Education, later Ottoman - Encyclopaedia of Islam, THREE
[Article]
Sabev, Orlin
Leiden
Brill
(2,091 words)
Prior to the Tanzimat (Tanẓīmāt, 1255-93/1839-76) and later Ottoman period, education was under the jurisdiction of the various religious communities whose religious and cultural autonomy was recognized by the authorities. Muslims had two main options for schooling their children: 1) sıbyan (ṣıbyān) mektebi s (elementary schools), which taught reading, memorization of the Qurʾān, and basic religious knowledge, and 2) medrese s ( madrasa , theological school), which trained the ulema ( ʿulamāʾ , religious scholars). Both types of school were supported by vakıfs ( waqf , pious foundation) and later taken over by