkey’s Famous People (2013). 

RELATED BIOGRAPHIES

Show More