Abstract:

The moral value of endowments had a great status in the Ottoman Caliphate, where the endowments and their institutions flourished in that era to a degree beyond imagination, and its capabilities reached a level that the endowments had not seen during the ages of Islamic history. The endowment was an indivisible part in all aspects of life and livelihood, and on that basis, it enjoyed a high and prestigious position in the Ottoman Empire and became an essential part of its civilization. The endowment libraries in their large numbers are valuable inheritance from the great Ottoman Empire, as they have served throughout the ages with generosity and are still serving science, knowledge and culture, and the society without discrimination or intolerance, and it continued its services without defect or shortcoming. Even during periods of internal and external ordeals and crises of the state, countless schools and libraries were founded, and everyone were competing in collecting books, establishing libraries, and providing services. It facilitated to engage scholars, students and readers with all passion and love, and in that they were competing from the caliph and the Sultan to the common people to contribute to the endowments as much as possible. In this context, this research aims to find out about the "endowment libraries in the Ottoman Empire" with a focus of their types, services and contents, to the extent that the capacity of this research allows.

Keywords: