List of Ottoman calligraphers explained

The following is an incomplete list of Ottoman calligraphers:

15th–16th century

• Hâfiz Osman
• Seyyid Kasim Gubari
• Ahmed Karahisari
• Sheikh Hamdullah
• Kahdi Mahmud Efendi (d. 1575)^[1]
• Ahmed Pasa (d. 1611) son of Kahdi Mahmud Efendi^[2]
• Mustafa Ali (d. 1600)^[3]
• Yûsuf Efendi (d. 1611)^[4]
• Abdullah Amâsi- 16th-century calligrapher^[5]
• Ahmed Şemseddin Karahisarî (d. 963/1556)^[6]
• Gâbârî Adurrahman (d. 974/1566)^[7]
• Rizâî Mahmud Baba Efendi (d. 987/1579)^[8]
• Mustafa Dede – son of Sheikh Hamdullah (d. 945/1538)^[9]
• Tâcîzâde Ca'fer Çelebi (1452–1515) poet, calligrapher and scholar^[10]
• Ibrahim Vahdi (d. 1714)^[11]

17th–18th century

• Ibrahim Afif (d. 1767)^[12]
• Egrikapili Mehmed Rasim Efendi
• İsmail Zühdi Efendi
• Mehmed Esad Yesari
• Mehmed Rasim (1687–1755)^[13]
• Mustafa Kutahi (d. after 1785)^[14]
• Musa al-'Abidi
• Yesarizade Mustafa Izzet Efendi
• Derviş Ali
• Veliyyuddin Efendi^[15]
• Mehmed Refi Efendi (d. 1769)^[16]
• Abdul Rahman Hilmi (d. 1805)
• Yedikuleli Seyyid 'Abdullah Efendi (d. 1731)
• Suyolcuzade Mustafa Eyyubi (1619–1686)
• Mahmud Celaleddin Efendi (c. 1750–1829)
• Esmâ Ibret Hanim (b. 1780) wife of Mahmud Celâleddin Efendi
• Halid Erzurumi (d. 1651)^[17]
• Dede Mehmed Efendi (d. 1734)^[18]
• Şâbanzâde Mehmed Efendi(d. 1120/1708)^[19]
• Dede Mehmed Efendi (d. 1147/1734)^[20]
• Adülbâkî -i Tebrîzî (d. 1039/1629-30)^[21]
• Kâtibzâde Mehmed Refî (d. 1183/1769)^[22]
• Hasan Üsküdârî (d. 1023/1614)^[23]
• Hüseyin Hablî (d. 1157/1744)^[24]
• İbrâhim Rodosî (d. 1201/1787)^[25]
• Eski İsmâil Zühdü (d. 1144/1731)^[26]
• Eğrikapılı Mehmed Râsim (d. 1169/1756)^[27]
• Ramazan b. İsmâil رمضان بن إسماعيل (d. 1091/1680)^[28]
• Tophâneli Mahmued Nûri,(d. 1080/1669)^[29]

19th–20th century

• Ali Alparslan (1925–2006)^[30]
• Şefik Bey (Mehmed Şefik, 1819–1880)^[31]
• Abdullah Zuhudi Effendi (1835–1879)^[32]
• Muhsinzade Abdullah Bey (1832–1899)^[33]
• Hasan Çelebi (b. 1937)^[34]
• Hasan Riza Effendi (1849–1920)^[35]
• Kazasker Mustafa Izzet Efendi
• Mehmed Şevkî Efendi (1829–1887)^[36]
• Mehmet Şefik (1818–1890)^[37]
• Mehmed Sami Efendi (1838–1912)
• Hattat Aziz Efendi
• Mustafa Râkim
• Kayışzâde Hâfız Osman Efendi^[38]
• ^[39]
• Necmeddîn Okyay (Necmeddîn Üsküdari Efendi, 1883–1976)^[40]
• Bakkal Arif Efendi^[41]
• Kâmil Akdik^[42]
• Neyzen Emîn Efendi^[43]
• Halîm Özyazıcı (1898–1964)^[44]
• Bekir Pektin (b. 1913)^[45]
• Hamid Aytaç
• Ismail Hakkı Altunbezer (1873–1946)^[46]
• Mustafa Râkim (Mustafa Raq'im, 1757–1826)^[47]
• Çömez Mustafa Vasif (d. 1853)^[48]
• Hafız Hasan Tahsin Hilmi Efendi (1847–1912)^{[49] [50]}
• Mustafa Halim Özyazici (alternate spelling: Oyazici) (1898–1964)^[51]
• Mustafa Uğur Derman (b. 1935)^[52]
• Hafız Mehmed Fehmi Efendi (1860–1915)^[53]
• Abdülkadir Şürki Efendi 19th-century calligrapher^[54]
• Şeref Adkik (1899–1972)^[55]
• Şeyh Ali Bedevî (1868–1943)^[56]
• Şeref Akdik (1899–1972)^[57]
• Hasan Rizâ Efendi (d. 1890)^[58]
• Esad Muhis Paşa (1780–1850)^[59]
• Mehmed Hâşim Efendi (d. 1845)^[60]
• Mehmed Nazif Bey (1846–1913)^[61]
• Kebecizâde Mehmed Vasfi, (d. 1831)^[62]
• Çemşîr Hâfız Sâlîh Efendi, (d. 1236/1820–21)^[63]
• Laz Ömer Efendi (d. 1240/1825)^[64]
• Mehmed Şevket Vahdetî (1833–1871)^[65]

