Osman I or Osman Ghazi (; or Osman Gazi; died 1323/4) was the eponymous founder of the Ottoman Empire (first known as a beylik or emirate). While initially a small Turkoman Osman I, also called Osman Gazi, (born c. 1258died 1324 or 1326), ruler of a Turkmen principality in northwestern Anatolia who is regarded as the founder of the Ottoman Turkish state. principality during Osman's lifetime, his beylik transformed into a vast empire in the centuries after his death.The Ottoman Empire, 1700–1999, Donald Quataert, p. 4, 2005 It existed until 1922 shortly after the end of World War I, when the sultanate was abolished.
Owing to the scarcity of historical sources dating from his lifetime, very little factual information about Osman has survived. Not a single written source survives from Osman's reign, and the Ottomans did not record the history of his life until the fifteenth century, more than a hundred years after his death. Because of this, historians find it very challenging to differentiate between fact and myth in the many stories told about him. One historian has even gone so far as to declare it impossible, describing the period of Osman's life as a "black hole".
According to later Ottoman tradition, Osman's ancestors were descendants of the Kayı tribe of Oghuz Turks. However, many scholars of the early Ottomans regard it as a later fabrication meant to reinforce dynastic legitimacy.
The Ottoman principality was one of many Anatolian beyliks that emerged in the second half of the thirteenth century. Situated in the region of Bithynia in the north of Asia Minor, Osman's principality found itself particularly well placed to launch attacks on the vulnerable Byzantine Empire, which his descendants would eventually go on to conquer.
Name
Some scholars have argued that Osman's original name was Turkish, probably Atman or Ataman, and was only later changed to ʿOsmān, of Arabic origin. The earliest Byzantine sources, including Osman's contemporary and Greek historian George Pachymeres, spell his name as Ἀτουμάν (Atouman) or Ἀτμάν (Atman), whereas Greek sources regularly render both the Arabic form ʿUthmān and the Turkish version ʿOsmān with θ, τθ, or τσ. An early Arabic source mentioning him also used "ط" (ṭ) rather than "ث" (th) in one instance. Osman thus could have adopted the more prestigious Muslim name later in his life. Turkish historian Halil İnalcık argued that the hypotheses that Osman was in fact named Ataman (per George Pachymeres), and that he came from the Dasht-i Qipchaq north of the Black Sea, are both remote possibilities.
Arab scholars like Shihab al-Umari and Ibn Khaldun used the name Othman, while Ibn Battuta, who visited the region during Orhan's reign, called him Osmancık (also spelled Othmānjiq or Osmanjiq).Ahmet Yaşar Ocak, (2000), Osmanli Devleti'nin kuruluşu: efsaneler ve gerçekler, p. 45 (in Turkish) The suffix -cık (or -cuk), indicates the diminutive in Turkish, thus he was known by the name of Osmancik, which means "Osman the Little", to differentiate between him and the third Rashidun Caliph "Uthman the Great".Kenje Kara, Daniel Prior, (2004), Archivum Ottomanicum, Volume 22, p. 140
From the 16th century until well into the 18th century, his name was written as "Ottoman", "Otoman" or "Othoman" in English (Early Modern English). The adjective "Ottoman" comes from this name.
Historical background
Most sources agree that the Ottoman Turks belonged to the Kayı Oghuz Turkic clan, who, according to Ottoman traditions, fled their native homeland in Central Asia during the early 13th century due to the Mongol invasions. The clan settled in Anatolia, in a region belonging to the Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm. Other sources claim that the Kayı clan moved to Anatolia two centuries earlier than the previously mentioned date, alongside the Seljuks, when they left Transoxiana to Khurasan around 1040 to reside near the city of Merv. Then, the Kayı clan moved towards eastern Anatolia after 1071, where it displaced other Turkic clans. Later, it became involved in the army of Sultan Kayqubad I and fought against the Khwarazmians, Mongols, and Byzantines, who were raiding Seljuk lands. According to several sources, the Kayı warriors were known for filling first lines in battles, and their fighting skills and bravery were among the major factors which contributed to Seljuk victories in many battles. This fact prompted Sultan Kayqubad to appoint Ertuğrul, the clan's Emir, as a Moqaddam (Lieutenant), and to reward the Kayıs some fertile lands near Ankara, where they settled and remained in the service of the Sultan for several years.
Later, Ertuğrul was granted dominion over the town of Söğüt in northwestern Anatolia on the Byzantine frontier. He also obtained the title of Uç beyliği or Uç bey (literally: marcher-lord). Granting this title was in line with the traditions of the Seljuk Sultanate, which was rewarding any clan chieftain who rose to power and was joined by a number of smaller clans, the title of marcher-lord. However, Ertuğrul had far-reaching political ambitions. He sought to expand beyond the lands rewarded to him. Thus, he started raiding the Byzantine possessions in the name of the Sultan successfully conquering several towns and villages, and slowly expanding his dominion over the course of his half a century long tenure as a Seljuk governor. In 1281, Ertuğrul died at nearly 90 years of age.
Birth, lineage, and early years
Sources about Osman's early life
The exact date of Osman's birth is unknown, and very little is known about his early life and origins due to the scarcity of sources and the many myths and legends which came to be told about him by the Ottomans in later centuries. The reason for the lack of information available about this stage of Osman's life is due to the fact that the oldest-known source about this time period was written about a hundred years after Osman's death. Among these sources are: Destan-ı Tevarih-i Al-i Osman (The Oral history of the Ottomans), written in the 14th century by the Ottoman poet and court physician better known as Ahmedî (1334–1413), (The Joy of histories) by Şükrullah (d. 1464), and (History of the Ottomans) by Derviş Ahmed Âşıkî, known as Âşıkpaşazâde (1400–1484). Additionally, these remaining sources are not the originals, but rather copies, or copies of the copies that were rewritten over the years, leading to a probable loss or altering in the information. In fact, it is accepted that Ottoman, European, and Byzantine sources are not very reliable when considering the origins of Osman and his clan. On one hand, the oldest known records originally written by the Ottomans all date back to the period that followed the conquest of Constantinople (1453 CE). On the other hand, none of the Byzantine historians did refer in their writings to the origin of the Ottomans. As for European historians, these Turkic Muslim peoples were outside of their interest. However, that changed after a century of this period, when the Ottomans began to pose a threat to Europe.
Birth Some sources indicate that Osman was born on 13 February 1258, the exact same day the Mongol hordes invaded Baghdad, killing its inhabitants and ravaging its landmarks. He was most likely born around the middle of the thirteenth century, possibly in 1254/5, the date given by the sixteenth-century Ottoman historian Kemalpaşazade. The few available sources agree that he was born in the town of Söğüt, which his father Ertuğrul took as the capital of his beylik.
Lineage
According to Ottoman tradition, Osman's father Ertuğrul led the Turkic Kayı tribe west from Central Asia into Anatolia, fleeing the Mongol onslaught. He then pledged allegiance to the Sultan of the Anatolian Seljuks, who granted him dominion over the town of Söğüt on the Byzantine frontier.Stanford Shaw, History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey (Cambridge: University Press, 1976), vol. 1 , p. 13 This connection between Ertuğrul and the Seljuks, however, was largely invented by court chroniclers a century later, and the true origins of the Ottomans thus remain obscure. According to the Karamanid historian Shikari, Osman was a lowborn Yörük and shepherd.
In terms of proportions, the most popular and classic narration is that Osman is the grandson of Süleyman Şah, who died drowning while crossing the Euphrates River on horseback. The Turkish historian Yılmaz Öztuna considers that Osman's grandfather, and Ertuğrul's father, is called Gündüz Alp, saying that it is more likely that Süleyman Şah is a name stuck in Anatolian popular memory, and it actually refers to Süleyman bin Qutulmish who founded the Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm. Öztuna adds that it is possible that Ottoman historians tried forming a connection between the Ottomans and the Seljuks, especially since the Ottomans appeared on the stage of history claiming to be the legitimate successors of the Seljuks. Based on this, Osman's assumed lineage is as follows: Osman bin Ertuğrul bin Gündüz Alp bin Kaya Alp bin Gökalp bin Sarquk Alp bin Kayı Alp. Other researchers agree that the connection between Ertuğrul, Osman, and the Seljuks may have been largely invented by court chroniclers a century later, and the true origins of the Ottomans thus remain obscure. On the other hand, some Ottoman sources indicate further lineage to Osman and the Oghuz Turks, which is closer to myth than reality, saying that these people are descendants of Japheth, son of Noah, and that Osman's genealogical tree contains 52 ancestors or more and ends with the Prophet Noah himself. This lineage includes Gökalp and Oghuz Han (who is said to be the father of Gökalp), and all the Oghuz Turkic peoples, including the Seljuks.
Early years The Ottoman historian Kemalpaşazâde mentioned that Osman was Ertuğrul's youngest son and that he was raised in the traditional nomadic Turkic ways: he learned wrestling, swordsmanship, horse riding, archery, and falconry, from an early age. He quickly mastered the previously mentioned skills, outperforming all his brothers. He was also taught the principles of Islam, and was influenced by the teachings of Sufi sheikhs, mostly his mentor Sheikh Edebali, and this was reflected in his personality and lifestyle.
Origin of the Ottoman Empire
Almost nothing is known for certain about Osman's early activities, except that he controlled the region around the town of Söğüt and from there launched raids against the neighboring Byzantine Empire. The first datable event in Osman's life is the Battle of Bapheus in 1301 or 1302, in which he defeated a Byzantine force sent to counter him.
Osman appears to have followed the strategy of increasing his territories at the expense of the Byzantines while avoiding conflict with his more powerful Turkish neighbors. His first advances were through the passes which lead from the barren areas of northern Phrygia near modern Eskişehir into the more fertile plains of Bithynia; according to Stanford Shaw, these conquests were achieved against the local Byzantine nobles, "some of whom were defeated in battle, others being absorbed peacefully by purchase contracts, marriage contracts, and the like."Shaw, Ottoman Empire, p. 14
Ascendance to leadership Osman became Emir, or Bey, upon his father's death around 1281. According to some historians, Osman's accession to power wasn't peaceful as he had to fight his relatives before he got hold of his clan's leadership. One of Osman's major rivals was his uncle Dündar Bey, who might have plotted to kill his nephew or rebelled against him when the latter decided to attack a small Greek island. Dündar Bey saw that Osman's ambition as a threat that might put the whole clan in danger. However, Osman had to pull out his sword to kill his uncle for disobeying.