Filling the Gap in Demographic Research on the Ottoman Transformation Period: Waqf Account Books as Sources for Ottoman Demographic History (16th and 17th Centuries)

Ottoman demographic historians revealed a major growth in the population in the sixteenth century, which was mainly based on the survey registers. When the studies were extended to the seventeenth century, the survey registers became sparse and historians perforce resorted to other available sources. Thus, to follow the demographic trend in the seventeenth century, the poll tax and avârız registers replaced the survey registers. Research on the seventeenth century yielded a contrary result, depopulation and a general decline in population. However, the changing demographic trend between the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century could not be explained due to the lack of primary sources. This paper argues that waqf account books, which are available in series though limited in geographical coverage, may fill the lacuna in archival sources and enable the changes in population to be tracked