Ottoman Control and Approval of the Print Islam: Tedk？k-i Mesahif ve Müellefat-？ ？er‘iyye Meclisi

There are numerous studies conducted in different disciplines about the development of the Muslim printing activities in the Ottoman Empire as well as the theme of “Islam and print;” however, the vital role the modern state played in controlling and approving religious publishing has not been sufficiently examined. The late Ottoman Empire witnessed, as part of the bureaucratic reorganization of the state, the establishment of different institutions to inspect printed books and publications. Toward the end of the 19th century, two institutes in the name of Teft？？-i Mesahif-i ？erife and Tedk？k-i Müellefat Encümeni were founded, respectively, to examine printed mushaf (Qur’anic codex) and Islamic books. During the Second Constitutional era, the Tedk？k-i Mesahif ve Müellefat-？ ？er‘iyye Meclisi emerged out of their unification. The Council played a pivotal role in the Ottoman state’s shaping of Islamic publishing. In this study, the institutional development of Tedk？k-i Mesahif ve Müellefat-？ ？er‘iyye Meclisi; its jurisprudence; the criteria it applied in evaluating the books submitted for print approval are examined. This study is one of the first most comprehensive examinations of the Council through primary archival sources. In addition to studying this council, which was one of the most significant institutes of the Ottoman religious bureucratic apparatus, this article traces the stages of the Qur’an and Islamic book publishing in the Ottoman Empire. It analyzes various religious and non-religious factors applied by the Tedk？k-i Mesahif ve Müellefat-？ ？er‘iyye Meclisi and related state institutions in approving and controlling Islamic publications