The Impact of Endowments on Achieving Social Welfare in the Ottoman State: A Historical and Analytical Study in the Fields of Education, Health, and Relief

Özet

This study examines the role of the waqf (Islamic endowment) system in promoting social welfare in the Ottoman Empire through a historical-analytical approach. Moving beyond descriptive accounts, the research evaluates the institutional effectiveness of waqf as a mechanism of sustainable social financing. It is based on the hypothesis that the Ottoman waqf functioned as a relatively effective tool in delivering essential services, albeit with uneven performance and structural limitations. The study adopts a historical-analytical methodology, drawing on waqf deeds, judicial records, and modern scholarship in Ottoman social and economic history. The findings demonstrate that waqf institutions financed a comprehensive range of services, including education, healthcare, charity, and urban infrastructure, thereby constituting a central pillar of social welfare in the Ottoman context. The research further reveals that the waqf system provided a relatively sustainable model of social financing based on income-generating assets. However, this sustainability was characterized by structural rigidity, which limited its adaptability to long-term economic transformations. Additionally, the study identifies geographical disparities, administrative challenges, and legal constraints that affected the overall effectiveness of the system. The study concludes that the Ottoman waqf represents a historically advanced model of non-state welfare provision, combining institutional continuity with social functionality. It also highlights the importance of reinterpreting this model within contemporary theoretical frameworks of welfare and development.