Külliye

Kulliye is the modern concept of the early 20th century for a socio-religious foundation, which belongs to a large mosque and often also serves charitable purposes. In Ottoman documents such complex was usually referred to as imaret or imaret with Friday mosque.

Buildings and their functions

To the establishment of a Kulliye usually a soup kitchen ( Ottoman عمارت imaret ), one or more colleges ( medrese / مدرسه ), a library ( or Kütüphane Darülkütüb / دارالکتب ), an elementary school include ( Mektep / مکتب ), a Hospital ( Darüşşifa / دارالشفاء ), a bathroom ( Hammam / حمام ), latrines, a public fountain house with beverage serving ( Sebil / سبيل ) and a Caravanserai ( Kervansaray / کاروان سرای ) for travelers. Sometimes a sufitischer Dervish Convent ( Tekke / تكيه ) or a guest house for wandering dervishes ( Tabhane / طبع خانه ) as well as an open or closed market are affiliated with, the benefit of the rental income of the Foundation and of the supply of the surrounding residential neighborhood ( Mahalle / محله ) is used. Some large Sultanskülliyen are equipped with an institute for astronomical determination of prayer times and the like ( Muvakkithane / موقت خانه ). In the mosque gardens to rest in tombs ( Turbe / تربه ) the founder of the Külliyen and other important personalities. Today, the buildings are often used for other purposes.

History of Architecture

The concept of Kulliye goes back to the various functions of a mosque in the early days of Islam, when the mosque was a place of prayer and religious teaching and served as a hostel. The first Külliyen in Anatolia were built by the Artukiden. One that remains largely intact example of these structures is built in the early 12th century Eminüddin Külliyesi in Mardin. In the Ottoman Empire of the 14th and 15th centuries it became customary to extend the capabilities of Külliyen and assign their own buildings to the various functions. The soon built in the second half of the 15th century after the conquest of Constantinople, referred to in the Deed new imaret Kulliye of Istanbul's Fatih Mosque became the model for similar complexes in the entire Ottoman Empire. The largest and most important Külliyen were donated in the wake of the Ottoman sultans and their families, as well as of the high dignitaries of the empire.