SIDKÎ BABA’NIN VELÂYETNÂME MÜELLİFİ ALİ NİHÂNÎ’YE DAİR HATIRALARI

Abstract

Memoirs are the literary texts that individuals have written about moments and events that took place in their lives. There are significant pieces of works written in Turkish and world literature in this genre. These works are often created with the purpose of ensuring that other people are aware of the events and individuals that the author came across and thought to be important and preventing the people and events mentioned in these memoirs from being forgotten. Relatively important informa­tion can be found between the lines of these memoirs. Through these works, an important part of the life of a writer can be informed about a lost work or a new copy of a recognized work. Sidki Baba who lived between the second half of the 19th century and the first quarter of the 20th century has an important role in Alevi-Bektashi tradition and is recognized with his works on Alevi-Bektashi culture and its world of thought. He is also respected due to his close relations with Seyh Cemâleddin Efendi and Mudarris Ali Nihâni in the Haci Bektash Veli Dervish Convent where he studied at a young age. In the documents written by the Sidki Baba in 1341/1923 that comprises of his memoirs, there are notes regarding Ali Nihâni’s life and unknown facts about his work. In this study, the analysis of these documents revealed information about Ali Nihâni’s hometown, family, education, teaching activities in the Dervish Convent, his illness, death, and funeral as well as the story of the writing of his work.