Emigration in the Ottoman State due to Economic and Political Factors: In the Muhimmah Books in the 16th Century

Abstract

In the 16th century's Ottoman, external migration, which means winning or losing population, were questioned to originate from which factors. Gaining information about, under which factors, the migrate from the outside and migrating out of the Ottoman replaced each other, were aimed. The provisions of a limited number of Muhimmah were screened and was supported by secondary sources. After the transcription of the provisions were given, summary and main theme were given with today's Turkish. Simplification was made in some documents. It was seen to be demanded from the concerned state officials that the required measures be taken for the prevention of population movements, the population mobility in Safavid Iran in the East and on the borderland between Hungary and Austria in the West, were processed. In practice, unity, integrity, legality, justice and harmony principles were observed. The population movements were based on such reasons as economical, political, administrative, social and denominational; with the purpose of search for security; that the summer pastures and winter quarters were seized of them by the rulers to be transferred to some others for diverse reasons; the heavy burden of taxes; invited population from abroad; that those places allocated were considered to be insufficient by some administrators; the attempts of some people to join the Safavids; offering tax exemption up to three years and drawing populations from inlands. The implementation of the population policy that, encourages the population living in the place they are, providing welfare requirements, has been proposed.