Firman

For the surname, seeFirman (surname).

"Ferman" redirects here. For the surname or given name, seeFerman (name).

AFat'h Ali Shah QajarfirmaninShekaste Nastaliqscript, January 1831

Afirman(Persian:فرمان,romanized:farmān;Turkish:ferman),at theconstitutionallevel, was a royal mandate ordecreeissued by a sovereign in anIslamic state.During various periods such firmans were collected and applied as traditional bodies of law. The English wordfirmancomes from the Persianfarmānmeaning "decree" or "order".

On a more everyday level, a firman was, and may still be, any written permission granted by the appropriate Islamic official at any level of government. Westerners are perhapsmost familiar with thepermission to travel in a country,which typically could be purchased beforehand, or with the permission to conduct scholarly investigation—such as archaeological excavation—in the country. Firmans may or may not be combined with various sorts ofpassports.

Etymology

Farmānis themodern Persianform of the word and descends fromMiddle Persian(Pahlavi)framān,ultimately fromOld Persianframānā(fra= "fore" ).The difference between the modern Persian and Old Persian forms stems from "dropping the endingāand insertion of a vowel owing to the initial double consonant ".This feature (i.e.fra-) was still used in the Middle Persian form.TheTurkishform of the wordfarmānisfermān,whereas the Arabized plural form of the word isfarāmīn.

Origins of firmans in the Ottoman Empire

In the Ottoman Empire, the Sultan derived his authority from his role as upholder of the Shar'ia, but the Shar'ia did not cover all aspects of Ottoman social and political life. Therefore, in order to regulate relations and status, duties, and the dress of aristocracy and subjects, the Sultan created firmans.

Organization

Firmans ofMehmed IIandBayazid II– kept at theChurch of Saint Mary of the MongolsinIstanbul– which granted the ownership of the building to the Greek community

Firmans were gathered in codes called "kanun".Thekanunwere "a form of secular and administrative law considered to be a valid extension of religious law as a result of the ruler's right to exercise legal judgement on behalf of the community."

When issued by the sultan in the Ottoman Empire, firmans' importance was often displayed by the layout of the document; the more blank space at the top of the document, the more important the firman was.

Examples of Ottoman firmans

Firman of Murad (26 October – 23 November 1386)

In this firman, Sultan Murad I recognises a decree created by his father Sultan Orhan (c. 1324–1360). He gives the monks all they owned during his father's reign, ordering that no one can oppress them or claim their land.

Firman of Mehmed the Conqueror (30 August 1473)

Mehmed the Conqueror's bilingual (Ottoman andChagatai)Fetihname(Declaration of conquest) after theBattle of Otlukbeli.

Following the defeat ofUzun Hasan,Mehmed the Conquerortook overŞebinkarahisarand consolidated his rule over the area. FromŞebinkarahisarhe sent a series of letters announcing his victory, including an unusual missive in theUyghur languageaddressed to theTurkomansofAnatolia.

The decree (yarlık) had 201 lines and was written byŞeyhzade Abdurrezak Bahşıon 30 August 1473:

Completed when Karahisar was reached on the date of eight hundred and seventy eight, 5th day of the month Rebiülahir, the year of the Snake.

Firman of Mehmed IV (1648–1687)

In this firman, the monks ofMount Athosreport that the administrative officials charged with the collection of taxes come at a later date than they are supposed to and demand more money than the value assessed. They also make illegal demands for additional food supplies.

Other firmans

One of the most important firmans governing relations between Muslims and Christians is a document kept at theSaint Catherine's Monasteryon theSinai Peninsulain Egypt. This monastery isGreek Orthodoxand constitutes the autonomous Sinai Orthodox Church. The firman bears the hand print ofMuhammad,and requests the Muslims do not destroy the monastery for God-fearing men live there. To this day there is a protected zone around the monastery administered by the Egyptian government, and there are very good relations between the 20 or so monks, mainly from Greece, and the local community there.

Firmans were issued in some Islamic empires and kingdoms inIndiasuch as theMughal Empireand theNizamofHyderabad.Notable were EmperorAurangzeb's various firmans.

Other uses

The term "firman" was used by thearcheologist/novelistElizabeth Petersfor official permission from the Egyptian Department of Antiquities to carry on an excavation. A similar authority was cited byAusten Henry Layardfor excavations atNimrudwhich he mistakenly believed wasNineveh.

In theOld YishuvCourt Museum is held a firman for the 1890 opening of the printing business of Eliezer Menahem Goldberg, Jerusalem resident. The firman was translated into Hebrew from Turkish by Advocate Yosef Hai Fenizil, and shows that the business was located in Rehov Hayehudim and had permission to undertake printing in Turkish, Arabic, Hebrew, English, German, French and Italian.

Gallery

• 
  Firman of Sadr al-Din Zanjani, vizier of ilkhanGaykhatu,dated Jumada II 692/June 1292. Art and History Collection on loan to theArthur M. Sackler Gallery
• 
  Firman ofMuhammad bin Tughluqdated Shawwal 725 AH/September–October 1325.Keir Collection
• 
  Firman ofTaj ud-Din Firuz Shahof theBahmani Sultanatedated 1405–06.Andhra PradeshState Archives
• 
  Firman ofAurangzebdated 25th Jumadi II of 1072 AH/15 February 1662. Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
• 
  A firman issued by theMughal EmperorShah Alam II
• 
  A firman issued byAhmad Shah Durrani,the founder of theDurrani Empire

See also

• Firman of Karamanoğlu Mehmet Bey
• Firman of Mahbub Ali Khan
• Waqf
• Decree of Muharram

Further reading

• Ashraf, Assef (2019)."Copied and Collected: Firmans, Petitions, and the Political History of Qajar Iran".Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient.62(5–6): 963–997.doi:10.1163/15685209-12341498.S2CID214018418.