PARA VAKIFLARININ MEŞRULAŞTIRILMASI SÜRECİ: İSLAM VAKIF HUKUKUNUN OSMANLI TOPLUMUNDA UYGULANMASINA DAİR BİR ANALİZ

Cash foundations played an important role in Ottoman society and economy. They were a major part of the Ottoman foundations and the only legal credit institution lending to individuals. Legitimization of the cash foundations was very controvertial and it was one of the most debated legal institutions by the Ottoman scholars during the mid-sixteenth century. Legitimization of cash foundations is, as an institution, generally accepted as the contribution of the Ottomans to the Islamic civilization. On the other hand, it was also observed as contradicting to the Islamic law. During the Ottoman era, cash foundations were generally accepted as valid and legal institutions, except for a short prohibition period in the mid-sixteenth century. Depending on its increasing importance, it became the subject of a fevered discussion in the mid 16th century among the Ottoman scholars. The discussion process took a few decades to conclude, and as a result of the discussion, cash foundations were banned for a few years. But finally, the issue was re-examined by a group of scholars and it was declared that cash foundations are legal and void according to the Islamic Law (Hanafite School). In this paper, the process of the legitimization of the cash foundations is analyzed and discussed in detail.