Representatives of the assertion that the provisions of fiqh should be amended in the late Ottoman Empire: Mansurizade Said and Mahmud Esad Effendi

• Published in: Mütefekkir Vol. 6; no. 12; pp. 407 - 422
• Main Author: Ünsal,Hadiye
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Aksaray Üniversitesi 31-12-2019
• Subjects: Din Bilimleri; Türkiye; Aksaray; Interest; Slavery; Mahmud Esad Efendi; Polygamy; Mahmud Esad Effendi; Kölelik; Mansurizade Said; Faiz; Çok Eşlilik
• ISSN: 2148-5631; 2148-8134
• DOI: 10.30523/mutefekkir.659184

This article investigates how several scholars and intellectuals during the last period of
the Ottoman Empire understood and interpreted Qur’anic verses concerning such issues
as polygamy, monetary interest, and slavery. This period, known as the Second
Constitutional Era (1908-1918) was one of heated debate in which the multifaceted
modernization policies of the time spread its way into religious thought. One of the
scholars whose views will be mentioned in this paper is Mansurizade Said
(b.1864/d.1923), who taught at Dâr al-Funûn (an institution of higher learning in
Ottoman Empire) and also was known by the title of “mudarris” (professor), and Mahmud
Esad Effendi (b. 1856/d. 1918) who was mostly known by his jurist identity. In this paper,
we will give some information about the biographies and scientific activities of the above
mentioned scholars, followed by their opinions on the Qur’anic rules.