See also

• List of Persian calligraphers
• List of Georgian calligraphers

Notes and References

1. Uğur Derman, M., Letters in Gold: Ottoman Calligraphy from the Sakıp Sabancı Collection, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998, p. 60
2. Uğur Derman, M., Letters in Gold: Ottoman Calligraphy from the Sakıp Sabancı Collection, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998, p. 60
3. Behrens-Abouseif, D. and Vernoit, S. (es), Islamic Art in the 19th Century: Tradition, Innovation, And Eclecticism, BRILL, 2006, p.90
4. Islam Encyclopedia, Online:; Turkish Biographical Index, Walter de Gruyter, 2011, p. 1079
5. Mansour, N., Sacred Script: Muhaqqaq in Islamic Calligraphy, I.B. Tauris, 2011, p. 164;Islam Encyclopedia, 16th-century Online:
6. Mansour, N., Sacred Script: Muhaqqaq in Islamic Calligraphy, I.B. Tauris, 2011, p. 200;Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
7. https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/gubari-abdurrahmanOnline: Islam Encyclopedia
8. https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/rizai-mahmud-baba-efendiOnline: Islam Encyclopedia
9. Akin-Kivanç, E., Mustafa Âli's Epic Deeds of Artists: A Critical Edition of the Earliest Ottoman Text about the Calligraphers and Painters of the Islamic World, Brill, 2011, p. 95; Islam Encyclopedia,Online:
10. Brill Online Reference Works, Online:
11. Rado, S., Türk Hattatlari: XV [Turkish Calligraphers], Istanbul: Yayin Matbaacilik Ticaret, 1983
12. Rado, S., Türk Hattatlari: XV, (yüzyildan günümüze kadar gelmis ünlü hattatlarin hayatlari ve yazilarindan örnekler), Istanbul, Yayin Matbaacilik Ticaret, 1983
13. Bloom, G and Blair, S.S., "Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture", Vol. 1, Oxford University Press, 2009, p. 474
14. Habibeh Rahim, Inscription as Art in the World of Islam: Unity in Diversity: at the Emily Lowe Gallery,Hofstra University, 1996, p. 21
15. Saleh, W.A., The Formation of the Classical Tafsīr Tradition: The Qurʼān Commentary of Al-Thaʻlabī (d. 427/1035), Brill, 2004, p. 251; Thomas, D. and Chesworth, J.A., Christian-Muslim Relations. A Bibliographical History, Volume 7, Brill, 2004, p. 630
16. Ayvansaray-i, H.H., The Garden of the Mosques: Hafiz Hüseyin Al-Ayvansarayî's Guide to the Muslim Monuments of Ottoman Istanbul, Brill, 2000, p. 25; Turkish Biographical Index, Walter de Gruyter, 2011, p. 844
17. Bayani, M., The Decorated Word: Qurʼans of the 17th to 19th Centuries, Volume 4, Part 1, Nour Foundation, 1999, p. 77
18. Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
19. Islam Encyclopedia,Online:
20. Islam Encyclopedia,Online:
21. Islam Encyclopedia,Online:
22. Islam Encyclopedia,Online:
23. Uğur Derman, M., Letters in Gold: Ottoman Calligraphy from the Sakıp Sabancı Collection, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998, p. 62 and p, 64; "Hasan Üsküdârî" [Biography], Islam Encyclopedia, Online:; Turkish Biographical Index, Walter de Gruyter, 2011, p. 1079
24. Uğur Derman, M., Letters in Gold: Ottoman Calligraphy from the Sakıp Sabancı Collection, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998, p. 187; Turkish Biographical Index, Walter de Gruyter, 2011, p. 488; "Hüseyin Hablî" [Biography] in: Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
25. Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
26. Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
27. Turkish Biographical Index, Walter de Gruyter, 2011, p. 316;Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
28. Roper, G. (ed.), The History of the Book in the Middle East, Routledge, 2017, [E-book edition], n.p.; Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
29. Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
30. Bloom, G and Blair, S.S., "Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture", Vol. 3, Oxford University Press, 2009, p. 361
31. Bloom, G and Blair, S.S., "Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture", Vol. 1, Oxford University Press, 2009, p. 474; Turkish Biographical Index, Walter de Gruyter, 2011, p. 940
32. Bloom, G and Blair, S.S., "Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture", Vol. 3, Oxford University Press, 2009, p. 39; Uğur Derman, Letters in Gold: Ottoman Calligraphy from the Sakıp Sabancı Collection, N.Y., Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998, p. 118
