Ahmed Dede Müneccimbaşi (1631, in Salonika – February 27, 1702, in Mecca) was an Ottoman astronomer and astrologer. He was also a historian, having written a history of the world concentrating on the history of Islamic dynasties and especially the Ottoman Empire. He is often referred to only under the sole name of "Müneccimbaşı", which was actually his title of chief astrologer. In western literature, this name/title is sometimes spelled as Müneĝĝimbaşi, In Turkish literature he is referred to also as Ahmed Lütfullah.
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Ahmed Lütfullah was born 1631 in Salonica (now Thessaloniki, Greece. His father, Lütfullah of Karaman Ereğlisi (Turkish: Karaman Ereğlisi'nden Lütfullah), was a cloth mearchant. Ahmed Dede, however, refused to continue his father's trade and received higher education against his father’s will. He studied 15 years with the Mevlevi dervishes, at first in Salonica and from 1654 on with the Galata Mevlevi in Istanbul, where he studied with Sheikh Arzi Dede. His education covered religious topics such as the Hadith, as well as philosophy and medicine. He also studied astrology with the chief astrologer of the time, Mehmed Efendi.[1] [2]
In 1665, after Mehmed Efendi’s death, Ahmed Dede was appointed müneccimbaşi (chief court astrologer) for the sultan Mehmed IV. He used this title as name in his future works. In November 1675 he was elevated to the rank of musahib-i padişahi (favorite conversant of the sultan)[3]
In November 1687, after Mehmed’s deposition by a revolt of the Janissaries, Müneccimbaşı Ahmed Dede fell out of favour with the new sultan Suleiman II and was exiled to Egypt where his adopted son Moralı Hasan Pasha served as governor. After a few years he moved to Medina and Mecca where he spent the rest of his life, as sheikh at the monastery of Mevlevi dervishes there.[3][2]
In 1700, he was recalled to Istanbul to work again as chief astrologer. Ahmed Dede declined the offer because of his old age. He died on February 27, 1702 in Mecca (now in Saudi Arabia, and was buried near the grave of Khadijah, the prophet’s wife.[3]
Müneccimbaşi’s most important work is Camiu'd - Düvel (The Compendium of Nations), written in Arabic. While Müneccimbaşi was working as chief astrologer, Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa instructed him to prepare a comprehensive historical work.[4] 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 of the sultan Ahmed III, Grand Vizier Damat Ibrahim ordered a summary of the Compendium to be translated into Turkish by a commission coordinated by the poet Ahmed Nedim. This translation known as Sahaif-ül-Ahbar (The Pages of the Chronicle) is the version of Ahmed Dede's work that can be considered as having been fully published, although important parts of it were either left out or condensated upon the judgment of Ahmed Nedim himself. This version was first printed in Cairo in 1868. 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.[3]
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. 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. Fluent in Italian and Spanish since his early days in Salonika where he was in contact with the city's Jewish community of considerable size and activity, Ahmed Dede also had access to western sources of his day.
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][5]
In his Compendium, Müneccimbaşi follows the method used in Islamic historiography by Ibn Khaldun, indicating his sources and submitting them to a critical investigation.[4]
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][5] [3]
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 [3]
He also composed a Divan in Turkish on mystical themes under the pen name of Âşik (meaning Lover).[2][5]
Of the other works written by Müneccimbaşi the following are worth mentioning: