Defterdar/Provincial Treasure

This entry presents a comprehensive overview of the defterdar role’s historical evolution in the Ottoman Empire and its current-day functions in Turkey’s financial administration. The defterdar was originally responsible for carrying out bookkeeping and accounting tasks. In the Fatimid period, daftardar became widespread in Arabic, meaning sahib-i daftar, signifying the management of public records and state archives. This term was uniformly used during the thirteenth century in the Ilkhanid state and later evolved into defterdar-ı memalik for the leader of the financial organization. In the Ottoman Empire, the defterdarlık institution played an integral role in overseeing finances and provincial finances. It was integrated into the Fatih Kanunname during Mehmet II’s reign and consisted of a başdefterdar as well as several accountants and property accountants. The institution regulated fiscal responsibilities in different provinces, such as Anatolia, Şıkkı Sani, and Arab, including mal defterdars accountable for collecting urban revenue. In the sixteenth century, the duties of başdefterdar expanded to cover revenue collection from the mukataa system. By the eighteenth century, the başdefterdar’s office handled all financial affairs. In present-day Turkey, the defterdar serves as the representative of the Ministry of Finance in metropolitan municipalities and bears the responsibility of several financial obligations.