33. M. Uğur Derman, Letters in Gold: Ottoman Calligraphy from the Sakıp Sabancı Collection, N.Y., Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998, p. 118; Traditional Turkish Arts: Calligraphy, Volume 5, Turkish Republic, Ministry of Culture and Tourism, General Directorate of Fine Arts, n.d. p. 21
34. Bloom, G and Blair, S.S., "Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture", Vol. 3, Oxford University Press, 2009, p. 361
35. M. Uğur Derman, Letters in Gold: Ottoman Calligraphy from the Sakıp Sabancı Collection, N.Y., Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998, p. 118
36. M. Uğur Derman, Letters in Gold: Ottoman Calligraphy from the Sakıp Sabancı Collection, N.Y., Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998, p. 19
37. Bloom, J. and Blair, S.S. (eds), Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art & Architecture, Volume 1, Oxford University Press, 2009, p. 475
38. Turkish Biographical Index, Walter de Gruyter, 2011, p. 769
39. Selçuk Mülayim and İlhan Akşit, Turkish Art and Architecture in Anatolia & Mimar Sinan, Akşit, 2005, p.262
40. Bloom, G and Blair, S.S., "Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture", Vol. 3, Oxford University Press, 2009, p. 65; Turkish Biographical Index, Walter de Gruyter, 2011, p. 757
41. Murat Ocak, The Turks: Ottomans vol. 2, Yeni Türkiye, 2002 [E-book edition], n.p
42. Traditional Turkish Arts: Calligraphy, Volume 5, Turkish Republic, Ministry of Culture and Tourism, General Directorate of Fine Arts, n.d. p. 51
43. Turkish Biographical Index, Walter de Gruyter, 2011, p. 151
44. Turkish Biographical Index, Walter de Gruyter, 2011, p. 785
45. Bloom, G and Blair, S.S., "Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture", Vol. 3, Oxford University Press, 2009, p. 361
46. Shaw, W. K. M., Ottoman Painting: Reflections of Western Art from the Ottoman Empire to the Ottoman Empire to the Turkish Republic, I.B. Taurus, 2011, p. 57, p. 111, p. 169; Turkish Biographical Index, Walter de Gruyter, 2011, p. 785
47. Bloom, G and Blair, S.S., "Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture", Vol. 1, Oxford University Press, 2009, p. xvi
48. Bloom, G and Blair, S.S., "Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture", Vol. 3, Oxford University Press, 2009, p. 39; Uğur Derman, Letters in Gold: Ottoman Calligraphy from the Sakıp Sabancı Collection, N.Y., Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998, p. 114
49. Selçuk Mülayim and İlhan Akşit, Turkish Art and Architecture in Anatolia & Mimar Sinan, Akşit, 2005, p. 262; Turkish Biographical Index, Walter de Gruyter, 2011, p. 463
50. https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/tahsin-efendi-hasan TDV Islamic Encyclopedia
51. Bloom, G. and Blair, S.S., "Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture", Vol. 3, Oxford University Press, 2009, p. 89
52. Oxford Index, Online:
53. http://ismek.ibb.gov.tr/ismek-el-sanatlari-kurslari/webedition/File/ekitap/hatsanati/Hat%20_sberk_5.pdf
54. https://diagrammatica.wikis.gdc.georgetown.edu/file/view/Somaiya+Sibai+-+Curatorial+Assignment.pdf
55. Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
56. Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
57. Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
58. Islam Encyclopedia, Online:; M. Uğur Derman, Letters in Gold: Ottoman Calligraphy from the Sakıp Sabancı Collection, N.Y., Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998, p. 118
59. Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
60. Schmidt, J., Catalogue of Turkish Manuscripts in the Library of Leiden University and Other Collections in the Netherlands, BRILL, 2012, p. 406; Turkish Biographical Index, Walter de Gruyter, 2011, p. 464; Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
61. Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
62. Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
63. Bayani, M., The Decorated Word: Qurʼans of the 17th to 19th Centuries, Volume 4, Part 1, Nour Foundation, 1999, p. 122 and 269; Islam Encyclopedia, Online:
64. Behrens-Abouseif, F. and Vernoit, S., Islamic Art in the 19th Century: Tradition, Innovation, And Eclecticism, BRILL, 2006, p. 99; Uğur Derman, M., Letters in Gold: Ottoman Calligraphy from the Sakıp Sabancı Collection, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998, p. 23; Islam Encyclopedia, https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/laz-omer-efendiOnline:
65. Turkish Biographical Index, Walter de Gruyter, 2011, p. 1035;Islam Encyclopedia, Online: