A New Yunus Emre and Plague Epidemic dated 1465 (AH. 870)
In two copies of Yunus Emre’s Divans, which are related to each other in terms of the arrangement of poems, there is one poem that gives us information about a plague epidemic that is not recorded in written documents. In the studies related to epidemics in the Ottoman Empire, there is information about the plague epidemics from the 15th century. It is mentioned that an epidemic started in southern Italy in around 1460, passed through the Balkans, and reached Istanbul in 1467. It is unclear whether the plague mentioned in the text and dated 870 AH/1465 CE was recorded in cities such as Skopje or Edirne before reaching Istanbul or whether it was a separate epidemic that occurred in some other city or region. The text also informs us about the existence of a poet named Yunus Emre who was alive in 870 AH/1465 CE. This poet is the third Yunus Emre, different from Yunus Emre who died in 720 AH/1321 CE and Aşık Yunus Emre who died in 843 AH/1439 CE. There is no information about where this Yunus Emre lived and died. However, he may have lived in a city such as Skopje or Edirne, which may have been in the route of the plague epidemic of 1460 to Istanbul.
Yeni Bir Yunus Emre ve h. 870/m.1465 Tarihli Veba Salgını
Şiirlerin tertip düzeni bakımından birbiriyle ilişkili iki Yunus Emre Divanı nüshasında yer alan bir şiir bize bugüne kadara kayıtlara geçmemiş bir veba salgınını ve bunun tarihini haber vermektedir. Konuyla ilgili çalışmalarda 15. yüzyıldan sonraki başlıca veba salgınları ele alınmıştır. 1460’lar civarında güney İtalya’da başlayıp 1467’de Balkanlar üzerinden İstanbul’a ulaşan bir salgın bilinmektedir. Metinde geçen AH.870/m.1465 tarihi, bu salgının İstanbul’dan önce ulaştığı Üsküp, Edirne gibi bir şehirde mi kaydedilmiştir, yoksa başka bir şehirde veya bölgede yaşanmış ayrı bir salgın mıdır, belli değildir. Söz konusu metindeki h.870/m.1465 tarihi bize aynı zamanda bu tarihte hayatta olan Yunus Emre adlı bir şairin varlığını da bildirmektedir. Bu şair, H 720/ M 1321’de vefat eden Yunus Emre ve H 843/ M 1439’da vefat eden Âşık Yunus Emre adlı şairlerden farklı üçüncü bir Yunus Emre’dir. Bu Yunus Emre’nin nerede yaşadığı veya vefat ettiği konusunda bir bilgi yoktur. Ancak 1460 veba salgınının İstanbul’a muhtemel ulaşma yollarından birinin üzerinde, mesela Üsküp, Edirne gibi şehirlerin birinde yaşadığı düşünülebilir.
This article focuses on a poem that is found in two copies of Yunus Emre’s Divans, related to each other in terms of the arrangement of poems. There are two main pieces of information in the poem that are analyzed in the article. The first is the plague epidemic dated 870 AH/1465 CE, and the second is the identity of the poet.
The poem mentioned above appears in two copies of Yunus Emre’s Divans. The first is registered under number 00146 in Istanbul Suleymaniye Manuscripts Library in the Collection of Mugla (Hoca Mustafa Efendi) (=MU), And the second is registered under number 187 in the Egyptian National Library in the Collection of Mecâmi’ Türkî Tal’at (=MM). The second copy must have been copied from the first one.
Here you can find the translation of several verses of this poem that mentions the plague:
1 Have a look, these little children have passed away What has the pain of death done to the parents’ hearts
7 Poor girls, poor brides; the young who were to be grooms Are in wooden horses (coffins), their happiness turned to sorrow
9 There is something like plague, they say; hard to die when you are young Is there anything beyond Allah’s will? The death has come, the life has gone
11 Signs of the apocalypse will come, said the Prophet That was in the year eight hundred and seventy
12 In the month of Muharram of the year eight hundred and seventy The cursed world has swallowed numerous dragons
13 Oh, poor Yunus Emre, why are you groaning? Get ready, the time will come. Look, how many people have left this world.
The written sources on the plague epidemics in the Ottoman Empire focus on the one that started around 1460 in southern Italy and reached Istanbul through the Balkans in 1467. There is no information in the poem on whether the plague dated August 1465 was in a separate region or if it affected Bosnia in 1464, Macedonia in 1466, and reached Istanbul in 1467. However, if the second case is true, then the plague epidemic around Macedonia/Skopje may have been depicted in the poem.
The second point is the identity of a poet. As a poet, the name “Yunus Emre” is remarked in the title of the MU copy and recorded as a pseudonym in both copies. Yunus Emre, who describes the plague epidemic dated 1465 in this poem, cannot be Yunus Emre or Aşık Yunus Emre mentioned in the studies on the subject. It is accepted that the first of them died in 720 AH/1321 CE and the second one in 843 AH/1439 CE. Yunus Emre, who lived in 1465, must be a third, different Yunus Emre. We have no information about where he died, and it is not clear where he lived. However, taking into consideration the spread areas of the epidemic in 1460–1467, there is an opportunity to say that he lived in Macedonia somewhere close to Skopje.
