Darulfünun: Composition of Ancient Concepts
Hasan Sabri ÇeliktaşThe subject of this study is the composition of Dârulfünûn, which is considered appropriate as a name for the new institution that emerged on the stage of history to provide higher education in the nineteenth century. In the second quarter of the nineteenth century in the Ottoman State, the Temporary Council of Education (Meclis-i Maârif-i Muvakkat) was established in order to discuss the educational affairs within the scope of public education (terbiyet-i âmme) and to carry out some planning. The Council advised the state that the activities of education and training should be divided into three levels and that a new higher education institution should be opened with the advanced level of the educational institutions at that time, and deemed the name “Darulfünun” appropriate for the institution. In the nomenclature of darulfünun, some historians prefer to read the matter by contrasting it with the pre-existing understanding of madrasah education and the newly formed understanding of education, which constitutes the problem of our study. In this context, the claim of the study is that the elements in the composition of Darulfünun in the nomenclature issue have a counterpart in the history of ancient science, culture and education; that the new structure is not opposed to the madrasah and the understanding of education it represents. In the study, the historical data analysis method was based on solving the identified problem. As a result of the study, it was determined that the words that constitute the composition of Darulfünun had a counterpart in the history of ancient science, culture and education; the new structure was not opposed to the madrasah and the understanding of education that it represented.
Dârulfünûn: Kadim Kavramların Terkibi
Hasan Sabri ÇeliktaşBu çalışmanın konusu XIX. yüzyılda yüksek eğitim vermek üzere tarih sahnesine çıkan yeni kuruma isim olarak uygun görülen Dârulfünûn terkibidir. Osmanlı Devleti’nde XIX. yüzyılın ikinci çeyreğinde eğitim işlerinin “terbiyet-i âmme” kapsamında görüşülmesi ve bir takım planlamaların yapılması için Meclis-i Maârif-i Muvakkat kurulmuştur. Meclis, eğitim öğretim faaliyetlerinin üç kademeye ayrılması ve o zamanki eğitim kurumlarının ileri derecesinde olmak üzere yüksek eğitim verecek yeni bir kurumun açılması gerektiği yönünde devlete tavsiyede bulunmuş ve kuruma “Dârulfünûn” ismini uygun görmüştür. Dârulfünûn’un isimlendirilmesinde bir kısım tarihçi meseleyi önceden beri devam eden medrese eğitim anlayışı ile yeni oluşan eğitim anlayışı arasında karşıtlıklar kurarak okumayı tercih etmektedir ki bu mesele çalışmamızın problemini oluşturmaktadır. Bu bağlamda çalışmanın iddiası ise isimlendirme meselesinde Dârulfünûn terkibindeki unsurların kadim ilim, kültür ve eğitim tarihinde bir karşılığının bulunduğu; yeni yapının medrese ve onun temsil ettiği eğitim anlayışının karşısında olmadığıdır. Tanımlanan problemin çözülmesine yönelik tarihî veri analiz yöntemi esas alınmıştır. Çalışmanın neticesinde Dârulfünûn terkibini oluşturan kelimelerin kadim ilim, kültür ve eğitim tarihimizde bir karşılığının bulunduğu; yeni yapının medrese ve onun temsil ettiği eğitim anlayışının karşısında olmadığı tespit edilmiştir.
In the second quarter of the nineteenth century in the Ottoman Empire, the Temporary Council of Education was established in order to discuss educational affairs within the scope of public education. The Council recommended that the education and training activities should be divided into three levels and that an educational institution called Dârulfünûn be established to provide higher education. In the background of the establishment of the new institution, there was a fünûn mektebi (school of sciences and arts) which was planned to be established to meet the education and training activities of non-Muslim subjects. At that time, non-Muslim subjects sent their children to Europe due to their educational institutions were not being at the desired level. Since the children who went there learned harmful things, it was determined that there was a problem against the state. In order to prevent this problem, The Sultan’s approval was obtained for the opening of a fünun mektebi where only non-Muslim subjects would teach arithmetic sciences, industry, arts and professions, but the fate of this educational institution remained uncertain. The council, which was given the task of opening such an institution, prepared a report for the opening of a new educational institution named Dârulfünûn and this report was approved by the Sultan. Unlike fünûn mektebi, Dârulfünûn was conceived within the scope of terbiyet-i âmme (public education) not only to appeal to non-Muslim subjects but to all Ottoman subjects. At the same time, this new educational institution was conceived to encompass not only a certain group of sciences but also all sciences.
Until the nineteenth century, the need for secondary and high level civil education in the Ottoman State was met significantly by madrasahs, which had their own unique educational and administrative structure. In the mentioned period, education continued in madrasahs. In the naming of Dârulfünûn, some historians prefer to read the issue through the contrasts thought to exist between the understanding of education that had been continuing for a long time and the new understanding of education. This issue constitutes the problem of our study. The claim of the study is that the words dâr (house) and fünûn (sciences and arts) in the composition of Dârulfünûn were used in the history of ancient science, culture and education; and that the new structure was not opposed to the madrasah and the understanding of science it represents. As a result of our study, it was understood that the concepts that constitute the composition of Dârulfünûn have a counterpart in our history of ancient science, culture and education.
In history, the word dâr has been used as a key concept since the early periods of Islam to indicate a place where activities related to science, culture and education were carried out. The word fünûn has been a concept used to refer to the whole of literary, linguistic, religious, philosophical, aritmetic and natural sciences rather than a single branch of science from an early period. The composition of Dârulfünûn is seen in the reports of both the Temporary Council and other competent authorities as the source of the ulûm ve fünûn-ı mütenevvia (sciences and various arts and sciences), which will ensure the development of the country and the advanced degree of schools at that time. In addition, this school has been recognized as a center where all sciences and arts will be taught for those who want to educate themselves from the Ottoman subjects and want to work in the state’s staff.
Curriculums were established in different periods from 1863 to 1900, when education began in darulfünun. As mentioned in the analysis of the word fünûn, these curriculums cover a wide range of sciences ranging from literary sciences to religious sciences; from philosophical sciences to natural sciences; from aritmetic sciences to historical sciences. Among the sciences here, the religious sciences, the literary sciences, logic, philosophical sciences, aritmetic, geometry, astronomy and the like were also included in the madrasah education curriculum.
After all these explanations, it has been seen that the composition Dârulfünûn was neither far from the history of Islamic science, culture and education, nor was it a nomenclature that did not coincide with the understanding of education in the Ottoman State at that time. Choosing such a composition was of course, to indicate a different constitution. However, while making this choice, it was seen that there was no intent to oppose the madrasah and the sciences taught there or reject those sciences. It can be said that the naming of the new educational institution was made by evaluating the historical background in a good way.
The word fünûn has been used in books in which the classification of sciences is made, without making any religious, literary or natural distictions. The encompassing meaning in the word fünûn is connected with the diversity of sciences in the new higher education institution that was to be opened. Because this situation is clearly seen in the minutes of the Temporary Council of Education presented to the Meclis-i Vâlâ (Sublime Council), where the idea and naming of Dârulfünûn came to the agenda. The composition of Dârulfünûn in the minutes indicates a place and formation where kâffe-i ulûm ve fünûn (the whole of sciences and arts) would be taught. In this context, it is understood that the elements in the composition of Dârulfünûn have a counterpart in the history of ancient science, culture and education; that the new structure is not opposed to the madrasah and the understanding of science it represents; that the word fünûn in the composition was used not only for the Western sciences but also for the sciences of language sciences (ulûm-ı Arabiye), literary, logic, religious sciences and philosophical sciences.