T.C. Cumhurbaşkanlığı Devlet Arşivleri Başkanlığı – Osmanlı Arşivi / Turkish Presidency State Archives of the Republic of Turkey – Department of Ottoman Archives

Author(s): Gerhard Grüßhaber (2017) – last update: 2018-10-08.

T.C. Cumhurbaşkanlığı Devlet Arşivleri Başkanlığı – Osmanlı Arşivi / Turkish Presidency State Archives of the Republic of Turkey – Department of Ottoman Archives holds material on the Ottoman Empire. Until the summer of 2018, the archives was named The T.C. Başbakanlık Arşiv Sitesi – Osmanlı Arşivi / State Archives of the Prime Ministry of the Republic of Turkey – Department of Ottoman Archives.

Contact

T.C. Cumhurbaşkanlığı Devlet Arşivleri Başkanlığı – Osmanlı Arşivi / Turkish Presidency State Archives of the Republic of Turkey – Department of Ottoman ArchivesTalatpaşa Mahallesi, İmrahor Cad., Sadabad Mevkii No:31,
34400 Kağıthane/İstanbul, Turkey

Archival information: tel. +90 (0) 212 314 90 00
Email: osmanli@basbakanlik.gov.tr
Office Hours: Monday – Friday, 8:30-18:00 & Saturday, 8:30-16:30

Website

https://www.devletarsivleri.gov.tr/

How to plan and to prepare a visit

You can register in advance online to browse the catalogue. There you can select some archive documents, that you will be able to read during your visit in the reading room.
It is also recommended to consult the user’s guide book before.

There is some literature that will give you information on the archive (in German language):

  • Hacisalihoglu, Mehmet: Osmanische Quellen zur Balkangeschichte. Versuch einer Übersicht über die Bestände des Zentralarchivs in Istanbul und weiterer osmanischer Archive, in: Clewing, Konrad: Südosteuropa. Von vormoderner Vielfalt und nationalstaatlicher Vereinheitlichung. Festschrift für Edgar Hönsch, Vol. 127, Oldenbourg Verlag 2005, S. 35 – 85.
  • Majer, Hans Georg: Südosteuropa im Osmanischen Reich, in: Lauer, Reinhard/ Ders. (Hrsg.): Osmanen und Islam in Südosteuropa, Berlin (u.a.) 2014, S. 9 -36.

Registration

  • You will have to register in person (even if you have registered online before). Make sure to carry your passport, a valid visa (the registration is limited to the day your visa expires) and an extra passport photo .
  • The Registration is also valid for the T.C. Cumhurbaşkanlığı Devlet Arşivleri Başkanlığı – Osmanlı Arşivi / Turkish Presidency State Archives of the Republic of Turkey (Central Archive for documents of the Turkish Republic).

Reading Room

The reading room is very large, equipped with desks and computers. Power sockets are available, but there is NO wifi or any other connection to the internet.

There is a small reference library in the reading room where some handbooks and research literature is available.

Reading Room Rules and Regulations

Before entering the area of the archive, you will have to pass a security control (like at the airport). Afterwards, before entering the reading room, you are asked to leave your coat, bags, etc. in the cloakroom. From there, an elevator will take you to the reading room.
Many of the archive documents are already digitized – you can order these in the online catalogue. Documents, that aren’t digitized yet, will have to be ordered via a paper form.
It is possible take photos of the documents that aren’t digitized yet (against payment of a fee, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.).

You can also buy a CD with copies of your selected archive documents.

Archive Databases & Online Finding Aids

https://katalog.devletarsivleri.gov.tr/  – registration necessary!

User’s guide book (in turkish language)

Practical Advice

  • For information on attaining a visa into Turkey, please visit The Republic of Turkey Ministry of Foreign Affairs website, which lists countries that require visas or have free access for visits up to 90 days.
  • Basic knowledge of the Turkish language is highly recommended as only part of the staff speaks English.
  • Make sure to bring your passport, visa AND an extra passport photo for the registration. ID cards are not accepted for the registration!
  • The registration is possible with a tourist visa (stamp in your passport – valid 90 days in a time frame of 180 days).
  • To get to the archive, take the bus from Taksim Meydanı to the stop “Sadabad Osmanlı Arşivi Otobüs Duraği”. Consult also: http://www.iett.gov.tr
  • You do not necessarily have to bring your own food, for there is a cafeteria in the area of the archive.

Citation Suggestion

Grüßhaber, Gerhard: T.C. Cumhurbaşkanlığı Devlet Arşivleri Başkanlığı – Osmanlı Arşivi / Turkish Presidency State Archives of the Republic of Turkey – Department of Ottoman Archives, in: ESE Archives Guide: A Web Guide to East and Southeast European Archives, 2017 (2018-10-08), http://www.ese-archives.geschichte.uni-muenchen.de/?p=475

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